Capture the paper invoice, sign it electronically and destroy the original with full legal validity. Dokuflex is listed as Doku4Invoices in the official register of AEAT-homologated software for certified digitization, under Order EHA/962/2007 and the Resolution of 24 October 2007 issued by Spain's tax authority (AEAT).
For informational purposes only. Consult a qualified tax advisor for your specific case.
AEAT certified digitization ("digitalizacion certificada") is the technical-legal procedure regulated by the Agencia Estatal de Administracion Tributaria (AEAT) — Spain's tax authority — that allows a taxpayer to capture a digital image of a paper invoice received from a supplier and grant it the same probative value as the original document. From that point on, the company can lawfully destroy the paper without losing tax validity, accounting validity or the right to deduct input VAT.
It is not a simple scan. To produce a legally binding digital copy, the capture must be performed with software homologated by the AEAT that guarantees image fidelity, file integrity, traceable capture, electronic signature on every batch and a monthly seal of the entire database. The output is a digital invoice with full equivalence to the paper original before an AEAT inspection, a Spanish commercial court or a tax control plan.
The regulatory framework is set by Order EHA/962/2007 — which develops Spain's Invoicing Regulation — and by the Resolution of 24 October 2007 of the AEAT, which specifies the technical requirements and the homologation procedure for digitization software. Dokuflex is homologated under the product name Doku4Invoices and appears in the official list of homologated software published by the AEAT's electronic site (Sede Electronica).
Certified digitization in Spain rests on two regulatory pillars. The first is Order EHA/962/2007 of 10 April, published in the Spanish Official Gazette (BOE), which develops certain provisions on electronic invoicing and electronic conservation of invoices. This Order sets the technical conditions under which a digital image may replace the paper original: minimum resolution, accepted formats, XMP metadata, electronic signature of the responsible party and full conservation of the underlying database throughout the legal retention period.
The second pillar is Royal Decree 1619/2012 of 30 November, which approves Spain's Regulation on invoicing obligations. Article 8 of RD 1619/2012 requires taxpayers to guarantee the authenticity of origin, the integrity of content and the legibility of every invoice from issuance throughout the full retention period. Certified digitization is one of the procedures accepted by the Spanish tax authority to meet that obligation when the received invoice is on paper.
Both rules interact with article 66 of the Spanish General Tax Law (Ley General Tributaria), which sets the general tax prescription period at 4 years, and with article 30 of the Spanish Commercial Code, which obliges companies to retain books, correspondence and supporting documents for 6 years. That is why the recommended practice — and the Dokuflex default — is a 6-year digital retention with monthly electronic sealing of the database.
The Resolution of 24 October 2007 and Order EHA/962/2007 define a set of technical requirements that any digitization software must demonstrate to obtain AEAT homologation. If a digitized image fails any of these checks, it loses the probative value of the original and the taxpayer is obliged to keep the paper copy:
Optical capture must be performed at a minimum of 200 dots per inch (8 dots per mm), whether on a flatbed scanner or a mobile capture. Dokuflex defaults to 300 dpi to guarantee legibility of thermal receipts and invoices with very small typography.
The image must be stored in an open standard format suitable for long-term archival. Dokuflex uses PDF/A (ISO 19005) by default with embedded ICC colour profiles, so the document remains legible decades later without depending on the original software.
Capture date and time, device or channel used, identifier of the user who digitized, cryptographic hash of the file and a reference to the signed batch. All of this is embedded directly in the PDF/A using Extensible Metadata Platform (XMP), not stored in an external database, to prevent tampering.
Each digitized document is signed using the electronic certificate of the party responsible for the digitization. The signature may be applied per document or per batch and must comply with the XAdES or PAdES standards. Dokuflex applies the signature automatically when a batch is closed.
At every month-end the software must electronically seal the entire database to certify that no subsequent modifications have occurred. Dokuflex produces a monthly seal with a qualified time-stamp authority (TSA) and keeps an auditable log available for any AEAT inspection.
The Spanish tax authority maintains an official public list of software homologated for certified digitization of invoices on its electronic site (Sede Electronica). Only the products that appear in that list may produce images with probative value equivalent to the paper original.
To be added to the list, the vendor must submit the software to AEAT, document compliance with the technical requirements (resolution, formats, XMP metadata, electronic signature, monthly seal), pass a documentary audit and obtain an administrative Resolution. Homologation is granted to a specific product and tied to the commercial name under which it was evaluated.
Dokuflex appears as Doku4Invoices on the public list of homologated software, under the Resolution of 24 October 2007 issued by the AEAT's Directorate General. That Resolution is what authorises Dokuflex to produce digital images of invoices with full equivalence to the paper original.
Before contracting any invoice-management software that you intend to use as a basis for legally destroying paper invoices in Spain, verify that its commercial name appears on the official AEAT list. Marketing terms such as "advanced OCR", "AI invoice capture" or "intelligent reading" describe technical capabilities, but they do not imply homologation. Without the corresponding Resolution, the digital image is treated as a plain copy and AEAT may require the original paper invoice during the full tax prescription period.
Beyond the regulatory compliance angle, AEAT certified digitization frees up office space, accelerates accounting workflows and reduces operational risk. These are the six benefits that Dokuflex customers — including CaixaBank, Sant Pau and Volkswagen Group Spain — have measured after replacing their physical archive.
Once digitized with homologated software and verified, the paper invoice can be destroyed while preserving full tax and accounting validity in Spain.
Invoices are stored encrypted in EU infrastructure for 6 years (art. 66 LGT + art. 30 Spanish Commercial Code) with monthly seals and end-to-end traceability.
Find any invoice by supplier VAT ID, amount, date, number or concept in seconds. AI-powered OCR indexes the full content of every document.
SAP, Sage, A3, Holded, Dynamics, Navision or Business Central: digitized invoices are exported with the accounting entry and a link to the original image.
A digitized image produced with AEAT homologation keeps the full right to deduct input VAT (art. 92 to 100 of Spain's VAT Law), exactly like the paper original.
Reclaim archive square metres and eliminate external custody fees, transport and physical lookups. Typical ROI in under 12 months.
Yes, you can destroy paper invoices in Spain — provided the digitization was performed with AEAT-homologated software (such as Dokuflex / Doku4Invoices) and each document has passed the technical checks. Once the image carries complete XMP metadata, an electronic signature and is included in the monthly database seal, the paper invoice can be destroyed without losing tax validity, accounting validity or input VAT deductibility.
The recommended protocol in companies with meaningful invoice volume is the following four-step procedure:
Do not destroy the paper if the digitization has failed any verification (insufficient resolution, cropped page, illegible OCR, missing electronic signature). Dokuflex automatically blocks the "ready for destruction" flag until the document passes every control.
Dokuflex orchestrates the entire certified digitization procedure automatically. Your team only provides the document; the software applies the right resolution, metadata, signature and monthly seal.
Mobile via the Dokuflex app, corporate email, network scanner, watched folder or REST API. Each channel applies the right technical preset (200-300 dpi, colour, OCR).
The AI engine extracts supplier, VAT ID, amounts, VAT lines and line items. XMP metadata (date, device, hash) is embedded and the batch is signed electronically. Validation runs batch by batch.
PDF/A files are stored in European infrastructure with encryption at rest and in transit. Monthly seal of the database with qualified time-stamping.
Mark the batch as ready for destruction after quarantine, export to your ERP (SAP/Sage/A3) and record it in the destruction acta. AEAT can consult everything at any time.
A frequent source of confusion: VERI*FACTU and AEAT certified digitization are not the same. They cover opposite ends of the invoice cycle and are governed by different regulations. Understanding the difference is essential to avoid leaving an obligation outside your compliance scope.
| Aspect | Certified digitization | VERI*FACTU |
|---|---|---|
| Cycle side | Reception of invoices (paper to digital) | Emission of invoices with AEAT registration |
| Main regulation | Order EHA/962/2007 + RD 1619/2012 | RD 1007/2023 + Order HAC/1177/2024 |
| Mandatory | Voluntary (enables paper destruction) | 1 Jan 2027 (corporate income tax) · 1 Jul 2027 (self-employed and SMEs) |
| Homologation required | Yes — AEAT list (Dokuflex/Doku4Invoices, Res. 24-Oct-2007) | Yes — vendor responsible declaration |
| Dokuflex output | Signed PDF/A + XMP + monthly seal | Billing record with QR, hash and chaining |
Dokuflex covers both ends of the cycle: the Doku4Invoices module handles the certified digitization of paper invoices you receive, and the VERI*FACTU module produces the billing records of the invoices you issue, ready to be submitted to AEAT. For more detail see our dedicated VERI*FACTU 2027 page.
No. They are two different obligations covering opposite ends of the invoice cycle. Certified digitization (Order EHA/962/2007) governs the reception and digital conservation of paper invoices issued by third parties. VERI*FACTU (Royal Decree 1007/2023, Order HAC/1177/2024) governs the issuance of invoices through invoicing software that sends billing records to the AEAT; it will be mandatory from 1 January 2027 for corporate income tax entities and from 1 July 2027 for self-employed professionals and other taxpayers. Dokuflex covers both processes.
In Spain, article 66 of the General Tax Law sets the general tax prescription period at 4 years. Common practice and AEAT guidance recommend 6 years because of the interaction with article 30 of the Spanish Commercial Code and potential cross-checks. Dokuflex retains the digitized image with its electronic signature and monthly seal for at least 6 years on encrypted EU infrastructure.
If the digital image does not meet any of the technical requirements of Order EHA/962/2007 (200 dpi minimum, accepted format, XMP metadata, electronic signature, monthly database seal), it loses its status as a copy with probative value equivalent to the paper original. In that case the taxpayer must keep the physical original. Dokuflex automatically blocks the destruction-ready flag if a document fails internal verifications.
Yes. Receipts and simplified invoices (RD 1619/2012, art. 7) can be digitized with AEAT-homologated software under the same guarantees. There are amount limits for a receipt to qualify as a valid simplified invoice (generally up to EUR 400, or EUR 3,000 in specific sectors). Above those amounts, a full invoice must be issued. See more detail in our expense management solution.
Invoices received already in electronic format (signed PDF, Facturae XML, EDI) do not require certified digitization, because they did not originate on paper. They only need to be kept intact during the legal retention period with guarantees of authenticity and integrity (art. 8 RD 1619/2012). Dokuflex archives both electronic invoices and digitized invoices under the same traceability framework and within the same file.
For certified digitization itself, you do not need to contract an external eIDAS qualified trust service provider; AEAT-homologated software such as Dokuflex (Doku4Invoices) is enough. You do need to apply an electronic signature to the digitized batch; Dokuflex does this automatically with its signing certificate. For cases requiring a qualified eIDAS signature (QES), Dokuflex can integrate with an external provider. More detail in our eIDAS digital signature page.
AEAT can request access to digitized images and associated metadata (capture date, hash, electronic signature) during the retention period. Dokuflex exports the full auditable batch in PDF/A with XMP metadata, the event log and the monthly database seal at any time and at no extra cost, as required by Order EHA/962/2007.
This page is based on the current text of the following provisions published in the Spanish Official Gazette (BOE) and on public resources from the Spanish tax authority (AEAT). Always cross-check with the latest consolidated version when needed.
Development of certain provisions on electronic invoicing and electronic conservation of invoices (BOE).
Regulation governing invoicing obligations in Spain (BOE, consolidated version).
Public register of products homologated for certified digitization of invoices in Spain. Dokuflex appears as Doku4Invoices.
Tax prescription periods in Spain (BOE, consolidated version).
Regulation on requirements for invoicing computer systems (BOE).
For informational purposes only. This page does not constitute tax advice. Consult a qualified tax advisor or licensed professional for specific cases.
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