Bitkom Survey: 87% of German SMEs Will Be Ready for 2027 E-Invoicing Mandate
A new survey by Bitkom (Germany's digital industry association) finds 87% of German businesses above the €800,000 revenue threshold have already upgraded or plan to upgrade their software before the January 2027 sending mandate deadline.
Germany's digital industry association Bitkom published new survey data on 5 May 2026, offering the most comprehensive view yet of German SME readiness for the January 2027 e-invoicing sending mandate.
Key Findings
The survey of 1,200 German businesses with annual revenue above €800,000 found:
- 87% have either already implemented XRechnung/ZUGFeRD sending capability or have a planned implementation date before December 2026
- 11% are aware of the mandate but have not yet started — typically businesses waiting for software updates from their existing vendor
- 2% were either unaware of the mandate or did not plan to comply before January 2027 (a figure Bitkom describes as "significantly lower than feared")
Among businesses that have already switched to sending structured e-invoices:
- ZUGFeRD 2.3 is the most popular format (62% of early adopters), favoured for its dual PDF/XML nature
- XRechnung is used by 34% (primarily businesses with public-sector customers requiring XRechnung)
- 4% use both formats depending on the recipient
Software Adoption
The software platforms most commonly cited as the primary e-invoicing tool among ready businesses:
- DATEV — cited by 41% of respondents (dominant among businesses using tax advisors)
- SAP S/4HANA — 19% (enterprise segment)
- Lexware / lexoffice — 14%
- sevDesk — 8%
- easybill — 6%
- Other / custom ERP — 12%
Main Barriers Cited by Non-Ready Businesses
Businesses that have not yet implemented cite:
- Waiting for accounting software update (52%) — their existing software vendor has announced an update but it has not yet been released
- Complexity of customer communication (28%) — uncertainty about how to notify existing B2B customers of the format change
- Cost (14%) — specifically the cost of upgrading from outdated accounting software to a compliant version
- Lack of internal expertise (6%)
The Bitkom Assessment
"Germany's 2025 receiving mandate created the infrastructure needed for 2027 to succeed," said Bitkom president Dr. Ralf Wintergerst. "The vast majority of affected businesses have used the two years to prepare. The 13% who are not yet ready have sufficient time if they act in the next two months."
Source
Bitkom press release and survey data, May 2026: bitkom.org
