A new global report from Avalara, in partnership with the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr), reveals that widespread adoption of e-invoicing could unlock $616 billion in annual economic gains across six key global markets.
The study, covering the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, India, and Australia, demonstrates how transitioning to e-invoicing can drive productivity, accelerate payments, and reduce fraud. In the U.S. alone, the shift could generate over $116 billion in annual gains, with small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) capturing the lion’s share—$97 billion, or 83% of the total.
“E-invoicing isn’t just a compliance solution, it’s a growth engine for global economies and businesses,” said Ross Tennenbaum, President of Avalara. “Our research with Cebr proves that the faster we help businesses transition to electronic invoicing, the more we can do to help unlock billions in productivity and day-to-day efficiencies.”
Significant Gains Across Markets
The report quantifies the national economic benefits from full-scale e-invoicing adoption as follows:
- United States: $116 billion
- France: $16.9 billion
- Australia: $15.1 billion
- Germany: $13.3 billion
- United Kingdom: $11.2 billion
- India: $3.7 billion
In the U.S., businesses save an average of $15.16 for every invoice received—amounting to $1.1 million in productivity gains per firm annually. France’s large companies have saved up to 54.4 minutes per invoice. Meanwhile, Australian firms lead in payment acceleration, receiving funds up to 2.5 days faster—a 15% improvement over manual methods.
Across all six countries, e-invoicing shortens payment cycles by an average of 1.4 days, reduces fraud and tax fines by around 30%, and cuts invoice processing time by about 39 minutes.
SMBs Lag Behind in Adoption
Despite the compelling benefits, SMBs have been slower to adopt e-invoicing. Only 37% report full implementation. Key obstacles include training and integration challenges, cited by 43% of respondents. Still, the future looks promising—95% of firms using manual invoices are aware of e-invoicing, and 73% expect to adopt it within five years.
Payment Speed and Cashflow Boost
E-invoicing’s ability to expedite payments is another powerful incentive. U.S. firms report an 8% acceleration in payment speeds, leading to $14,000 in annual cashflow gains for large businesses. In Australia, firms report average per-invoice savings of $13.67, resulting in nearly $650,000 in yearly gains.
The UK has seen a 4.8% reduction in late payments—the largest improvement among all six countries. In India, the average time saved per invoice is 6.8 minutes for accounts payable, yet 64% of firms express satisfaction with the results, supported by the country’s high e-invoicing adoption rate.
Stronger Fraud Prevention
The study also highlights e-invoicing’s impact on security and compliance. Over the past year, 44% of businesses faced tax fines averaging $23,500, while 34% suffered invoice fraud costing around $18,100. Among businesses using e-invoicing, only 20% reported similar incidents.
The technology reduces tax fines by 27%, fraud and breaches by 30%, and lost invoices by 40%—delivering greater confidence and control over financial operations.
Growing Policy Support
Policy momentum is also building. More than half of businesses in the U.S. and UK support national e-invoicing mandates. France is preparing for a 2026 mandate, with 41% of firms already taking preparatory steps. In Germany, despite only 49% of businesses feeling fully prepared, many are investing in readiness—42% have created plans, 39% have invested in technology, and 30% have started training.
The findings underscore the urgent need for businesses and governments to prioritize e-invoicing adoption. Avalara offers tailored e-invoicing solutions to help organizations of all sizes accelerate compliance and capture the full range of benefits.
For more information, visit: https://www.avalara.com/us/en/products/e-invoicing.html
About the Study
The report is based on a survey of 1,720 businesses across the U.S., UK, France, Germany, India, and Australia. It exclusively examined B2B firms with 10 or more employees and modeled the financial, productivity, and compliance impacts of full e-invoicing adoption. All monetary values were converted to U.S. dollars for consistency.
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