How to open an XML invoice

Most often it is an e-invoice in XML. It can be read — right here, without the file going anywhere.

In three steps

1. Open the invoice reader and drag the file onto it. It tells you what kind of file it is.
2. If it is an invoice it can read, it is shown in English, with codes turned into words.
3. If it cannot read it, it tells you why — rather than showing you something half right.

Why double-clicking does not help

A computer opens XML as text full of tags. The data is all there, but not for people. That is why you need a program that shows it as an invoice.

If it is a PDF

A PDF can carry an e-invoice inside it (Factur-X, ZUGFeRD). The reader finds it and checks whether the values in it match what the page shows. Accounting software books the data inside, not the picture.

If it came by email, zipped or signed

• You can drag an email attachment straight onto the reader. If you save the whole email as a file (.eml), the reader takes out all its attachments at once.
• The reader opens a ZIP archive and shows every file in it.
• A file ending in .p7m is digitally signed. The reader opens the document inside; it does not check the signature itself.
• The reader does not open an Outlook message (.msg): in Outlook, save the attached invoice or drag the attachment itself.
• If you open several invoices at once, an overview appears that you can download as a spreadsheet (CSV).

Your file stays on your device. The reader opens it right in your browser.