An invoice can have two readers. A person opens the PDF, checks the amount, and pays it. Or software extracts its data, so it can handle the invoice automatically. A regular PDF mostly serves the first reader and can make it difficult to trust automatic handling of invoices.
ZUGFeRD and Factur-X are standards used in Germany and France that solve this by putting both readers in one file: a normal PDF users can look at, with the structured invoice data embedded as XML for automation. This post explains why you would want or need that and how Oicana produces such a file from a Typst template.
Why structured invoices
More and more countries require invoices to carry machine-readable data, not just a printed layout:
Germany mandates that businesses can receive structured e-invoices for domestic B2B since 2025, with required sending of e-invoices following in phases over the next years.
