Corrective invoices in Spain: when, how and which code
Independent, non-governmental site
Choose the reason for the correction and whether you are correcting a receipt: the calculator gives the Verifactu corrective code, the method and the last day to correct.
Verifactu corrective type
R1
Error in law or article 80(1), (2) and (6) of the VAT Act
| Series | Separate series for corrections (art. 15.5) |
| Method | Substitution (S) or differences (I) |
| Deadline to correct | 4 years from the tax point (until 31 December 2028 if it was 31/12) |
Basis: RD 1619/2012, art. 15; codes R1 to R5 of Order HAC/1177/2024. An issued invoice is never deleted: it is corrected, or cancelled with a cancellation record.
Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · Rules read in the BOE and at the AEAT on 25 October 2026
An issued invoice is never deleted or edited in Spain: it is corrected with another one. Article 15 of the Invoicing Regulation requires a corrective invoice, or factura rectificativa, when the original does not meet the content requirements, when VAT was calculated wrongly, or when one of the events in article 80 of the VAT Act changes the taxable amount: returns, later discounts, cancellations, the customer's insolvency or bad debts. You must issue it as soon as you know the reason and always before 4 years have passed since the VAT became due or since the event that justifies it. The corrective invoice is a new invoice, in its own series, that identifies the corrected invoice and states the correction, either as the difference or with the amounts as they now stand. Under Verifactu the software records the corrective invoice with a reason code, R1 to R5, and a method, substitution or differences. If the invoice should simply never have existed, the software creates a cancellation record instead of deleting it.
Corrective codes under Verifactu
| Code | Reason | Example |
|---|---|---|
| R1 | Error in law and article 80(1), (2) and (6) of the VAT Act | Wrong VAT rate applied, returned goods, later discount |
| R2 | Article 80(3): recipient insolvency | The customer enters insolvency proceedings |
| R3 | Article 80(4): bad debts | An unpaid invoice that meets the bad debt conditions |
| R4 | Other causes | Other invoice errors |
| R5 | Correction of simplified invoices | Correcting a till receipt |
Article 15 of the Invoicing Regulation sets out when to correct; Order HAC/1177/2024 adds how a Verifactu-compliant system records it. Each corrective invoice creates a registration record like any invoice, with its hash chained to the previous record, its reason code and a reference to the corrected invoice. That way the Tax Agency can follow the full history of a transaction without anything being erased.
Deadline, series and content
The deadline is 4 years from when the VAT on the transaction became due or, in the article 80 cases, from when the event occurred. An invoice with a tax point of 31 December 2022 can be corrected until 31 December 2026. After that, correction is no longer possible, however obvious the error. Article 6.1.a also requires corrective invoices to be issued in a specific series, separate from the ordinary one.
The corrective invoice must meet the content rules of a full or simplified invoice, as the case may be, and add the details of the invoice it corrects. It may state the amount of the correction directly, with its sign, or show the amounts as they now stand while also stating how much was corrected. If the error is on a receipt, article 4.1.b allows the correction to be a simplified invoice too, whatever the amount:
Is a simplified invoice allowed?
Is a simplified invoice allowed?
No: full invoice
| General limit | €400 |
| Limit for art. 4.2 activities | €3,000 |
| Verifactu type | F1 |
| B2B e-invoicing | Excluded unless qualified (RD 238/2026, art. 4) |
Correct, cancel or do nothing
Not every change needs a corrective invoice. If containers or goods come back and you sell again to the same customer at the same VAT rate, article 15.2 lets you deduct the returns on the next invoice. If an invoice was issued by mistake and the transaction never happened, Verifactu uses a cancellation record, not a corrective invoice. The software must stop you from deleting or editing records, which is part of the Verifactu requirements.
To check which details the new invoice must contain, see Spanish invoice requirements. If the corrected invoice went to a public body in Facturae, the corrective one goes in signed Facturae too, as explained in signing a Facturae file. And if you correct receipts often, read the simplified invoice.