---
title: "Receiving and Correctly Archiving E-Invoices"
description: "How to organize the receipt and archiving of e-invoices: define a mailbox, secure the original, store in a GoBD-compliant way – step by step."
type: "wissen"
product: "documents"
slug: "e-rechnung-empfangen-archivieren"
source_language: "de"
target_languages: ["de", "en", "es", "pl", "tr"]
published: "2026-06-10"
status: "publish"
faq_json: [{"q":"How do I receive e-invoices correctly?","a":"An email mailbox is considered sufficient for receipt. A dedicated address makes sense only for invoices that you communicate to suppliers and connect to your storage."}, {"q":"Do I have to keep the XML original?","a":"Yes. With e-invoices, the structured data set is the original. It must be preserved unchanged throughout the entire retention period – a printout is not enough."}, {"q":"May I delete the email if the attachment is secured?","a":"If the invoice itself is archived completely and unchanged, the email usually serves only as a transport channel. If the mail itself contains invoice-relevant or business-relevant content, it should be retained as well."}, {"q":"How long do e-invoices have to be retained?","a":"E-invoices are accounting documents and are subject to the tax retention periods. The statutory periods from the Fiscal Code and the Commercial Code are decisive."}, {"q":"What does unchangeable archiving mean?","a":"Once stored, the document can no longer be overwritten or deleted until the retention period expires – technically, for example, via Object Lock in the archive storage."}]
language: "en"
source_id: "wissen/e-rechnung-empfangen-archivieren"
source_hash: "5d29af0e4e9cba4a55e0b138d4634117284f89dc625b82a56173b0c1afab9d70"
---

You receive e-invoices correctly through a dedicated email mailbox – and you archive them by keeping the structured data set unchanged throughout the statutory retention period. The most important principle: with an e-invoice, the XML is the original. A printout or a PDF image does not replace it.

## Step 1: Organize receipt cleanly

Legally, an email mailbox is sufficient for receiving. To prevent it from turning into chaos, a clear structure helps:

- **A dedicated address** only for incoming invoices (e.g. rechnung@deine-firma.de)
- **Communicate it to all suppliers**, so invoices don't end up scattered across personal mailboxes
- **Clarify responsibility:** Who checks the incoming items, who approves them?

## Step 2: From the mailbox automatically into storage

The most error-prone step is manually saving attachments. It's better to connect your invoice mailbox directly to your document storage: [webRichtung documents](https://www.webrichtung.de/module/documents/) automatically imports incoming attachments, and the mail context (sender, subject, receipt date) is preserved as search and audit context. A historical import from a start date is also possible – useful if you want to tidy up retroactively. The article [Import documents via email](/en/wissen/dokumente-per-email-importieren.html) shows how this works in detail.

## Step 3: Keep the original in an unchangeable form

E-invoices are accounting documents and are subject to tax retention periods. Two requirements are key:

1. **Unchangeability:** The structured data set must be preserved exactly as it was received.
2. **Retrievability:** In the event of an audit, you must be able to present invoices within a reasonable time.

Technically, documents solves this through a GoBD archive with Object Lock: archived documents are locked against overwriting and deletion for 6, 8 or 10 years. The archive storage is included in the current model; billing is per processed document from €0.09 (€0.06 in batch).

## Step 4: Find instead of search

Archiving is only half the battle – you also want to retrieve invoices when your tax advisor asks. Since every document is read and classified during processing, in documents you search not only by file name but also by content, document type, date, and even by amount from/to. If the platform detects a deadline in a document, it prepares a task – you approve it.

## Checklist for getting started

- Dedicated invoice mailbox set up and communicated to suppliers
- Mailbox connected to document storage (automatic attachment import)
- Responsibility for checking and approval clarified
- Archiving with the appropriate period (6, 8 or 10 years) active
- Sample check done: one received e-invoice successfully retrieved as a test

If you can tick off all five points, your incoming side is ready for e-invoicing – the rest is ongoing operation.

## Common mistake: only saving the PDF

With ZUGFeRD invoices, many people only see the PDF and forget that the embedded XML is the decisive part. Therefore, as a rule, save the original file as it was received – not a converted or printed version. You can find an overview of the basic rules under [GoBD-compliant archiving](/en/wissen/gobd-konforme-archivierung.html).

This article provides general information and does not replace legal or tax advice.