Understanding E-Documents and E-Document Packages

The following topics describe e-documents and e-document packages according to how they are used by NetSuite and the Electronic Invoicing SuiteApp.

E-Document

An e-document is a NetSuite transaction represented as an XML or JSON document generated according to a specified standard.

E-documents are transmitted to interested external parties, such as customers, vendors, or tax agencies. E-documents can be downloaded or shared through email, or transmitted through a web service or other custom method.

Some countries legally recognize these XML or JSON files as official documents, whereas other countries recognize the printed transactions as the officially accepted documents.

For information about currently supported transactions, see Electronic Invoicing Limitations and Best Practices.

E-Document Package

An e-document package defines a set of formats used for various transactions to ensure clear communication between all stakeholders of a specific business process, such as vendors communicating with customers, and vendors communicating with tax authorities.

For example, the PEPPOL e-document package defines all possible transactions between vendors and government agencies (sales orders, invoices, credit memos, return authorizations, and others).

An e-document package specifies the following:

the file format and template
the communication medium for transmitting the e-documents
the process necessary for ensuring authenticity and privacy of the information

An e-document package is usually defined by a tax authority or an industry governing body. Some e-document packages are defined by independent entities such as PEPPOL and ISO.

E-Document

E-Document Package

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