Fix BR-30: Invoice line period end date is before the start date

BR-30 in your own invoice? Upload the file and find every error in seconds.

What does BR-30 mean?

If an invoice line gives both an invoice line period start date (BT-134) and an end date (BT-135), the end date must be the same as the start date or later. The rule only applies when both dates are present. If one of them is missing, BR-30 checks nothing. A period that ends before it begins is impossible and gets rejected.

Common causes of BR-30

Start date and end date were swapped.
A typo in the day, month or year of one of the two entries.
A wrong date format, so the values cannot be compared as dates.
The end set to the previous day instead of the end of the period.

How to fix BR-30

Find the faulty spot in the XML. Open the XML of the invoice and go to field BT-135 along this XPath://rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction/ram:IncludedSupplyChainTradeLineItem/ram:SpecifiedLineTradeSettlement/ram:BillingSpecifiedPeriod/ram:EndDateTime/udt:DateTimeString
Apply the fix. Set a date in ram:BillingSpecifiedPeriod/ram:EndDateTime/udt:DateTimeString (format="102", YYYYMMDD) that is the same as or later than the start date in ram:StartDateTime. Check whether start and end were swapped.
Validate again. Save the file and validate it again to check that BR-30 is no longer reported.

Concrete fix

Set a date in ram:BillingSpecifiedPeriod/ram:EndDateTime/udt:DateTimeString (format="102", YYYYMMDD) that is the same as or later than the start date in ram:StartDateTime. Check whether start and end were swapped.

XPath

//rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction/ram:IncludedSupplyChainTradeLineItem/ram:SpecifiedLineTradeSettlement/ram:BillingSpecifiedPeriod/ram:EndDateTime/udt:DateTimeString

Before / after: the XML example

This is the spot in question before and after the fix (Cross Industry Invoice, ZUGFeRD/Factur-X).

Wrong

<ram:SpecifiedLineTradeSettlement>
  <ram:BillingSpecifiedPeriod>
    <ram:StartDateTime>
      <udt:DateTimeString format="102">20260401</udt:DateTimeString>
    </ram:StartDateTime>
    <ram:EndDateTime>
      <udt:DateTimeString format="102">20260331</udt:DateTimeString>
    </ram:EndDateTime>
  </ram:BillingSpecifiedPeriod>
</ram:SpecifiedLineTradeSettlement>

Correct

<ram:SpecifiedLineTradeSettlement>
  <ram:BillingSpecifiedPeriod>
    <ram:StartDateTime>
      <udt:DateTimeString format="102">20260401</udt:DateTimeString>
    </ram:StartDateTime>
    <ram:EndDateTime>
      <udt:DateTimeString format="102">20260430</udt:DateTimeString>
    </ram:EndDateTime>
  </ram:BillingSpecifiedPeriod>
</ram:SpecifiedLineTradeSettlement>

Frequent questions about BR-30

May the end date equal the start date?

Yes. For a period of one day you set start and end to the same value. BR-30 only requires that the end is not before the start.

Do I have to give a period for every line?

No. The invoice line period is optional. But if you give it, the dates must fit together.

Which format do the dates need?

The attribute format="102" stands for YYYYMMDD, so 20260430 for 30 April 2026.

Related error codes

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