errorEN 16931

BR-DEC-16:Paid amount: max 2 decimals

The Paid amount (BT-113, also known as prepaid amount) must have a maximum of 2 decimal places. This represents amounts already paid toward the invoice.

Severity
Fatal
Rule set
EN 16931
Country
All EU
Fix type
AUTO-FIX
Confidence
95%
Category
calculation

Engine Classification

Round prepaid amount to 2 decimal places per EN16931

Confidence: 95% · Applied automatically in pipeline

What is BR-DEC-16?

BR-DEC-16 is a fatal validation rule defined in the EN 16931 specification. It validates the PrepaidAmount element in the UBL invoice XML.

When this rule fires, the invoice is non-compliant and will be rejected by Peppol access points and national validation services. The sending system receives a rejection response and the invoice does not reach the buyer.

Target path: //cac:LegalMonetaryTotal/cbc:PrepaidAmount

Why This Error Matters

Invoice will be rejected by validation. Paid amounts affect the amount due calculation and must have proper precision.

BR-DEC-16 is a hard failure. Invoices that trigger this rule are rejected at the access point and never reach the recipient. In Peppol networks, this means your sending system receives an MLR (Message Level Response) with a rejection status. The invoice must be corrected and re-sent, adding delay to your payment cycle.

Invoice Navigator can automatically correct this error in your pipeline. The fix is applied with full audit evidence, so your compliance trail remains intact.

Validator Behavior

  • ·Causes invoice rejection
  • ·Error returned: BR-DEC-16
  • ·Specification: EN 16931

How to Fix It

1.

Locate PrepaidAmount

Find cbc:PrepaidAmount in cac:LegalMonetaryTotal

2.

Check decimal places

Count the number of decimal places in the amount

3.

Round if needed

If more than 2 decimals, round using standard rounding (half up)

Before / After

Failing XML
<cac:LegalMonetaryTotal>
  <cbc:AllowanceTotalAmount>100.123456</cbc:AllowanceTotalAmount>
  <!-- Too many decimal places -->
</cac:LegalMonetaryTotal>
Corrected XML
<cac:LegalMonetaryTotal>
  <cbc:AllowanceTotalAmount>100.00</cbc:AllowanceTotalAmount>
  <!-- Correct decimal places -->
</cac:LegalMonetaryTotal>

Technical Reference

XPath//cac:LegalMonetaryTotal/cbc:PrepaidAmount
SpecEN 16931
Operationnormalize
StrategyRound prepaid amount to 2 decimal places per EN16931

Common Causes

  • ·Prepayment amount entered with extra precision
  • ·Partial payment calculation produced excess decimals
  • ·Import from payment system with different precision
  • ·Currency conversion on prepaid amount
  • ·Manual entry error

Seeing this in production? The API handles BR-DEC-16 automatically. See the fix response →

Frequently Asked Questions

BR-DEC-16 occurs when the Paid amount (BT-113, also called prepaid amount) has more than 2 decimal places. This typically happens during partial payment calculations or when importing from payment systems with different precision.

Round the PrepaidAmount value in cac:LegalMonetaryTotal to 2 decimal places. Invoice Navigator's automatic Fixer tool can correct this instantly.

Yes, BR-DEC-16 is a critical error that will cause invoice rejection. Monetary amounts must have proper precision for financial compliance.

Yes, BR-DEC-16 can be automatically fixed using Invoice Navigator's Fixer tool. The tool will round the paid amount to 2 decimal places.

See Also

Related Errors

Last updated: 27 February 2026

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Handle BR-DEC-16 Automatically in Your Pipeline

The compliance engine auto-remediates this error with controlled safety policies and evidence pack generation.