What is FatturaPA?
FatturaPA is the Italian national e-invoice format, exchanged through the SDI (Sistema di Interscambio). It uses a proprietary XML schema with Italian-specific constructs such as Natura VAT-exemption codes. Facturus both reads and writes FatturaPA: reading to EN 16931 is lossy, and writing back synthesizes the Italian-specific SDI fields the standard does not carry.
Open a FatturaPA file in the viewer → See every business term, a visual preview and the raw XML.
- Country
- Italy 🇮🇹
- Syntax
- Proprietary XML (v1.2)
- Version
- v1.2
Key facts
- Namespace http://ivaservizi.agenziaentrate.gov.it/docs/xsd/fatture/v1.2.
- Bidirectional in Facturus - read AND written (FatturaPA 1.2, transmission format FPR12); output is XSD-valid.
- Lossy both ways: reading maps Natura codes (N2/N3) ambiguously to EN 16931 VAT categories and drops SDI IDs; writing synthesizes CodiceDestinatario, RegimeFiscale and Natura from the EN 16931 model.
FatturaPA and the SDI
FatturaPA is the Italian national e-invoice format. Unlike the EN 16931 family it is not a CIUS of the European standard - it is a separate proprietary XML schema that predates EN 16931 and is mapped onto it rather than derived from it.
Every FatturaPA invoice is exchanged through the SDI (Sistema di Interscambio), the central clearance platform run by the Italian Revenue Agency. The SDI validates the document, routes it to the recipient by their CodiceDestinatario or PEC address, and records it for tax purposes. This clearance model is the key difference from PEPPOL’s four-corner delivery: in Italy the tax authority sits in the middle of every domestic invoice.
Italian-specific constructs
FatturaPA carries fields that have no direct EN 16931 equivalent. The most important is the Natura code, which records why a line is outside normal VAT (exempt, reverse-charge, not-subject, and so on). It also carries the RegimeFiscale (the seller’s tax regime) and the CodiceDestinatario (the SDI routing code). These are central to Italian compliance but foreign to the European semantic model.
| FatturaPA field | Meaning | On conversion to EN 16931 |
|---|---|---|
| Natura (N1-N7) | VAT-exemption / special-case reason | Mapped to a VAT category code - ambiguously |
| RegimeFiscale | Seller tax regime (e.g. RF01) | Dropped - no EN 16931 term |
| CodiceDestinatario | SDI routing code | Dropped - SDI-specific |
Converting to and from FatturaPA
Facturus is bidirectional for FatturaPA: it reads a FatturaPA file onto the EN 16931 canonical model, and it also writes FatturaPA 1.2 (transmission format FPR12) back out. The generated document is schema-valid against the official Agenzia delle Entrate XSD.
Both directions are lossy where the two models do not line up. Reading collapses the Natura codes onto the coarser EN 16931 VAT-category set and drops SDI-only identifiers. Writing has the opposite problem - the EN 16931 model never carried the Italian-specific fields - so Facturus synthesizes them with safe defaults you should review before sending to the SDI.
| Field | Source / default on output |
|---|---|
| CodiceDestinatario | Preserved on round-trip; else "0000000" (use PEC routing) |
| RegimeFiscale | Preserved on round-trip; else "RF01" (ordinario) |
| Natura | Preserved verbatim if present; else derived from the VAT category |
| TipoDocumento | Mapped from the EN 16931 invoice type (e.g. TD01, TD04) |
Frequently asked questions
- Can Facturus convert FROM FatturaPA?
- Yes. Facturus reads FatturaPA 1.2 and converts it to EN 16931 formats - UBL, CII, PEPPOL BIS or XRechnung. The read is lossy for Italian-specific fields.
- Can Facturus convert TO FatturaPA?
- Yes. Facturus writes FatturaPA 1.2 (FPR12) and the output is XSD-valid. SDI-specific fields EN 16931 does not carry (CodiceDestinatario, RegimeFiscale, Natura, TipoDocumento) are synthesized with safe defaults - review them before sending to the SDI.
- Why is FatturaPA conversion lossy?
- Italian-specific Natura VAT codes and SDI fields have no direct EN 16931 equivalent. Reading maps Natura ambiguously to VAT categories and drops SDI identifiers; writing has to synthesize those Italian fields from the EN 16931 model.
- What is the SDI?
- The Sistema di Interscambio - Italy’s central clearance platform run by the Revenue Agency. Every domestic FatturaPA invoice passes through it for validation, routing and tax recording.
- What is a Natura code?
- A FatturaPA code (N1-N7) that records why an invoice line falls outside ordinary VAT - exempt, reverse-charge, not-subject, and similar cases.