What are EHF, ELMA and PEPPOL?
EHF is the electronic invoice format that is sent via the PEPPOL network. For an invoice to be sent as EHF, the recipient must be registered as an EHF recipient in the address register. This register was previously called ELMA (operated by the Norwegian authorities) – today it is the PEPPOL register, in which registration is voluntary.
Requirements for sending EHF
For EHF to be available as a delivery method, the following must be in place on the customer record (Customer → Edit):
Org. no. (Federal ID) – the «Org.nr.» field on the General tab. This is used to look up the recipient in PEPPOL.
Optionally a GLN (also on the General tab) if the recipient uses that as the address instead of the org. no.
The recipient must be registered as an EHF recipient in PEPPOL.
When the recipient is in the register, you can choose EHF under Delivery method on the Invoicing tab when you invoice.
How to activate receiving EHF in Catacloud
To be able to receive EHF invoices from suppliers, EHF invoicing must be activated in the settings. Here's how:
Go to Administration in the left-hand menu.
Under Module settings, select Invoicing.
Find the Delivery and payments section.
Turn on the toggle next to EHF-invoicing so that it shows Active.
Click Update settings to save.
Note: Costs may apply when activating and receiving EHF. See what EHF costs in the article Pricing in Catacloud, or contact us if you're unsure.
The EHF option isn't showing – what do I do?
Check this in order:
Does the customer have an org. no. on the customer record? The org. no. is entered on the General tab. Without an org. no. (or GLN) we can't look up the recipient, and EHF won't be available.
Is the recipient registered in PEPPOL? If the customer isn't listed as an EHF recipient, the invoice can't be sent as EHF. In that case you must use a different delivery method (e-mail or print).
The supplier can't find our customer in PEPPOL
The fact that a supplier can't find the recipient in PEPPOL doesn't necessarily mean something is wrong on your end. Common reasons:
The register is voluntary. It's no longer a requirement to be listed the way it was in the ELMA era. A business can receive EHF without being «visible» the way it was before.
Delayed registration. When a recipient has recently been registered with PEPPOL, it can take some time (sometimes several days) before all senders see the entry.
Outdated data on the sender's side. The sender's own system (ERP) may in some cases look up against outdated data.
If you are at the same time receiving EHF from other suppliers, that's a good sign that your setup works – the problem then usually lies in delays or lookups on the sender's side.
When should you contact us?
Contact us if the EHF option is missing even though the customer has an org. no. and is registered in PEPPOL, or if invoices aren't getting through. Provide the client, the customer's org. no. and the invoice number, and we'll check the lookup and delivery.