Official rule text
[NL-R-001] For suppliers in the Netherlands, if the document is a creditnote, the document MUST contain an invoice reference (cac:BillingReference/cac:InvoiceDocumentReference/cbc:ID)
Why this error occurs
This rule only applies when another field has a certain value (for example a payment means code or an invoice type). Your file triggers the condition but does not provide the data that then becomes mandatory, or provides data that is then forbidden.
How to fix it
Either change the triggering value so the condition no longer applies, or add/remove the dependent elements as the rule text describes. Check the condition in the XPath test above to see exactly which value triggers it.
What the validator checks
Checked element (context):
UBL
cbc:CreditNoteTypeCode[$supplierCountryIsNL]Test (XPath):
/*/cac:BillingReference/cac:InvoiceDocumentReference/cbc:IDCII
/rsm:CrossIndustryInvoice/rsm:ExchangedDocument[some $code in tokenize('81 83 381 396 532', '\s') satisfies normalize-space(ram:TypeCode) = $code][$supplierCountryIsNL]Test (XPath):
//ram:ApplicableHeaderTradeSettlement/ram:InvoiceReferencedDocument/ram:IssuerAssignedIDCheck 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.
Same check via API:
curl -F file=@invoice.xml https://einvoicechecker.com/v1/validateRelated rules
NL-R-002For suppliers in the Netherlands the supplier's address…NL-R-003For suppliers in the Netherlands, the legal entity identifier MUST be either a KVK or…NL-R-004For suppliers in the Netherlands, if the customer is in the Netherlands, the customer…NL-R-005For suppliers in the Netherlands, if the customer is in the Netherlands, the…NL-R-006For suppliers in the Netherlands, if the fiscal representative is in the Netherlands,…NL-R-007For suppliers in the Netherlands, the supplier MUST provide a means of payment…NL-R-008For suppliers in the Netherlands, if the customer is in the Netherlands, the payment…NL-R-009For suppliers in the Netherlands, if an order line reference…
Frequently asked questions
What does NL-R-001 mean?
NL-R-001 is a peppol national rule: For suppliers in the Netherlands, if the document is a creditnote, the document MUST contain an invoice reference (cac:BillingReference/cac:InvoiceDocumentReference/cbc:ID)
Will my invoice be rejected because of NL-R-001?
Yes. NL-R-001 is flagged "fatal"; validators (KoSIT, Peppol access points, the German ZRE/OZG-RE portals, KSeF) reject the invoice until it is fixed.
Which formats does NL-R-001 apply to?
Only when the seller (or for some rules the buyer) is in the named country: the rule is triggered by the country code of the party. Dutch rules implement NLCIUS, German rules the XRechnung requirements inside Peppol. Syntax: UBL and CII.
Source: Peppol BIS Billing 3.0.20 national rules (November 2025). Catalogue generated from the official rule sets on 2026-10-15.