Italy's SDI and foreign clients: how cross-border invoices are reported since the esterometro ended

A Bologna machinery parts company invoices a customer in Graz. The invoice goes out as an XML file through the Sistema di Interscambio with the recipient code XXXXXXX, and a PDF copy goes to Graz by email. The Austrian customer never sees the XML. Italy's tax authority sees it within minutes.

That is the cross-border half of Italian e-invoicing, and it is where many small companies still make mistakes.

Domestic invoices: the SDI

Since 2019, Italian companies issue invoices as structured XML files (FatturaPA format) through the Sistema di Interscambio (SDI), run by the Agenzia delle Entrate. The SDI checks each file and delivers it to the recipient using a seven-character recipient code or a PEC address. A PDF invoice between two Italian companies has no legal standing.

Sales to foreign clients

Since July 2022 cross-border invoices also pass through the SDI. The old esterometro, a separate periodic return of foreign transactions, no longer exists.

For a sale to a foreign client:

1. Issue the invoice in XML and send it to the SDI with recipient code XXXXXXX.
2. Fill the client's foreign VAT number or identifier and address.
3. Send the client a copy in whatever format you agree, usually PDF.

The SDI does not deliver anything abroad. Its job here is to give Italy the data.

Purchases from foreign suppliers

The other direction catches more people out. A US software subscription, a German consultant or a Polish contractor sends a normal invoice. The Italian company then reports it through the SDI with an integration or self-billing document:

• TD17 for services bought from abroad,
• TD18 for intra-EU purchases of goods,
• TD19 for goods located in Italy bought from a foreign supplier.

The deadline is generally the 15th of the month after receipt. Missing these is a common finding, with penalties per document.

VAT wording

For services to EU businesses, the invoice shows no Italian IVA and cites the reverse charge (inversione contabile). For services to businesses outside the EU, it states the operation is not subject to IVA under the relevant article. Goods exports need customs evidence.

Getting paid by foreign clients

Graz pays by SEPA in seconds. A customer in Chicago, asked to pay an Italian IBAN, sends an international wire that may arrive short and is converted at the receiving bank's rate. US account details let American customers pay domestically, by ACH, in full.

Paying into Italy: the local rail

Source: European Payments Council: SEPA Instant Credit Transfer. Checked when this guide was last updated; the scheme's own page has the current figures.

Where Rivet fits

Rivet does not send invoices to the SDI; your e-invoicing software or commercialista does that. A Rivet business account handles foreign collections: US account details in the company's own name on every plan, euro and sterling details from the Growth plan, payments matched to invoices, and balances held or converted at a rate shown before you confirm. Rivet is not a bank; regulated partner institutions hold the funds.

For other countries, see e-invoicing mandates from 2026 to 2028.