What Is an E-Archive Invoice? A Guide for E-Commerce

01What Is an E-Archive Invoice?

An e-archive invoice is an invoice created, transmitted and stored electronically under the standards set by the Revenue Administration (GİB, the Turkish tax authority). Its legal standing is the same as a paper invoice; the only difference is how it is issued and stored. The burden of printing, enveloping and archiving paper disappears.

The most common document in e-commerce is the e-archive invoice, because most customers of online stores are individual consumers. Since these people are not registered in the e-invoice system, the electronic invoice issued to them is created as an e-archive invoice and is usually delivered by email or through a link on the order page.

For the customer, the most visible benefit of e-archive is speed: the invoice lands in their email or in the order page of their account shortly after the order is confirmed, and they don't have to look for a paper invoice in the shipping box. For the seller, the cost of printing, paper and filing cabinets disappears, and a given invoice can be found in seconds.

This article is for general information. Because tax legislation and transition thresholds can change over time, be sure to check the current legislation and your accountant.

02E-Invoice vs. E-Archive

Both documents are electronic invoices; the difference between them is about who the buyer is. If the buyer is a taxpayer registered in the e-invoice system, the document is issued as an e-invoice; if not, as an e-archive invoice. In other words, you don't choose the document type; the buyer's status decides it.

An e-invoice is transmitted directly between two registered taxpayers through GİB's infrastructure and arrives in the buyer's system as an electronic document. An e-archive invoice, on the other hand, is delivered to the buyer by email, a link or, if requested, a paper printout, and its details are reported to GİB within set periods.

03Who Should Use E-Archive?

The obligation to switch to the e-archive and e-invoice system is set by communiqués published by GİB. The obligation is generally defined by gross sales revenue thresholds and field of activity; there are also separate rules for businesses that sell goods or services over the internet. Because thresholds are updated from time to time, we do not give amounts here.

Even if it is not mandatory, you can switch to the system voluntarily. Many businesses that sell online switch to e-archive and e-invoice of their own accord to be rid of the time and error burden of paper invoices as order volume grows.

To clarify your own situation, evaluate your turnover, line of business and sales channels together with your accountant. If you sell on marketplaces, also take into account the platforms' invoice upload rules; we touched on this in our what is marketplace integration article.

04How Do You Switch to E-Archive?

There are two ways to switch: using GİB's free portal or connecting to the system through a private integrator. The portal may be enough for businesses that issue few invoices, but it requires entering every invoice by hand. For a store that gets dozens of orders a day, an integrator and a software connection are far more practical.

1. Clarify the obligation and the transition date with your accountant.
2. Decide whether to use the portal or a private integrator.
3. Obtain the required tools, such as a financial seal or an electronic signature.
4. Sign a contract with the integrator and open your account.
5. Connect your e-commerce software to your integrator account.
6. Check the invoice flow with a few test orders.

05How to Issue Invoices in E-Commerce

There are two ways to issue invoices in an online store: entering a separate program for each order and typing the details by hand, or creating the invoice automatically from the order. The first method gets by with a few orders a day; as orders grow it turns into errors like wrong amounts, missing addresses and forgotten invoices.

In the automatic flow, the customer enters individual or corporate invoice details at checkout. When the order is confirmed, the software picks an e-invoice or e-archive according to the buyer's taxpayer status, takes the product, VAT and shipping lines from the order, and sends the document to the integrator. The invoice is stored with the order, and a link is sent to the customer.

Internet Sales Information

For sales made over the internet, the e-archive invoice is required to include extra fields such as payment method, payment and shipping date and carrier information. Having these fields filled in automatically from the order reduces the risk of issuing an invoice with missing information. Check the current regulation for which fields are mandatory.

Returns and Cancellations

How an invoice is corrected when a product is returned or an order is canceled varies by document type and buyer. Discussing the return process with your accountant in advance and setting up the return flow in your software accordingly prevents confusion at month-end.

06Benefits of Automatic Invoicing

Automating the invoicing job doesn't just save time; it keeps your accounting records orderly and audit-ready. Because the link between order and invoice never breaks, which order has been invoiced and which is waiting is visible at any moment.

• Right document type: An e-invoice or e-archive is chosen automatically according to the buyer's status.
• Duplicate invoice protection: Issuing a second invoice for the same order is prevented.
• VAT by category: The different VAT rates of product groups and the VAT on shipping are calculated correctly.
• The invoice is stored linked to the order; when you look for it, you find it immediately.
• An orderly set of records goes to your accountant at month-end.

07Common Invoicing Mistakes

Most invoicing problems in online stores come not from the software but from missing information and manual steps. The mistakes below are especially common in campaign periods when the number of orders rises quickly, and they take hours to fix at month-end.

• Order without corporate details: Issuing an individual invoice to a company because the tax number and tax office were not collected.
• Wrong VAT rate: Invoicing products subject to different rates at a single rate.
• Not adding the shipping fee to the invoice at all, or mixing it into the product line.
• Issuing an invoice for a canceled order, or invoicing the same order twice.
• Not uploading the invoice for marketplace orders to the platform on time.

08E-Invoice and E-Archive at Aurora

The e-invoice integration of Aurora Smart E-Commerce works with Uyumsoft, EDM Bilişim and Park Entegrasyon. If the buyer is an e-invoice taxpayer, an e-invoice is chosen automatically; if not, an e-archive invoice. You issue the invoice from the order screen with one click. The connection is built directly into the system, and no intermediate integration program is used.

You can find how invoicing, financial reporting and stock work together on our accounting integration page, and other connections on our integrations page. We also provide training and consulting support so your team uses the invoice and return flow correctly.

We explained how invoice, order and stock records flow to the accounting side in our e-commerce accounting integration article, and the role of e-invoices in corporate and reseller orders in our B2B reseller system article.