BR-DE-3: Seller city (BT-37) is missing – e-invoice error explained

StandardXRechnung 3.0.2 (KoSIT, German CIUS of EN 16931)SeverityError: the invoice is rejectedSyntaxUBL, CIIBusiness terms

BT-37 Seller city

Applies toXRechnung in UBL or CII syntax, including ZUGFeRD / Factur-X PDFs with the XRECHNUNG profile. Invoices to German public authorities (federal, state and municipal) must pass it.

Official rule text

[BR-DE-3] The element "Seller city" (BT-37) must be transmitted.

Official text (German): Das Element "Seller city" (BT-37) muss übermittelt werden.

Why this error occurs

XRechnung requires the seller's city in the postal address, beyond the country code that EN 16931 demands. The rule checks cac:AccountingSupplierParty/cac:Party/cac:PostalAddress/cbc:CityName (UBL) or ram:SellerTradeParty/ram:PostalTradeAddress/ram:CityName (CII) for a non-blank value. It typically fails when the address is exported as a single line into cbc:StreetName, or when the city field is empty in the company master data.

How to fix it

Add cbc:CityName inside the seller cac:PostalAddress (UBL) or ram:CityName inside ram:PostalTradeAddress (CII) with the city name only, e.g. Berlin. Keep the post code in cbc:PostalZone / ram:PostcodeCode (BR-DE-4) and the street in cbc:StreetName / ram:LineOne. A whitespace-only value counts as missing.

Example (valid)

<cac:PostalAddress>
  <cbc:StreetName>Musterstraße 1</cbc:StreetName>
  <cbc:CityName>Berlin</cbc:CityName>
  <cbc:PostalZone>10115</cbc:PostalZone>
  <cac:Country><cbc:IdentificationCode>DE</cbc:IdentificationCode></cac:Country>
</cac:PostalAddress>

What the validator checks

Checked element (context):

UBL

/ubl:Invoice/cac:AccountingSupplierParty/cac:Party/cac:PostalAddress | /cn:CreditNote/cac:AccountingSupplierParty/cac:Party/cac:PostalAddress

Test (XPath):

cbc:CityName[boolean(normalize-space(.))]

CII

/rsm:CrossIndustryInvoice/rsm:SupplyChainTradeTransaction/ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeAgreement/ram:SellerTradeParty/ram:PostalTradeAddress

Test (XPath):

ram:CityName[boolean(normalize-space(.))]

Check your invoice

Drop your XML or PDF on the validator and every failed rule is linked to its page here. Free, no account, the file is not stored.

Check your invoice →

Same check via API:

curl -F file=@invoice.xml https://einvoicechecker.com/v1/validate

Related rules

BR-DE-1 Payment instructions (BG-16) are missing
BR-DE-2 Seller contact (BG-6) is missing
BR-DE-4 The element "Seller post code" must be transmitted
BR-DE-5 Seller contact point (BT-41) is missing
BR-DE-6 Seller contact telephone number (BT-42) is missing
BR-DE-7 Seller contact email address (BT-43) is missing
BR-DE-8 The element "Buyer city" must be transmitted
BR-DE-9 The element "Buyer post code" must be transmitted

Frequently asked questions

What does BR-DE-3 mean?

BR-DE-3 is a xrechnung rule: The element "Seller city" (BT-37) must be transmitted.

Will my invoice be rejected because of BR-DE-3?

Yes. BR-DE-3 is flagged "fatal"; validators (KoSIT, Peppol access points, the German ZRE/OZG-RE portals) reject the invoice until it is fixed.

Which formats does BR-DE-3 apply to?

XRechnung in UBL or CII syntax, including ZUGFeRD / Factur-X PDFs with the XRECHNUNG profile. Invoices to German public authorities (federal, state and municipal) must pass it. Syntax: UBL and CII.

Source: XRechnung 3.0.2, schematron 2.6.0 (KoSIT, September 2026). Catalogue generated from the official schematron on 2026-10-14.