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Documentation Index

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Brazil's e-invoicing regulation timeline

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Executive summary

Brazil operates a sophisticated, mandatory electronic invoicing system that covers different document types through SEFAZ (Secretaria da Fazenda), the state tax authority infrastructure. The system has been mandatory since 2008 and uses a clearance model (also known as continuous transaction control or CTC), where each invoice must be electronically submitted to tax authorities and formally authorized before it becomes legally valid. This real-time validation ensures that businesses cannot dispatch goods, book revenue, or send invoices to customers until the government has approved the transaction. The Brazilian e-invoicing system encompasses multiple document types for different transaction scenarios. NF-e (Nota Fiscal Eletrônica) is used for B2B and B2G sales of goods and products, requiring authorization before shipping. NFC-e (Nota Fiscal de Consumidor Eletrônica) covers B2C retail transactions for face-to-face sales or home delivery. NFS-e (Nota Fiscal de Serviços Eletrônica) handles B2B and B2G service transactions, with tax assessed by municipalities. NFCom applies to telecommunications and communication services, becoming mandatory in November 2025. Additionally, CT-e (Conhecimento de Transporte Eletrônico) and MDF-e (Manifesto Eletrônico de Documentos Fiscais) cover transportation of goods and grouping of multiple fiscal documents, respectively. Brazil operates a comprehensive e-reporting system through SPED (Sistema Público de Escrituração Digital), which collects financial, accounting, tax, and labor information from Brazilian companies. Invopop provides comprehensive coverage for Brazilian invoicing through the Documentos Fiscais Eletrônicos Brazil app, supporting NF-e, NFS-e, and NFC-e documents. The platform also offers integrations with Stripe and Chargebee, enabling businesses to issue compliant invoices directly from their merchant or ERP platforms while automatically handling the complex SEFAZ authorization process.

Invoicing in Brazil

The Nota Fiscal de Consumidor Eletrônica (NFC-e) is used for face-to-face retail sales or for home delivery to the final consumer (individual or legal entity).
ModelsB2C
FormatLocal XML
InfrastructureSEFAZ
ModelClearance continuous transaction control (CTC)
Scope & DeadlineMandatory since 2008
AgencyRFB
Invopop SupportDocumentos Fiscais Eletrônicos Brazil
https://assets.invopop.com/apps/notas-fiscais-eletronicas-brazil/icon.svg

Documentos Fiscais Eletrônicos Brazil

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The Nota Fiscal Eletrônica (NF-e) is used for the sale of goods or products which are reported to the tax authority before shipping. The administration will issue an authorization code that must be printed on the PDF of each invoice.
ModelsB2B, B2G
FormatLocal XML
InfrastructureSEFAZ
ModelClearance continuous transaction control (CTC)
Scope & DeadlineMandatory since 2008
AgencyRFB
Invopop SupportDocumentos Fiscais Eletrônicos Brazil
https://assets.invopop.com/apps/notas-fiscais-eletronicas-brazil/icon.svg

Documentos Fiscais Eletrônicos Brazil

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In Jan 2026 the NFS-e tax format will change from the municipal format to a national standard.
The Nota Fiscal de Serviços Eletrônica (NFS-e) is used for service transactions. Tax is assessed by municipalities which then return a code which calculates the tax.
ModelsB2B, B2G
FormatLocal XML
InfrastructureSEFAZ
ModelClearance continuous transaction control (CTC)
Scope & DeadlineMandatory since 2008
AgencyRFB
Invopop SupportDocumentos Fiscais Eletrônicos Brazil
https://assets.invopop.com/apps/notas-fiscais-eletronicas-brazil/icon.svg

Documentos Fiscais Eletrônicos Brazil

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The Nota Fiscal de Serviços de Comunicação Eletrônica (NFCom) is used by companies in the telecommunications (mobile, fixed, broadband) and communication (broadcasting, newspapers, etc.) industries.
ModelsB2C, B2B
FormatLocal XML
InfrastructureSEFAZ
ModelClearance continuous transaction control (CTC)
Scope & DeadlineMandatory since November 2025
AgencyRFB
Invopop SupportRequest support
The Conhecimento de Transporte Eletrônico (CT-e) is used for the transportation of goods. MDF-e (Manifesto Eletrônico de Documentos Fiscais) groups multiple fiscal documents (like NF-e or CT-e) when a single vehicle transports goods covered by different invoices or transport documents.
ModelsB2B, B2G
FormatLocal XML
InfrastructureSEFAZ
ModelClearance continuous transaction control (CTC)
Scope & DeadlineCT-e Mandatory since 2010, MDF-e since 2014
AgencyRFB
Invopop SupportRequest support

E-reporting

Brazil has a comprehensive e-reporting system through its SPED (Sistema Público de Escrituração Digital - Public System of Digital Bookkeeping) framework.
The SPED system is a reporting system that collects all financial, accountant, tax and labor information from Brazilian companies, composed of 12 modules, with 7 ancillary obligations and 5 fiscal documents (listed in the e-invoicing section).
FormatStructured plaintext files
Scope & deadlineHR and payroll (eSocial), yearly bookeeping (ECD), digital tax return (ECF), monthly reporting of tax documents to federal authorities (EFD), to state tax authorities (EFD-ICMS/IPI) and social security contributions (EFD-ReInf). For banks e-Financiera is a compliance obligation as well.
Invopop supportNo

Regulation

Electronic invoices in Brazil must be archived for a minimum of five years. This applies to all types of e-invoices, which must be stored in the required XML format.
A clearance model (sometimes called real-time validation or pre-clearance) is a regulatory architecture in which each invoice must be electronically submitted to the tax authority and formally approved before it becomes legally valid. The government acts as an intermediary between the supplier and the buyer and the invoice will only be valid with state authorization. Only after authorization you can dispatch goods, book revenue or send an invoice to the customer.

FAQ

Compliance questions Brazil
Yes, all transaction are mandatory in Brazil.
Any entity with a CNPJ (legal entity) or CPF (individual) registered in Brazil. State and municipal registrations (Inscrição Estadual / Municipal) are also required depending on whether the supplier issues NF-e (state) or NFS-e (municipal) documents.
NF-e
NF-e (model 55) for goods has been mandatory since 2008 — phased in by sector and turnover. NFC-e (model 65, retail B2C) replaced the paper Cupom Fiscal in most states between 2014 and 2020. Both are now required for any commercial circulation of goods.
The supplier needs an active state Inscrição Estadual, a CNAE that authorizes goods circulation, and an A1 certificate matching the issuing CNPJ. Some states (SP, RJ, MG) require additional credenciamento before NF-e issuance.
NFS-e
ISS (Imposto Sobre Serviços) is not treated as a standard transactional tax calculated on top of a net amount. Instead, it is an informative tax embedded in the final price—the invoice only reports what portion of the total corresponds to ISS.In GOBL, ISS is flagged as an “informative” tax category. This means:
  • ISS must be added to the GOBL invoice like any other tax, with the proper percentage.
  • The tax amount is not added to the price; it represents the portion of the total that corresponds to ISS.
  • The NFS-e document displays ISS as informational data, reflecting what was already embedded in the final price.
  • Do not use prices_include with ISS—since ISS is informative, it should not be treated as a price-inclusive tax.
It is not necessary, any fields pertaining to the previous municipal tax implementation will be ignored and the invoice will already have all the data to be compliant. However, it is always recommended to remove ignored fields to avoid confusion and keep your documents clean.
NFS-e is municipal, so the supplier needs an Inscrição Municipal in every município where they invoice services. Special tax regimes (Simples Nacional, MEI, ISS estimado) impose additional fields and rates.
More available in our Brazil FAQ section

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