Unifiedpost : Jan Druppel joins ETAF as Technical Adviser for e-invoicing

We are proud to announce that Unifiedpost Group's electronic invoicing expert, Jan Druppel, is now Technical Advisor of the e-invoicing group for ETAF at the European Commission.

Who is ETAF?

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ETAF is the European Tax Adviser Federation, an umbrella organisation for 215,000 tax professionals from France, Germany, Belgium, Romania, Hungary, Austria and Croatia. ETAF began in 2015 as a non-profit organisation, governed by Belgian law.

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ETAF's role is clear. The federation collaborates with policymakers to improve tax and professional legislation for regulated tax professions in Europe. It strives to protect the independence and confidentiality of tax professionals, while also supporting sustainable regulations and actively working against illegal activities.

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How Jan Druppel became part of ETAF

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The seven ETAF countries had the opportunity to nominate a candidate for the new Technical Advisor role. In Belgium, the national accounting association (ITAA) nominated Jan, who has worked closely with the association and its members for many years.

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ETAF recognised that Jan's extensive expertise in electronic invoicing (e-invoicing) and tax advisory, not limited to just Belgium, made him a highly qualified candidate for the position. As Unifiedpost Group has a presence in over 30 countries, Jan is able to leverage a wealth of experience from the e-invoicing and accounting industry across Europe.

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His profound understanding of diverse e-invoicing scenarios, the familiarity of the various European CTC models and his close connections to accounting professions, showed ETAF that Jan was highly qualified for the role.

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Jan and ETAF's work going forward

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As part of Jan's involvement with ETAF, the Technical Advisory Group will meet six times in 2024, along with members of the European Commission. Within these meetings, the Group will provide technical advice to the European Commission.

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We asked Jan, what will be the main topics of discussion throughout 2024?

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Jan states that the important topics of 2024 will be:

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• The European Commission's ViDA (VAT in the Digital Age) legislation and the electronic invoicing mandate that's linked to it
• Europe's various CTC models and tax reporting

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Jan's role, and advice, within these discussions will be centred about the different CTC and e-invoicing implementations throughout Europe. From discussing the implications of the European Commission adopting a single electronic invoicing format, to understanding the role of identity within the electronic invoicing model.

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Jan says this is an important topic, how identity will become a part of future tax compliance and e-invoicing regulation models.

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"At the moment, we don't see control on identity in many of the countries. This is an issue as without identity playing a role, we are risking invoice fraud. Governments need to know who is sending the invoice and if the sender is identified in a valid and secure manner".

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Jan believes this is where the role of the tax advisor or accounting professional, becomes part of the conversation. For Jan, his role as Technical Advisor provides an opportunity to speak on behalf of the tax advisors and accountants, to promote how their role is crucial within the compliance model, especially when it comes to identity.

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What does Jan's ETAF participation mean for our customers and partners?

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Jan's close relationship and experience with accountants and tax advisors across Europe, enables him to understand the challenges they face, especially when it comes to electronic invoicing regulations. This understanding becomes crucial when helping provide the accountant and tax advisor a voice within ETAF meetings.

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In Jan's perspective, tax advisors and accounting firms should stay at the centre of e-invoicing and tax compliance workflows. Tax advisors and accountants can help validate a business' identity, which solves the growing challenge of how identity fits within e-invoicing models.

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Through Jan's role in ETAF, he aims to support his belief and advocate for the role of tax advisors and accountants, as being pivotal within tax compliance and e-invoicing regulations across Europe.

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Learn even more about Jan's experience

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Understand even more about Jan's work with tax advisors and accounting professions by viewing Jan's webinar "Why accountants need to be aware of tax compliance".

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Jan discusses the current role of accountants within e-invoicing models and discusses the challenges, but also opportunities, they face.

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Take a look at the live webinar recording.