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Spotlight PEPPOL BIS Billing 3.0 The EU e-invoicing mandate is here — France Sept 2026, Belgium Jan 2026, Germany 2025.

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Guatemala — FEL, certified XML DTE (certifiers)

Guatemala runs one of Central America's most mature e-invoicing regimes: Factura Electrónica en Línea (FEL), administered by the Superintendencia de Administración Tributaria (SAT). Unlike direct clearance (where the State validates itself), Guatemala relies on a model of accredited third parties, the certificadores: the issuer sends them a signed XML DTE (Documento Tributario Electrónico), the certificador validates it in real time, stamps it with an authorization number (UUID) and forwards it to SAT. Launched in 2018-2019, FEL replaced the legacy FACE/FACE2 regimes and has become mandatory for nearly all taxpayers.

Regulatory timeline

  • 2007-2011 — First electronic regimes (FACE / FACE2). SAT rolls out optional electronic invoice regimes (Factura Electrónica, then FACE2 generating electronic tax documents), forerunners of FEL but with limited uptake.
  • 2018 — Creation of the FEL regime. By board agreement, SAT establishes Factura Electrónica en Línea, defining the accredited-certificador model and the XML DTE format. First pilots and certificador accreditations.
  • 2019 — Operational launch and first mandates. FEL becomes the reference regime; newly registered taxpayers and certain categories (large taxpayers, targeted sectors) are required to move to FEL.
  • 2020-2021 — Phased incorporation. SAT publishes mandatory onboarding calendars by taxpayer category (grandes contribuyentes especiales, exporters, special regimes, then the general regime).
  • 1 July 2022 — Extension to the general regime. The FEL obligation is extended to nearly all general-regime taxpayers (SAT resolutions), making FEL the default tax channel. (per-category switch-over dates to confirm against the SAT agreements for an exact rollout)
  • 2023-2026 — Consolidation. Gradual phase-out of legacy regimes (residual paper and FACE invoices), scaling of the certificador ecosystem and SAT real-time controls.

Technical schema

The core document is the DTE — Documento Tributario Electrónico, an XML file conforming to the national schema published by SAT. The regime covers several dematerialised tax documents:

  • FACT — Factura (sale of goods/services; B2B, B2G, B2C).
  • FCAM — Factura cambiaria (credit invoice with bill-of-exchange value).
  • FESP — Factura especial (self-billing by the buyer for an unregistered supplier).
  • NCRE / NDEB — Nota de Crédito / Nota de Débito (adjustment, cancellation).
  • NABN — Nota de abono; RDON — Recibo por donación; RECI — Recibo, among other SAT-defined types.

Structurally, the XML DTE has a <DatosGenerales> block (document type, currency, issue date), an <Emisor> and <Receptor> block identified by their NIT (Número de Identificación Tributaria), an <Items> block detailing lines and taxes (notably IVA), and a <Totales> block. After certification, the certificador inserts the authorization block carrying the authorization number (a UUID), plus the certification date and time. The issuer electronically signs the DTE; the certificador in turn applies its own certification. Indicative schema:

  • <dte:GTDocumento Version="0.1"> (SAT FEL namespace)
  • <dte:DatosEmision> containing <dte:Emisor NITEmisor="…"> / <dte:Receptor IDReceptor="…">
  • <dte:Item> with <dte:Impuestos> (IVA 12%)
  • <ds:Signature> from the issuer, then a <dte:Certificacion> block with <dte:NumeroAutorizacion> (UUID)

The exact namespaces and schema version should be verified against the technical FEL documentation published by SAT (current version to confirm).

Submission flow

Guatemala applies a model of real-time third-party certification: it is not SAT but accredited certificadores that validate and authorize the DTE before forwarding it to SAT. The flow resembles an intermediated clearance.

  1. Generation + signature. The issuer builds the XML DTE (FACT, FCAM, etc.) per the SAT schema and signs it electronically.
  2. Send to certificador. The signed DTE is transmitted in real time to an accredited certificador chosen by the issuer (via API, or via SAT's free FEL tool).
  3. Validation + authorization. The certificador checks compliance (schema, NIT, amount consistency), assigns the authorization number (UUID) and applies its certification.
  4. Transmission to SAT. The certificador forwards the certified DTE to SAT (almost immediately); the document then acquires fiscal validity.
  5. Delivery to recipient. The issuer provides the customer with the DTE (XML) and its graphical representation (PDF) bearing the authorization number and a SAT QR / lookup link.
  6. Retention and lookup. Issuer and recipient retain the DTE; any document can be verified on the SAT portal using the authorization number.

Validation

Common pitfalls

  1. Confusing issuance with authorization. A signed XML DTE has no fiscal value until a certificador has validated it and assigned its authorization number (UUID). Design the flow around the certificador's response, not around sending.
  2. Overlooking the certificador's role. Guatemala is not direct clearance: you do not send the DTE to SAT, but to an accredited third party that certifies then relays it. Selecting and integrating an accredited certificador is a mandatory step.
  3. Wrong NIT. Both issuer and recipient are identified by their NIT; an invalid, inactive or malformed NIT causes the certification to be rejected. An unidentified final consumer is generally entered as "CF" (consumidor final).
  4. Wrong document type. FACT, FCAM, FESP, NCRE/NDEB follow distinct rules (the factura especial involves buyer withholding, the cambiaria carries credit value). Using the wrong DTE code distorts the tax treatment.
  5. Assuming Peppol or EN 16931 transport. Guatemala uses neither Peppol nor the European EN 16931 standard: it is a SAT-specific national XML schema, intermediated by certificadores.
  6. Neglecting the graphical representation. The PDF given to the customer must faithfully reproduce the DTE data and display the authorization number (often with a SAT verification QR); a PDF inconsistent with the certified DTE is a source of disputes.