E-Invoice FAQ

E-Invoice FAQ

Question: Which Date Should Be Used for Accounting Purposes – Invoice Date or Validation Date?

Question Overview

In the e-Invoice system, there are two important dates:

• Invoice Date: The actual date when the transaction occurred
• Validation Date: The date when the LHDN system validates the e-Invoice

When these two dates fall in different accounting periods, which date should be used to recognise revenue or expenses?

Case Study

Scenario:

• Invoice Date: September 11, 2024
• Validation Date: October 1, 2025
• Company’s Financial Year: 1.10.2024 to 30.9.2025

Question: Should this transaction be recognised in 2024 or 2025?

Answer and Recommendations

According to existing e-Invoice guidelines,  there is no explicit requirement specifying which date must be used for revenue recognition.

However, based on general accounting principles, the following is recommended:

Recommended Approach:

 Recognise revenue/expenses based on the Invoice Date

Rationale:

1. The invoice date represents the actual transaction date, aligning with the accrual basis of accounting
2. The validation date is merely a system timestamp, typically completed instantly (less than 2 seconds) after submission
3. Delays in the validation date may be caused by various factors (system delays, submission timing, etc.) and should not affect the accounting period attribution of the transaction

Treatment for the Above Case:

•  Recognise in 2024 (Invoice Date: September 11 falls in this year)
•  Should NOT be recognised in 2025 (despite the validation date being 1 October 2025)

Accounting Entry Timing:

Recognise revenue in the accounting period when September 11 falls, even though LHDN validated the invoice on October 1 of the following year.

E-Invoice 常见问题解答

问题：发票日期与验证日期(Valid Date)在会计处理上应该以哪个为准?

问题说明

在e-Invoice系统中，存在两个重要日期:

• 发票日期(Invoice Date)：交易实际发生的日期
• 验证日期(Validation Date)：LHDN系统验证e-Invoice的日期

当这两个日期跨越不同会计年度时，应该按照哪个日期来确认收入或费用?

案例分析

情况:

• 发票日期:2024年9月11日
• 验证日期:2025年10月1日
• 公司会计年度:2024年10月1日至2025年9月30日

问题: 这笔交易应该确认在2024年度还是2025年度?

答案与建议

#根据现有的e-Invoice指南文件，#并没有明确规定必须按照哪个日期来确认收入。

但基于一般会计原则，建议如下:

建议处理方式:

 按照发票日期确认收入/费用

理由:

1. 发票日期代表交易的实际发生日期，符合权责发生制会计原则
2. 验证日期只是系统确认的时间戳，通常在发票提交后即时完成(少于2秒)
3. 验证日期的延迟可能由各种因素造成(如系统延迟、提交时间等)，不应影响交易的会计期间归属

针对上述案例的处理:

•  确认在2024年度(发票日期：9月11日所属年度)
•  不应确认在2025年度(虽然验证日期是10月1日)