Since 1 January 2026, electronic invoicing via Peppol has been mandatory for every Belgian business registered for VAT — btw in Dutch, TVA in French. Four months later, the verdict on the ground is mixed: according to a survey reported by ITdaily, around half of Belgian SMEs are seeing a time gain thanks to Peppol… but close to a third say they are losing time. If you are in that third, you are not wrong to complain — but you are probably blaming the wrong culprit. The problem is almost never Peppol. It is the way it was plugged into your accounting.
At doo.FINANCE, we work with Belgian SMEs that, a few months in, experience e-invoicing as a daily chore. In almost every case, the time lost to Peppol comes from a poorly integrated tool, not from the obligation itself. Let us look at why — and above all at how to turn the situation around.
Peppol mandatory since 2026: where do Belgian SMEs stand?
A reminder of the framework, because the confusion is still common. Since 1 January 2026, every Belgian VAT-registered business must be able to issue and receive its B2B invoices in structured electronic format via the Peppol network — a simple PDF sent by e-mail is no longer enough. A three-month tolerance period was granted to latecomers, but it is coming to an end, and fines of up to €5,000 are provided for businesses that fail to put themselves in order.
On paper, the promise is an attractive one: less data entry, faster payments, fewer errors. And for half of SMEs, it is delivered. For the others, the experience is the opposite: they "ticked the Peppol box" without changing the way they work, and ended up with one step more, not one fewer. That is where the much-discussed loss of time begins.
Why Peppol is costing you time (the real causes)
The frustration is real, but it has precise, identifiable causes. Here are the three main ones.
Double entry has not disappeared — it has moved
Many businesses adopted a standalone Peppol portal, separate from their accounting software. The result: the invoice is issued in the portal, then re-entered (or manually re-imported) into the accounts. For an SME handling 150 invoices a month, that means several hours lost every week going back and forth between two tools that do not talk to each other. Peppol was supposed to remove double entry; badly integrated, it creates a new one.
Incoming invoices pile up with no automatic processing
The obligation to receive invoices via Peppol is often underestimated. Supplier invoices now arrive through a structured channel — but if nothing is configured to match them automatically against purchase orders and route them for approval, they pile up. The theoretical gain becomes a burden: someone still has to open, check and record every one of them.
The wrong tool for the wrong size of business
Some SMEs hurriedly chose a solution designed for sole traders, others an oversized system. In both cases, the tool imposes pointless handling: manual exports, formats to correct, steps that add nothing. Compliance is achieved, but at the cost of a shaky process that everyone works around — the very definition of wasted time.
How to turn the obligation into a time gain
The good news: the SMEs that gain time with Peppol are not luckier, they have simply integrated e-invoicing into the heart of their management. Three concrete levers.
Integrate Peppol directly into your ERP
When electronic invoicing is native to your management system, the invoice issued in the Sales module automatically generates the accounting entry, goes out over Peppol, and its status is tracked in the same place. No more separate portal, no more re-entry. That is exactly what an ERP such as Odoo integrated with your accounting makes possible, where Peppol fits into the existing accounting flow instead of being bolted on top of it.
Automate receipt and payment
On the incoming side, the aim is that a supplier invoice arriving via Peppol is read, matched against the purchase order and prepared for payment without manual intervention, leaving only the exceptions to a human. An SME that automates this flow recovers the time it thought it had lost — and reduces errors and late payments along the way.
Get it set up properly, once
Most of the time lost is resolved by clean configuration, done once: Peppol connection, correct Belgian VAT fiscal positions, invoice templates, matching rules. It is an investment of a few days that pays for itself within a few weeks. A carefully set up bookkeeping function is worth more than a makeshift arrangement you put up with every month.
Make Peppol a time gain, not a chore
doo.FINANCE is an Odoo Gold Partner and a financial advisory firm for Belgian SMEs. We integrate e-invoicing into your accounting — audit of the current flow, Peppol configuration in Odoo, automation of receipt and payment, training for your team, in French as well as in Dutch. If Peppol is a chore today, let us talk about it.
Contact us for a free call →FAQ
Is Peppol really mandatory for my small business?
Yes. Since 1 January 2026, every Belgian VAT-registered business must issue and receive its B2B invoices via Peppol, whatever its size. As soon as you invoice another Belgian business, the obligation applies.
What is the risk of non-compliance?
A three-month tolerance period was granted at the beginning of 2026, but it is coming to an end. Fines of up to €5,000 are provided for businesses that fail to put themselves in order.
Why am I losing time when Peppol was supposed to save me some?
Almost always because Peppol was added alongside your accounting (separate portal, re-entry) instead of being integrated into it. Once e-invoicing is plugged into your ERP, double entry disappears and the time lost turns into time gained.
Do I need to change software to use Peppol properly?
Not necessarily, but an integrated ERP such as Odoo makes things a great deal simpler: issuing, receiving, accounting and tracking in the same place. A quick audit will tell you whether your current tool is enough or whether it is costing you more time than it saves.
How long does a proper set-up take?
For an SME, the technical configuration (Peppol connection, VAT, matching rules) generally takes a few days. It is a one-off effort that pays for itself within a few weeks of daily operation.
This article is provided for information purposes only. As obligations change regularly, we recommend confirming your situation with a professional adviser.