VeriFactu for forwarders: what it is and how it affects your invoicing

VeriFactu is the short name for the verifiable invoicing system Spain’s tax agency (AEAT) is rolling out to fight fraud. If you issue invoices —and a forwarder issues many— it affects you. This guide covers the essentials without jargon.

When it becomes mandatory

Royal Decree-Law 15/2025 pushed the start date back: 1 January 2027 for corporate income tax payers and 1 July 2027 for everyone else. So it is not enforceable yet — but whatever software you invoice with on those dates does have to comply.

We’re not tax advisors. For your specific case, always check with your accountant. Here we explain the impact on your software and your operation.

What VeriFactu is, in one sentence

It’s a set of technical requirements invoicing software must meet so that every invoice is chained, tamper-proof and verifiable by the tax agency. In practice, your program records each invoice with a fingerprint linked to the previous one, so a past invoice can’t be deleted or altered without it showing.

What it requires

The underlying goal is to end the “dual-use” software that let sales be hidden. To achieve it, the regulation requires the invoicing system to:

• Generate a record for every invoice at the moment it’s issued.
• Chain that record to the previous one (integrity).
• Prevent deleting or altering already-issued invoices (immutability).
• Add a code and a QR to the invoice that allow it to be verified.
• Be able to submit records to the AEAT (in the “Verifactu” mode) or keep them signed and available to the tax agency.

Responsibility for compliance is yours as a company, but much of the weight falls on using adapted software. If your invoicing runs on a spreadsheet or a program that doesn’t get updated, that’s where the risk is.

What it means for a forwarder

A forwarder invoices a lot, with edge cases: disbursements, different VAT rates, exempt services, invoicing to the end client and to correspondents. The key is that the system you invoice with is VeriFactu-ready out of the box, so you don’t have to think about the technical part: the invoice comes out compliant, with its fingerprint and QR, and the record is generated on its own.

What to check in your software:

1. It generates the record and QR automatically on issue.
2. It doesn’t allow editing or deleting an issued invoice (only correcting it with a credit note).
3. It’s connected or ready to submit to the AEAT.
4. It keeps traceability of every document.

How to prepare

If your invoicing is already on an adapted system, you don’t need to do anything special beyond confirming it with your provider and your accountant. If you still invoice by hand or with an old tool, now is the time to migrate: it’s not just about compliance, it’s about stopping wasted time and gaining real traceability.

Rowan Cargo runs invoicing connected to the AEAT under VeriFactu, integrated with your files: you invoice the service from the same place you operate it, with the margin in view before you issue. Shall we look at it with your data? Book a demo.