What the e-invoicing system is
It is an ETA platform that receives each invoice in a standard digital format when it is issued, validates it and stores it. For businesses under the mandate a paper invoice alone is no longer enough, and the buyer and the ETA see the same invoice.
| E-invoice | E-receipt | |
|---|---|---|
| Transactions | Business to business (B2B) | Business to final consumer (B2C) |
| How it is issued | Your accounting system integrated with the system's APIs, or the portal | Point-of-sale (POS) devices linked to the system, from accredited vendors listed by the ETA |
| What the customer gets | An e-invoice with the buyer's name and tax number | A printed receipt with a unique ID (UUID) and a QR code for lookup |
| Platform | One platform for both, per the ETA's FAQ |
E-invoice mandate phases
The system was rolled out in phases by decisions published on the ETA website, including:
| Decision | Who it covered |
|---|---|
| 386 of 2020 | Phase 1: 134 companies |
| 518 of 2020 | Phase 2: 347 companies |
| 85 of 2021 | Phase 3 |
| 195 of 2021 | Medium Taxpayers Center and large liberal professions |
| 443 of 2021 | Phase 5 |
| 619 of 2021 | Phase 6 |
| 208 of 2022 | Companies registered in Cairo, Giza and Qalyubia |
| 323 of 2022 | Phase 8 |
Because each decision names companies or a scope, the reliable check is the ETA's inquiry service for taxpayers covered by e-invoicing mandate decisions.
E-receipt mandate phases
Minister of Finance Decision 230 of 2022 requires e-receipts for goods and services sold to final consumers, and Decision 38 of 2024 amended some of its articles. ETA decisions then applied it in phases by sector and region; the latest published at the time of writing is Decision 361 of 2025 for the first sub-phase of phase 9. Check your company with the e-receipt mandate inquiry service.
The ETA's FAQ says a company already on e-invoicing that also sells to final consumers sends that part through the e-receipt system and keeps sending business transactions through the e-invoice system.
Practical steps to join
- Check the mandate: search the e-invoice and e-receipt decisions with your tax registration number.
- Prepare registration details: company registration number, company email and phone, the authorised person's name in Arabic and English, national ID number, mobile and email.
- Submit the authorisation: give your tax office an authorisation approved by the company with a bank-verified signature, or a formal power of attorney; email the stamped copy with the tax registration certificate and the authorised person's ID to your tax center, and an invitation arrives at the authorised person's email. The ETA also offers self-registration on the portal for those with an e-signature device holding an e-seal certificate with the registration number; it runs on Windows machines only.
- Get the electronic signature from one of the e-signature service providers the ETA lists, and activate it on the portal.
- Code your items: both systems use GS1 and EGS code types. The ETA's FAQ says EGS code approval takes about 15 days, so start early; an approved code cannot be edited (you add an end date and register a new one).
- Choose how you submit: integrate your accounting system (ERP) with the system's APIs, or use the portal for small volumes; the ETA's FAQ says invoices to companies can go through the portal when they do not exceed 200 a month. You are free to choose who builds the integration, your own team or an outside provider.
- Test in the pre-production environment before going live, then start issuing on your mandate date.
Quick readiness checklist
- Tax registration number and authorised person's details ready and current.
- An e-signature device with a valid certificate, and its renewal date noted.
- A clean item list: clear Arabic and English names, a unit of measure, and an approved GS1 or EGS code.
- Business customers' data: legal name, tax number and address.
- A clear decision: the ETA portal or a software integration, and who builds and supports it.
- Accredited POS devices if you sell to individuals and an e-receipt mandate covers you.
- A named person who checks rejected documents every day.
Mistakes that keep coming up
- Leaving item coding to the last week, although approval takes time.
- Incomplete customer data: a B2B invoice needs the buyer's correct tax number.
- Issuing a receipt instead of an invoice to a company: the ETA says VAT on a receipt without the buyer's name cannot be deducted, and the seller must issue an e-invoice.
- Leaving rejected invoices unresolved, so the system's figures differ from your books and from your VAT return.
What Ehsebly helps with, and what it does not do
| Ehsebly helps with | Not done today |
|---|---|
| Tax invoices in Egyptian pounds at 14% with your tax number | Submitting invoices to the e-invoicing system |
| Customers, customer statements and returns | Submitting receipts to the e-receipt system |
| The VAT return in your country's boxes in the reports | Signing documents with the ETA electronic signature |
| Items with barcodes, warehouses and stock counts | Registering item codes on the ETA portal |
| Printing an invoice or sharing it by link or WhatsApp |
Ask every software provider plainly whether it is connected to the ETA system and ask to see it working. See also how to choose accounting software.
Summary
The e-invoice covers business-to-business sales and the e-receipt covers consumer sales; both apply through phased mandate decisions. Start by checking your status, then register, get the electronic signature, code your items, and pick a submission method that fits your invoice volume. Rules change, so follow the ETA website or ask your accountant or tax office before acting.