Previous invoice hash (PIH) missing from the invoice

What does this mean?

The difference between this code and BR-KSA-26 is small and important: there the value is present but wrongly formatted, here the field is missing altogether. The Authority looks for the cac:AdditionalDocumentReference block whose identifier is PIH and does not find it.

Why does it happen?

Ordered from the most common to the least — your cause is most likely the first or the second.

• The XML template has no PIH block at all — common in systems built from a Phase 1 example and upgraded later.
• The block is there but its <cbc:EmbeddedDocumentBinaryObject> is empty.
• The block identifier written in lower case as pih, or under a different name; the identifier is case sensitive.
• Dropping the block deliberately on the first invoice because there is no previous invoice — which is wrong: the first invoice has a fixed value.

How to fix it

2 steps, then send the invoice again.

1. 1
   Add the block with the correct identifier

   The invoice must contain a cac:AdditionalDocumentReference with <cbc:ID>PIH</cbc:ID>, holding a cac:Attachment and inside it a <cbc:EmbeddedDocumentBinaryObject mimeCode="text/plain"> carrying the hash in Base64.

2. 2
   Put the fixed value on the first invoice

   The value for the first invoice is the Base64 hash of the character 0 — see BR-KSA-26 for the full string. Do not leave the field empty and do not remove it.

This code does not block acceptance, so the invoice you have is compliant. Correct the data so the warnings disappear from future invoices.

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