🧾 German E-Invoice (ZUGFeRD / XRechnung / Factur-X) Suite

Generate, embed, and extract legally compliant German and European electronic invoices (EN 16931, Factur-X 1.0, ZUGFeRD 2.2, XRechnung 3.0) via Apify.

Starting 2025/2026, electronic invoicing is legally mandatory for B2B transactions in Germany and public administration (B2G) across the European Union. This Apify Actor gives you a reliable, production-ready document engine to automate your invoice workflows without managing complex native PDF/A-3 or XML toolchains.

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🎥 45-Second Live Video Demo (1080p)

Watch how the engine validates invoices in 142 ms (Zero-Storage RAM check), integrates in 5 lines of code, and connects with WooCommerce, n8n, Make.com, and MCP AI agents.

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🚀 Key Features

• 3 Operations in 1 Actor:
  1. generate: Turn JSON data into a clean, human-readable DIN-format invoice PDF and a valid, embedded PDF/A-3 with UN/CEFACT CII XML.
  2. embed: Take your existing company PDF layout and embed compliant ZUGFeRD/Factur-X XML into it.
  3. extract: Inspect incoming PDFs or XML invoices, extract the embedded XML attachment, and validate compliance against official EN 16931 XSD schemas.
• Full Multi-Profile Support:
  • EN16931 (Comfort / Standard European Norm)
  • EXTENDED (Full commercial and cross-border trade details)
  • BASIC (Automated processing for standard business)
  • XRECHNUNG_3_0 (German Public Administration / B2G CIUS with Leitweg-ID)
• Storage & Download Integration:
  • Generated PDFs and XMLs are stored directly in the Apify Key-Value Store.
  • Download links are provided in the Dataset alongside structured summary metadata.
• Fair Pay-Per-Event (PPE) Pricing:
  • Billed strictly per processed document. If a run fails due to schema errors or invalid inputs, no event is charged.

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📥 Input Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
operation	string	Yes	Choose generate, embed, or extract (Default: generate).
profile	string	No	Profile standard: EN16931, EXTENDED, BASIC, or XRECHNUNG_3_0 (Default: EN16931).
invoice_data	object	Conditional	Structured JSON invoice payload (required for generate, optional for embed).
file_url	string	Conditional	Public HTTP/HTTPS URL of a PDF or XML file (for embed or extract).
file_base64	string	Conditional	Base64-encoded PDF or XML string (alternative to file_url).
xml_url	string	No	Optional HTTP/HTTPS URL of an external XML file to embed when invoice_data is omitted in embed mode.
xml_base64	string	No	Optional Base64-encoded XML string to embed when invoice_data is omitted in embed mode.

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💡 Quickstart Examples

1. Operation: generate

Create a complete PDF/A-3 invoice with embedded XML from JSON:

{
  "operation": "generate",
  "profile": "EN16931",
  "invoice_data": {
    "invoice_number": "RE-2026-0001",
    "issue_date": "2026-10-25",
    "due_date": "2026-11-24",
    "delivery_date": "2026-10-25",
    "buyer_reference": "04011000-12345-34",
    "currency": "EUR",
    "seller": {
      "name": "Cloud Solutions GmbH",
      "street": "Friedrichstraße 123",
      "city": "Berlin",
      "zip_code": "10117",
      "country": "DE",
      "vat_id": "DE123456789",
      "iban": "DE89370400440532013000",
      "bic": "DBEUT38BXXX",
      "email": "rechnung@cloud-solutions.de",
      "contact_name": "Erika Mustermann",
      "phone": "+49 30 1234567"
    },
    "buyer": {
      "name": "Musterkunde AG",
      "street": "Marienplatz 1",
      "city": "München",
      "zip_code": "80331",
      "country": "DE",
      "vat_id": "DE987654321",
      "email": "eingang@musterkunde.de"
    },
    "line_items": [
      {
        "description": "IT Consulting & Cloud Architecture",
        "quantity": 8.0,
        "unit_code": "HUR",
        "unit_price": 140.0,
        "tax_rate_percent": 19.0
      }
    ],
    "payment_terms": "Payable within 30 days without deduction."
  }
}

2. Operation: embed

Embed XML data into an existing invoice PDF:

{
  "operation": "embed",
  "file_url": "https://example.com/invoices/sample.pdf",
  "invoice_data": {
    "invoice_number": "INV-2026-99",
    "issue_date": "2026-10-25",
    "seller": { ... },
    "buyer": { ... },
    "line_items": [ ... ]
  }
}

3. Operation: extract

Inspect and validate an incoming PDF or XML invoice:

{
  "operation": "extract",
  "file_url": "https://example.com/incoming-invoice.pdf"
}

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📤 Output Format

Results are pushed to the default Apify Dataset:

{
  "operation": "generate",
  "status": "success",
  "profile": "EN16931",
  "invoice_number": "RE-2026-0001",
  "issue_date": "2026-10-25",
  "total_net_amount": 1120.0,
  "total_gross_amount": 1332.8,
  "currency": "EUR",
  "pdf_key": "INVOICE_RE-2026-0001.pdf",
  "pdf_download_url": "https://api.apify.com/v2/key-value-stores/.../records/INVOICE_RE-2026-0001.pdf",
  "xml_key": "INVOICE_RE-2026-0001.xml",
  "xml_download_url": "https://api.apify.com/v2/key-value-stores/.../records/INVOICE_RE-2026-0001.xml",
  "pdf_size_bytes": 7437,
  "xml_size_bytes": 7994
}

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🤖 Plug-and-Play: AI Agents (MCP), n8n & Make.com

Our actors are built natively for the next generation of automation: seamless integration into Claude Desktop, Cursor AI, AI Agent Frameworks (LangChain, AutoGen, CrewAI), and visual workflow builders like n8n and Make.com.

1. AI Agents & Model Context Protocol (MCP)

Give your AI coding assistant or desktop agent real-time access to this actor using the official Apify MCP server.

Option A: Single-Actor MCP Setup (claude_desktop_config.json / Cursor)

Add this to your %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows) or ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "apify-zugferd": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "@apify/actors-mcp-server", "--actors", "AGrunert/german-e-invoice-zugferd-xrechnung-suite"],
      "env": {
        "APIFY_TOKEN": "YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN"
      }
    }
  }
}

💡 Pro Tip – Equip your AI Agent with our Complete German B2B & Compliance Suite:
Pass all 6 specialized DACH actors in a single command so your agent can discover B2B leads, extract Impressum data, verify commercial register & insolvency records, search tenders, monitor real estate foreclosures, and issue tax-compliant e-invoices autonomously:

$npx -y @apify/actors-mcp-server --actors AGrunert/german-b2b-leads-directory-scraper,AGrunert/german-impressum-b2b-lead-enricher,AGrunert/german-company-kyb-insolvency-scraper,AGrunert/german-public-tenders-vergabe-scraper,AGrunert/german-real-estate-foreclosure-zvg-scraper,AGrunert/german-e-invoice-zugferd-xrechnung-suite

Hosted SSE Endpoint (for Cursor / remote agents):
https://mcp.apify.com?actors=AGrunert/german-e-invoice-zugferd-xrechnung-suite&token=YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN

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2. 1-Click Synchronous API (cURL, n8n, Make.com)

No async job polling required! Call our synchronous endpoint directly in a single HTTP request node to run the actor and receive clean parsed dataset items immediately:

curl -X POST "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/AGrunert~german-e-invoice-zugferd-xrechnung-suite/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=YOUR_APIFY_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"operation":"generate_pdf_invoice","profile":"COMFORT","invoice_data":{"invoice_number":"INV-2026-001","issue_date":"2026-10-28","currency":"EUR","seller":{"name":"Muster Consulting GmbH","city":"Berlin","country_code":"DE","vat_id":"DE123456789"},"buyer":{"name":"Kunde AG","city":"München","country_code":"DE","vat_id":"DE987654321"},"line_items":[{"name":"Cloud Consulting","quantity":10,"unit_code":"HUR","unit_price":150,"tax_rate":19}]}}'

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3. Schlüsselfertige Workflow-Vorlagen im Repository (integrations/)

In our GitHub repository and Actor build package, you will find pre-built, production-tested templates in the integrations/ folder:

• integrations/n8n_workflow.json: Ready-to-import n8n workflow for automated, tax-compliant PDF/A-3 and ZUGFeRD 2.3 / XRechnung e-invoice generation from order payloads. Just copy-paste the JSON into your n8n canvas.
• integrations/make_com_blueprint.json: Official Make.com scenario blueprint with pre-configured HTTP request & data mapping.
• integrations/mcp_claude_cursor_config.json: Pre-configured MCP server manifest for Claude Desktop, Cursor AI, and Windsurf.

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🔗 Complete German B2B, Compliance & PropTech Suite by AGrunert

Combine our specialized German business actors to build end-to-end automated pipelines for B2B lead generation, corporate due diligence, public procurement, real estate intelligence, and tax-compliant e-invoicing:

Actor	Category & Pricing	Key Capabilities	Preconfigured Public Tasks
German B2B Leads, Crafts & Business Directory Scraper	Lead Generation $0.008 / lead ($8.00 / 1k)	Multi-query round-robin extraction across German business directories (11880, Gelbe Seiten), verified E.164 phone numbers (97.5% coverage), and domain verification (require_website: true).	• German Crafts, Solar & Construction Lead Finder • German B2B Company & Domain Finder
German & DACH B2B Impressum, Contact & Legal Enricher (§ 5 DDG)	Data Enrichment $0.005 / domain ($5.00 / 1k)	Automatic legal notice discovery (§ 5 DDG / § 25 MedienG), de-obfuscation of executive emails, management board/CEOs, court & registration number (HRB), VAT ID (DE...), and social profiles.	• German B2B Impressum, CEO & Contact Extractor • DACH Website to Handelsregister & VAT ID Enricher
German Company KYB, Handelsregister & Insolvency Scraper	Risk & Compliance $0.025 / check ($25.00 / 1k)	Official XJustiz 3.5.1 extraction (directors, share capital, business purpose, court) + live insolvency check (insolvenzbekanntmachungen.de) with bulk company list support.	• Complete German KYB Audit • Fast German Insolvency Screener • Bulk German Company KYB Batch Check
German Public Tenders & Procurement Scraper (service.bund.de)	B2B Tenders & Contracts $0.010 / tender ($10.00 / 1k)	Daily procurement monitoring across Bund, Länder & Kommunen; zero false positives (filters AI Bietercockpit boilerplates); direct /unterlagen/ download URLs and submission deadlines (date + time).	• German IT, Software & AI Public Tenders Monitor • German Construction & Facility Management Tenders
German Real Estate Foreclosure & ZVG-Portal Scraper	PropTech & Real Estate $0.010 / property ($10.00 / 1k)	Bulk extraction of foreclosure auctions (zvg-portal.de) across all 16 states, multi-parcel market value parser (float), and direct PDF appraisal links (Verkehrswertgutachten).	• German Foreclosure Real Estate Finder • High-Value German Foreclosures (> 250k EUR)
German E-Invoice (ZUGFeRD / Factur-X / XRechnung 3.0) Suite (Current Actor)	Finance & Invoicing $0.035 / invoice ($35.00 / 1k)	Generate DIN-5008 compliant PDF/A-3 invoices from JSON, embed CII XML, and validate with official KoSIT Schematron & EN 16931 rules.	Standalone API & Batch Suite

💡 Multi-Actor Chain Workflows & Synergy Pipelines

• Pipeline 1 (Top-of-Funnel Lead-to-Audit Engine):
  Discover companies & crafts via German B2B Directory Scraper $\rightarrow$ Enrich managing directors, direct emails, and HRB numbers via German Impressum Enricher $\rightarrow$ Verify solvency, officers, and share capital via German KYB Scraper.
• Pipeline 2 (Public Tender Win to Compliant Billing):
  Monitor federal procurement opportunities via German Public Tenders Scraper $\rightarrow$ Win bid $\rightarrow$ Bill public authorities with compliant EN 16931 XRechnung 3.0 via German E-Invoice Suite.
• Pipeline 3 (Real Estate Foreclosure Due Diligence):
  Scrape upcoming foreclosures via German Real Estate Foreclosure Scraper $\rightarrow$ Check creditor/owner companies via German KYB Scraper.

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⚖️ Legal & Compliance Disclaimer

ZUGFeRD is a registered trademark of the Forum elektronische Rechnung Deutschland (FeRD). Factur-X is a joint standard by FeRD and FNFE-MPE. This Actor is an independent implementation created to ensure technical compliance with EN 16931, PDF/A-3 (ISO 19005-3), and XRechnung specifications.