EU ViDA Real-Time Reporting Pilot Launches in Italy; Germany to Join Q3 2026

The VAT in the Digital Age (ViDA) directive is moving from legislation to live testing. The European Commission confirmed in March 2026 that a real-time digital reporting (DRR) pilot has launched in Italy, with Germany and France scheduled to join in Q3 2026.

The ViDA DRR pilot is testing the transmission of structured invoice data from businesses to national tax authorities within 48 hours of the transaction date. Key elements being tested:

1. Data format interoperability — Can EN 16931-compliant invoice data be reported cross-border without conversion?
2. Latency and throughput — Can tax authority systems handle real-time reporting at national scale?
3. SME usability — Is the reporting burden feasible for small businesses?

Italy's SDI system already processes every domestic invoice through a central government hub. The ViDA pilot in Italy is testing cross-border DRR — Italian businesses reporting to other EU member states — rather than domestic reporting, which is already live.

Italy's Agenzia delle Entrate has confirmed that FatturaPA data from SDI will be used as the pilot's source feed, eliminating any additional burden on Italian businesses during the pilot phase.

Germany is building its DRR infrastructure as an extension of the XRechnung/ZUGFeRD ecosystem. The Bundesministerium der Finanzen (BMF) has confirmed that the pilot will use existing e-invoice data submitted via the PEPPOL network, rather than a separate reporting channel.

The 2030 mandatory DRR deadline is still four years away. However, businesses that already send structured e-invoices (XRechnung, FatturaPA, Factur-X) are already producing the data that ViDA will require — they just need a reporting channel to their tax authority, which existing software vendors are building.

European Commission DG TAXUD, ViDA pilot update, March 2026.