What does the ‘rejected’ status mean for e-invoice?
Short answer
A rejected status means that the invoice was not accepted in the receiving process. The reason may be technical, formal or substantive and must be identified from the returned status or message. Rejection does not automatically cancel the invoice and is not itself a credit note.
Specific error
You can't choose a repair for no reason.
Process status
Rejection is not an automatic tax remedy.
Audit trail
Save customer's message and supplier's decision.
New or amending document
The procedure depends on the condition and type of error.
Detailed explanation
The customer may reject an invoice due to an incorrect format, incorrect details, a missing order, a discrepancy with the delivery, or a duplicate document. The supplier should obtain the specific reason, keep a record of the communication, and decide whether to correct the details in a new document or issue a corrective document in accordance with the accounting situation.
As set out in the Act
Rejecting a delivered electronic document does not in itself alter the tax situation. If the invoice has already been issued or posted, the correction must comply with invoicing and accounting rules.
Practical examples
- The customer rejects the invoice due to an incorrect PO number.
- The invoice is rejected as a duplicate; the supplier checks whether it was sent twice.
- A technically invalid invoice is corrected before being sent again.
Most common mistakes
- “A rejected invoice does not automatically cease to exist.” No, the accounting and tax status must be resolved.
- “Just send the same one again.” First, resolve the reason for the rejection.
- “There’s no need to archive the reason for rejection.” It is an important piece of supporting documentation.
Conclusion
Identify the reason for rejection and use the appropriate controlled correction or resubmission process; do not delete the original record.
Legal basis
- Act No. 222/2004 Coll. on VAT, invoicing and repairs
- Act No. 431/2002 Coll. on accounting
- Invoice Response and internal process states
Related questions
- How do you reject a received e-invoice?
- Is a rejection the same as a corrective document?
- How should an already submitted e-invoice be corrected?
This is not legal advice. Sources: Act No. 222/2004 Coll. on VAT, Slovak Financial Administration e-invoicing FAQ, OpenPeppol BIS Billing 3.0 and the Slovak e-Invoicing Centre’s internal validation model. Verified on 7 July 2026.