Key points
- HMRC's survey of 800 VAT-registered SMEs found 29% use e-invoicing, 15% send e-invoices and 24% receive them.
- On 20 October 2026 the Peppol Directory listed 22,664 GB entries, 22,125 of them with a UK VAT number ID: about 1% of the 2,285,900 live VAT-registered traders.
- The 2025 consultation drew 342 responses, and 63% agreed with focusing on a decentralised model.
- Benefit figures such as a 20% cut in late payments and £11,300 a year saved come from industry research cited by the government, not from government estimates.
- HMRC estimates the VAT gap at 6.6%, or £12.1 billion, in 2024 to 2025.
The most reliable UK e-invoicing figures come from HMRC's survey of 800 VAT-registered SMEs, where 29% said they use e-invoicing but only 15% send e-invoices and 24% receive them. On the network side, the Peppol Directory listed 22,664 UK (GB) entries on 20 October 2026, about 1% of VAT-registered businesses. Everything else widely quoted, including the "20% fewer late payments" figure, is industry research the government has cited, not a government estimate.
Each figure below has its publisher, date, method and a link to the original. We have left out figures we could not trace to a primary source. Where a number is a vendor or industry claim, we say so.
Adoption and use
| Figure | Publisher and date | Method | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 29% of SMEs use e-invoicing | HMRC (research by IFF Research), published 26 March 2026 | Telephone survey of 800 VAT-registered SMEs, 24 February to 18 March 2025, weighted | HMRC quantitative research |
| 15% send e-invoices; 24% receive them; 10% do both | Same | Same | Same |
| 80% send mainly by PDF or email; 89% receive mainly by PDF or email | Same | Same | Same |
| Sage was the most frequently used software | Same | Same | Same |
| 126 of 342 consultation respondents were current e-invoicing users | HM Treasury and HMRC, 26 November 2025 | Self-selected consultation responses, not a sample | Consultation response |
HMRC's survey used e-invoicing to mean structured data "that allows for automatic and electronic processing", excluding PDFs and emails. The report itself warns that quota sampling limits how far results can be generalised. Our summary of the HMRC research covers more findings.
Peppol network in the UK
| Figure | Publisher and date | Method | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22,664 GB entries in the Peppol Directory | einvoices.uk, 20 October 2026 | Daily query of the Peppol Directory search API filtered to country GB | UK Peppol adoption tracker |
| 22,125 of those use a UK VAT number (scheme 9932) as Peppol ID | Same | Same | Same |
| About 1.0% of VAT-registered businesses have a 9932 Peppol ID | einvoices.uk, 20 October 2026 | 22,125 divided by HMRC's 2,285,900 live traders; an order-of-magnitude indicator | Same |
| 681 new GB entries registered 20 September to 19 October 2026 | einvoices.uk | Directory registration dates | Same |
| 21,567 GB entries accept Peppol BIS Billing 3.0 invoices | einvoices.uk, 20 October 2026 | Document types registered in the Directory | Same |
| 18 of 756 Peppol certified service providers are UK-resident | OpenPeppol, list updated 19 October 2026 | OpenPeppol's own register; country is legal residence | OpenPeppol list |
The tracker updates daily, so the live page will show newer numbers than this table. Its caveats matter: Directory listing is optional, one business can have several entries, and an entry shows a business can receive on Peppol, not that it sends e-invoices. See our UK provider list for the 18 providers.
Population and scope
| Figure | Publisher and date | Method | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2,285,900 live VAT-registered traders in 2024 to 2025 | HMRC, 3 December 2025 | Administrative VAT register data | Annual UK VAT statistics |
| 234,000 new VAT registrations and 218,000 de-registrations in 2024 to 2025 | Same | Same | Same |
This is the closest official count of the businesses likely to be within the April 2029 mandate, which covers VAT invoices. Check your own position with the scope checker.
The 2025 consultation in numbers
All from the consultation response of 26 November 2025. Consultation responses are self-selected, so these describe who replied, not UK businesses as a whole.
| Figure | Detail |
|---|---|
| 342 responses | 259 based only in the UK, 30 in the UK and abroad, 30 only overseas |
| 203 business respondents | 141 were SMEs (92 micro, 31 small, 18 medium) and 40 had more than 250 employees |
| Largest sectors | Accountancy, bookkeeping and tax (18%) and software (15%) |
| 63% | Agreed the government was right to focus on a decentralised model; most others expressed no opinion |
| 69% | Of 255 who answered, used an accountant |
See our consultation summary.
Benefit figures the government has cited
These appear in official documents, but the government attributes them to other sources. None is an HMRC or Treasury estimate of the UK mandate's effect.
| Figure | Where it appears | Original source, as stated |
|---|---|---|
| 20% fewer late payments on adoption | Consultation response, foreword and chapter 2 | "Industry research"; one software provider's research; also "a leading organisation" survey of 9,000 businesses. Publisher not named |
| £11,300 annual saving for small firms | Consultation response | Same 9,000-business survey |
| 3% labour productivity boost in finance-heavy sectors | Consultation response | Same |
| 2.2 times return on investment over 2 years for firms under 50 staff | Consultation response | "Industry research" |
| Four-day reduction in average payment times | Consultation response | One software provider's research |
| Invoicing costs cut by 60% to 80% | Consultation response, chapter 4 | No source given |
| E-invoice processing costs 38% of paper and 43% of PDF | Consultation response | New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment |
| £30 to £50 per invoice | Consultation response | "A few" respondents; the response says the figures are not representative |
| 80% of businesses globally key supplier invoices manually; about 10% of keyed data has errors | Government press release, 13 February 2025 | "Industry research" |
Treat these as reported, not confirmed. Before you repeat one, quote it as "industry research cited by the government". Our benefits guide discusses what they can and cannot tell you.
Tax gap figures
| Figure | Publisher and date | Source |
|---|---|---|
| VAT gap 6.6% of theoretical liability, £12.1 billion, 2024 to 2025 | HMRC, Measuring tax gaps 2026 edition, 23 June 2026 | Tax gaps: VAT |
| VAT gap fell from 14.1% (2005 to 2006) to 6.6% | Same | Same |
| Error was 15% of the overall tax gap in 2023 to 2024 | Consultation response, citing HMRC tax gap data | Consultation response |
| Failure to take reasonable care and error were 22% of the VAT gap in 2022 to 2023 | Government press release, 13 February 2025 | Press release |
The government has not published a revenue estimate for the e-invoicing mandate itself. See e-invoicing and the VAT gap.
Figures we left out
- Market-size forecasts from paid research reports: methods are not public.
- Global vendor surveys presented as UK data.
- Any "share of UK businesses using Peppol" that does not state its numerator and denominator.
- Phased start dates some vendors publish: no phasing has been announced as of 20 October 2026.
How to cite this page
Quote the original publisher first, then link here if useful, for example: "29% of VAT-registered SMEs use e-invoicing (HMRC, March 2026, via einvoices.uk)". For Peppol counts, cite the tracker with the date you read it.
What to do now
- If you are writing about UK e-invoicing, use the figures above with their dates and caveats.
- If you run a business, the numbers say most of your suppliers and customers are not on Peppol yet. Start with the readiness checklist.
- Watch for new official figures in the Budget 2026 roadmap on 28 October 2026. We will add them here.
Frequently asked questions
How many UK businesses use e-invoicing?
In HMRC's survey of 800 VAT-registered SMEs, run in February and March 2025, 29% said they use e-invoicing, 15% send e-invoices and 24% receive them. Only 10% both sent and received.
How many UK businesses are on Peppol?
On 20 October 2026 the public Peppol Directory listed 22,664 entries with a GB country code, 22,125 of them using a UK VAT number as their Peppol ID. That is roughly 1% of HMRC's 2,285,900 live VAT-registered traders. Listing is optional, so the true number is somewhat higher.
Does e-invoicing really cut late payments by 20%?
That figure comes from industry research cited in the government's consultation response, attributed to a respondent's survey of 9,000 businesses. The response does not name the publisher or give the method, so treat it as a reported figure, not an official estimate.
How many responses did the UK e-invoicing consultation get?
342. Of these, 259 respondents were based only in the UK, 30 in the UK and abroad, and 30 only overseas.
Spotted a mistake? Report an error. einvoices.uk is an independent publication and is not affiliated with HMRC. Details of the mandate may change; check the sources and official GOV.UK guidance before acting.