Peppol France Solution Architecture: Use of Customization IDs and Mandatory Registration for Peppol BIS Billing 3.0
Introduction and Background
As part of the implementation of the French Peppol Solution, Service Providers have raised a number of questions. Following review, two topics have been identified where additional clarification would benefit all Service Providers:
- Use of Customization IDs
- Mandatory registration of the Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 receive capability
This article addresses both topics in detail, including the relevant technical values.
1. Clarification on the Use of Customization IDs
The Peppol Solution Architecture defines the Customization IDs to be used for Peppol document exchange. In parallel, the French specifications define the Customization ID (BT-24) to be used within the business document itself. It is important that these two identifiers are not confused and that each is applied in its correct context:
- Peppol Customization IDs SHALL be used in the Standard Business Document Header (SBDH) and in SMP service registrations.
- The French Customization ID (BT-24) is used within the business document (i.e., inside the invoice/credit note XML).
Scope of BT-24
The Customization ID defined by the French specifications (cbc:CustomizationID, BT-24) applies to all three of the following formats:
- Factur-X
- UBL EN16931
- UN/CEFACT CII (AFNOR XP Z12-012)
According to AFNOR’s “Gestion des données de profils et cadre de facturation” (Section 4.4.2), invoices must contain information identifying the profile and the underlying transactional process in order to be properly processed. This is achieved through two essential data elements, one of which is BT-24 the field identifying the profile of the message, distinguishing between EN 16931, EXTENDED-CTC-FR, and Factur-X profiles.
The main profile values to be used within the document (BT-24) are as follows:
| Profile | BT-24 Value |
| EN 16931 | urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017 |
| EXTENDED-CTC-FR | urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#conformant#urn.cpro.gouv.fr:1p0:extended-ctc-fr |
| Factur-X BASIC WL | urn:factur-x.eu:1p0:basicwl |
| Factur-X BASIC | urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#compliant#urn:factur-x.eu:1p0:basic |
| Factur-X EN 16931 | urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017 |
| Factur-X EXTENDED | urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#conformant#urn:factur-x.eu:1p0:extended |
Peppol Customization IDs (SBDH and SMP)
The Peppol Customization IDs used in the SBDH and during SMP registration/lookup differ by format:
| # | Format | Customization ID |
| 1 | Factur-X (all profiles) | urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#conformant#urn:peppol:france:billing:Factur-X:1.0::D22B |
| 2 | UN/CEFACT CII EN16931 FR CIUS / UBL EN16931 FR CIUS | urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#compliant#urn:peppol:france:billing:cius:1.0 |
| 3 | UN/CEFACT CII EN16931 FR CTC Extended / UBL EN16931 FR CTC Extended | urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#conformant#urn:peppol:france:billing:extended:1.0 |
Example: full string for UBL EN16931 FR CIUS:
Invoice:
busdox-docid-qns::urn:oasis:names:specification:ubl:schema:xsd:Invoice-2::Invoice##urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#compliant#urn:peppol:france:billing:cius:1.0::2.1
Credit Note:
busdox-docid-qns::urn:oasis:names:specification:ubl:schema:xsd:CreditNote-2::CreditNote##urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#compliant#urn:peppol:france:billing:cius:1.0::2.1
In summary: BT-24 carries the profile information within the document content, while the Peppol Customization IDs are used in the SBDH envelope and during SMP registration/lookup. The two fields serve different purposes and must not be used interchangeably.
2. Mandatory Registration for Peppol BIS Billing 3.0
Mandatory Receive Capabilities Defined by the French Solution Architecture
The French Peppol Solution Architecture defines the following mandatory receive capabilities for regulated invoice exchange:
- Factur-X
- UBL EN16931 France CIUS + Extended
- UN/CEFACT EN16931 France CIUS + Extended
- CDAR
- Peppol BIS Billing 3.0
MUST and MAY Document Types Under Peppol BIS Billing 3.0
| Requirement | Document Type | Document ID |
| MUST | Invoice | busdox-docid-qns::urn:oasis:names:specification:ubl:schema:xsd:Invoice-2::Invoice##urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#compliant#urn:fdc:peppol.eu:2017:poacc:billing:3.0::2.1 |
| MUST | Credit Note | busdox-docid-qns::urn:oasis:names:specification:ubl:schema:xsd:CreditNote-2::CreditNote##urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#compliant#urn:fdc:peppol.eu:2017:poacc:billing:3.0::2.1 |
| MAY | Self-billing Invoice | busdox-docid-qns::urn:oasis:names:specification:ubl:schema:xsd:Invoice-2::Invoice##urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#compliant#urn:fdc:peppol.eu:2017:poacc:selfbilling:3.0::2.1 |
| MAY | Self-billing Credit Note | busdox-docid-qns::urn:oasis:names:specification:ubl:schema:xsd:CreditNote-2::CreditNote##urn:cen.eu:en16931:2017#compliant#urn:fdc:peppol.eu:2017:poacc:selfbilling:3.0::2.1 |
| MAY | Invoice Response | busdox-docid-qns::urn:oasis:names:specification:ubl:schema:xsd:ApplicationResponse-2::ApplicationResponse##urn:fdc:peppol.eu:poacc:trns:invoice_response:3::2.1 |
Reference: Peppol France Solution Architecture v1.3.0, Section 5.2.1 Document Type Identifiers.
As shown above, registration of the Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 receive capability is mandatory for Invoice and Credit Note, while self-billing and invoice response registrations remain optional.
Observation from Current Implementation
During a review of existing SMP registrations, it was observed that some participant registrations:
- Include the French document types, but
- Do not include the Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 document type registrations.
This creates a risk that participants who support the French local formats may nonetheless be unable to receive invoices/credit notes sent via the standard Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 profile.
Recommendations
- Review existing SMP registrations conduct a comprehensive audit of all participant registrations.
- Verify that the Peppol BIS Billing document type registrations are also published in particular, ensure that the MUST-level Invoice and Credit Note registrations are complete in the SMP.
Next Steps
Following the clarifications outlined above, the following next steps have been agreed:
- Add explanatory notes to the Peppol France Confluence page.
- Incorporate today’s clarifications into the next version of the French Peppol Solution Architecture.
- Publish the updated Solution Architecture.
- Service Providers to:
- review their implementation of the Customization IDs;
- review their SMP registrations and ensure that the Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 receive capability is published.
Reference: https://openpeppol.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/FP/overview
Conclusion
Service Providers operating within the French Peppol ecosystem must correctly and consistently apply both BT-24 (in-document profile information) and the Peppol Customization ID (SBDH/SMP). In addition, to ensure uninterrupted processing of regulated invoice traffic, it is critical that the Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 receive capability for Invoice and Credit Note be mandatorily registered in the SMP. Reviewing existing registrations, publishing an updated Solution Architecture, and documenting the clarifications on the Peppol France Confluence page should be treated as priority steps, both for compliance and for operational continuity.