Skip to content
Rechnungskit

Assess a missed invoicing deadline for EU business sales

Updated

This task appears when an invoice for a cross-border service or supply to a business was issued later than the deadline allows. In the task reminder email (sent in German) it is called "Rechnungsfrist (§ 14a UStG) läuft ab". On the dashboard and under Invoices in the "To review" tab it shows as "Review task" with the task text.

Invoicing deadline (§ 14a UStG)
The invoice stands, the task only records that it was late
  1. TriggerW2 or S2 invoice after the 15th of the following monththe invoice is still issued and archived
  2. YouFind the reason, tell your tax advisor"Check again" on the dashboard opens the invoice
  3. Then"Mark as done"the task never closes on its own

What happened

Rechnungskit knows a fixed issuing deadline for two cases:

Code Case Deadline
W2 tax-exempt intra-community supply to a business in another EU country 15th of the following month
S2 other service to such a business under reverse charge 15th of the following month

The legal basis is § 14a(1) sentence 2 and (3) sentence 1 UStG. Rechnungskit counts from the date of supply. If there is a service period instead, it uses the start of that period to be safe. If neither exists, it uses the invoice date.

If such an invoice is only issued after the deadline, Rechnungskit creates this task when the invoice is issued. The text reads: "§ 14a-Frist überschritten: W2/S2-Rechnung hätte bis … ausgestellt werden müssen." (the § 14a deadline was missed; the W2/S2 invoice should have been issued by …). The date is shown as year-month-day.

Why Rechnungskit stops here

The invoice is still issued correctly and archived; nothing is held back. But it is never backdated, not even to meet a deadline.

Instead, the task makes the missed deadline visible so you can assess the case. The task is a record, not a block.

How to resolve it

  1. On the dashboard, click "Check again" on the task. The button opens the affected invoice. Under Invoices in the "To review" tab you only see the task text, without the invoice number.
  2. Find out why the invoice was late. Possible reasons are a shipment reported late, a payment that took long to review, or a VAT ID check that was pending.
  3. Pass the case on to your tax advisor if they need to know which invoices were issued late.
  4. Deal with the cause so future invoices are created on time. For example, clear open tasks about payments and VAT ID checks sooner.
  5. Close the task under Invoices in the "To review" tab with "Mark as done".

When the task closes on its own

Never. The invoice itself is the late document, and no later action can change that. You close the task once you have taken note of the case.

Related settings

  • Settings → Task reminder by email: set it to daily so waiting documents stand out earlier
  • Settings → VAT rates → "View VAT ID check log": all VAT ID checks

Where to find it in the app

Rechnungskit is not a tax advisory or law firm. This article explains general principles and does not replace advice from a tax advisor (Steuerberater, § 5 StBerG) or a lawyer (§ 3 RDG). Rechnungskit is built for businesses based in Germany and prepares documents, tax rates and bookings automatically. How your specific case is treated remains your decision, ideally together with your tax advisor or a lawyer.

de en