FBR Digital Invoicing — The Complete Guide
What FBR Digital Invoicing is, how the real-time system works, who must comply, and the fastest way for a Pakistani business to issue compliant, QR-stamped sales tax invoices.
What is FBR Digital Invoicing?
FBR Digital Invoicing is the Federal Board of Revenue's (FBR) electronic invoicing system for Pakistan. In the old way, you made a sales tax invoice on paper or in your own software. Now a registered business must send every invoice to FBR in real time through the Digital Invoicing (DI) API. An API is a link that lets two software systems talk to each other.
FBR saves the invoice at once. It sends back a unique FBR invoice number and a Version 2.0 QR code (a square barcode you scan to check an invoice). You must print both on the invoice, with the official FBR Digital Invoicing logo.
This makes a safe record that is hard to fake. Every invoice is logged with FBR the moment you issue it, and any buyer can check it by scanning the QR code.
Who has to use it?
FBR is switching businesses on in phases, not all at once. It names groups of sales tax registered persons through SROs and general orders. An SRO (Statutory Regulatory Order) is an official FBR order. Once your business is named, every sales tax invoice you issue must go through Digital Invoicing by the given deadline.
The rollout has already covered many importers, manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors and retailers, and it keeps growing. So if you are sales tax registered, the real question is usually when, not if.
What is on a compliant digital invoice?
A compliant invoice shows your business and buyer details: names, NTN or CNIC, addresses, and registration type. It also shows each item in full — the HS Code (a standard product number), quantity, unit, sale type, value and tax.
On top of that, it must carry the unique FBR invoice number from the API, the Version 2.0 QR code, and the FBR Digital Invoicing logo. Some sale types have extra rules. For example, 3rd Schedule goods are taxed on the fixed or notified retail price, and several reduced-rate and exempt sale types need their own fields filled in.
The fastest way to comply
You have two choices. You can build a direct API link with your own developers, or you can use a ready platform. Digi Invoice is a ready-made, PRAL-certified integration. You create an account, finish a guided business and FBR setup, and start posting compliant invoices the same day.
Digi Invoice checks every invoice against FBR's DI v1.12 rules before it is sent — HS Codes, tax rates, NTN/CNIC and buyer registration. It adds the QR code and invoice number for you. A built-in ledger with bulk PDF printing keeps your records ready for audit.