How to Comply with SdI Italy: Onboarding, FatturaPA, and Your First Cleared Invoice
To comply with SdI Italy, a VAT-registered business must obtain a partita IVA, register a Codice Destinatario (or use 0000000 plus PEC), build the FatturaPA XML with the correct TipoDocumento code, optionally sign with CAdES-BES, submit through SDICoop or an accredited intermediary, and reconcile the ricevuta di consegna against the issued invoice. The cleared XML is the legal original.
At a glance
- Channel: SDICoop web service (XML over SOAP), PEC, SDIFTP, or accredited intermediary
- Schema: FatturaPA v1.2.x (current as of 2026)
- Signature: CAdES-BES (.xml.p7m) mandatory for B2G; optional for B2B/B2C via SDICoop
- SLA: SdI returns ricevuta within 5 days; in practice seconds
- Retention: 10 years (conservazione sostitutiva to AgID-accredited provider)
Prerequisites
Prerequisites includes: Active Italian partita IVA (11 digits). PEC mailbox (posta elettronica certificata) registered with INI-PEC.
- Active Italian partita IVA (11 digits).
- PEC mailbox (posta elettronica certificata) registered with INI-PEC.
- Fiscal code (codice fiscale) of every individual buyer; partita IVA of every business buyer.
- Access to the Fatture e Corrispettivi area of the AdE portal (with SPID, CIE, or CNS).
- Access to an SdI-capable invoicing system or accredited intermediary.
Onboarding: partita IVA, PEC, Codice Destinatario
Do I need to register a Codice Destinatario myself?
Only if you are a buyer who wants invoices routed to your invoicing system instead of your PEC. Sellers do not need one.
Only if you are a buyer who wants invoices routed to your invoicing system instead of your PEC. Sellers do not need one. Most Italian businesses use their intermediary's Codice Destinatario, registered once in the AdE portal under "Registrazione dell'indirizzo telematico". Once registered, the code overrides whatever the seller writes — SdI uses the registered code as the source of truth.
Forfettari: do flat-rate taxpayers really have to e-invoice?
Yes, since 1 January 2024 (DL 36/2022 art. 18), regardless of turnover.
Yes, since 1 January 2024 (DL 36/2022 art.18), regardless of turnover. The previous €25k carve-out is gone. Most forfettari use accredited cloud platforms because the SDICoop SOAP integration is impractical for a single user.
Build the FatturaPA XML
The XML root is <FatturaElettronica> with two top-level blocks:
The XML root is <FatturaElettronica> with two top-level blocks:
- FatturaElettronicaHeader — DatiTrasmissione (ProgressivoInvio, FormatoTrasmissione = FPR12 for B2B/B2C or FPA12 for B2G, CodiceDestinatario, PECDestinatario), CedentePrestatore (seller), CessionarioCommittente (buyer), TerzoIntermediarioOSoggettoEmittente if applicable.
- FatturaElettronicaBody — DatiGenerali (TipoDocumento, Numero, Data, ImportoTotaleDocumento), DatiBeniServizi (line items with Natura code for VAT-exempt), DatiPagamento.
Picking the right TipoDocumento
TD01 covers standard sales. TD04 credit note, TD05 debit note, TD20 self-billing (autofattura) for reverse-charge purchases, TD17/TD18/TD19 for cross-border. Invoicemonk picks the TD code from the counterparty's country and the VAT treatment, which removes the most common semantic error.
Submit to SdI
Three live channels:
- SDICoop — SOAP web service, the production channel for high-volume issuers. Accredited intermediary required for the WS endpoint.
- PEC — email to
sdi01@pec.fatturapa.it, attaching the FatturaPA XML (optionally .p7m). Practical for low volumes. - Fatture e Corrispettivi portal — manual upload, suitable for forfettari and micro-businesses.
SdI replies asynchronously with the ricevuta. Persist the Identificativo SdI on the invoice — it is the audit primary key.
Conservazione sostitutiva (10-year archive)
FatturaPA records must be preserved in conservazione sostitutiva (substitute electronic preservation) for 10 years per CAD art. 43 and DM 17 June 2014.
FatturaPA records must be preserved in conservazione sostitutiva (substitute electronic preservation) for 10 years per CAD art.43 and DM 17 June 2014. The conservation process applies a qualified timestamp and digital signature to a closed package of invoices, lodged with an AgID-accredited provider (or the AdE's own conservation service, free for small businesses).
Go-live compliance checklist
Go-live compliance checklist includes: ☐ Partita IVA active and validated in VIES for intra-EU. ☐ PEC registered with INI-PEC and the AdE portal.
- ☐ Partita IVA active and validated in VIES for intra-EU.
- ☐ PEC registered with INI-PEC and the AdE portal.
- ☐ Codice Destinatario (own or intermediary) registered in Fatture e Corrispettivi.
- ☐ FatturaPA generator outputs schema v1.2.x with correct TD code.
- ☐ SdI sandbox round-trip tested (consegna + scarto scenarios).
- ☐ Identificativo SdI persisted on every invoice record.
- ☐ Conservazione sostitutiva contract in place (AdE or accredited provider).
Key takeaways
Key takeaways includes: SDICoop for volume, PEC for low volume, AdE portal for the smallest taxpayers. Pick the TipoDocumento from the transaction, not from a default — TD code errors trigger audit selection.
- SDICoop for volume, PEC for low volume, AdE portal for the smallest taxpayers.
- Pick the TipoDocumento from the transaction, not from a default — TD code errors trigger audit selection.
- Conservazione sostitutiva is a separate compliance surface from SdI clearance; both are mandatory.
Authority sources
- AdE — FatturaPA technical documentation
- AgID — conservazione sostitutiva guidelines
- Fatture e Corrispettivi portal
Related reading
Related reading includes: SdI / FatturaPA explained Best e-invoicing software for small businesses in Italy
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