BR-16 in your own invoice? Upload the file and find every error in seconds.
What does BR-16 mean?
An invoice must contain at least one line. Without a line there is nothing to charge.
Common causes of BR-16
- The invoice contains no 'ram:IncludedSupplyChainTradeLineItem' at all.
- The lines were lost during export or a conversion.
- Someone tried to issue a header-only or totals-only invoice without lines.
How to fix BR-16
- Find the faulty spot in the XML. Open the XML of the invoice and go to field BG-25 along this XPath:
//rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction/ram:IncludedSupplyChainTradeLineItem - Apply the fix. Add at least one Invoice line (BG-25) as 'ram:IncludedSupplyChainTradeLineItem' inside 'ram:SupplyChainTradeTransaction'. An invoice without any line is not allowed.
- Validate again. Save the file and validate it again to check that BR-16 is no longer reported.
Concrete fix
Add at least one Invoice line (BG-25) as 'ram:IncludedSupplyChainTradeLineItem' inside 'ram:SupplyChainTradeTransaction'. An invoice without any line is not allowed.
XPath
//rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction/ram:IncludedSupplyChainTradeLineItemBefore / after: the XML example
This is the spot in question before and after the fix (Cross Industry Invoice, ZUGFeRD/Factur-X).
Wrong
<rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction>
<ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeAgreement/>
</rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction>
Correct
<rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction>
<ram:IncludedSupplyChainTradeLineItem>
<ram:AssociatedDocumentLineDocument>
<ram:LineID>1</ram:LineID>
</ram:AssociatedDocumentLineDocument>
</ram:IncludedSupplyChainTradeLineItem>
<ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeAgreement/>
</rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction>Frequent questions about BR-16
Is a single line enough?
Yes. The rule demands at least one line. One line is enough, provided it carries all mandatory fields itself.
How do I show a flat fee without itemised entries?
As a single Invoice line with quantity, unit, unit price and net amount. It does not work without any line.
Related error codes
Check BR-16 automatically
Instead of digging through the XML by hand you can validate your ZUGFeRD or XRechnung file online – upload the PDF or the XML and you get every error with rule ID, affected field, fix and XPath, as a readable report or as JSON through the API.