TicketBAI

TicketBAI requires Basque invoicing software to sign, chain and QR-stamp every invoice it issues.

Definition

TicketBAI (often shortened to TBAI) is the software-based fiscalisation scheme set up by the historic territories of Spain's Basque Country (Araba/Álava, Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa), in coordination with their respective tax authorities (Haciendas Forales).

Its goal is to fight fraud by ensuring every invoice issued by a taxpayer is recorded in a tamper-evident way by its invoicing software.

How it works

TicketBAI rests on three main technical requirements applied at the invoicing-software level:

• Electronic signature of each invoice, guaranteeing its authenticity and integrity;
• Chaining of invoices: each invoice references the previous one, forming a sequence in which any deletion or insertion becomes detectable;
• QR code placed on the invoice, enabling control and verification.

A TicketBAI file is generated for each invoice and transmitted (immediately or on a deferred basis depending on the case) to the relevant tax authority.

Good to know

TicketBAI primarily targets invoicing software: it must be compliant and, in many cases, registered. The philosophy differs from a centralised clearance model like Italy's SdI: here, the tamper-evidence of the sequence on the software side is at the heart of the scheme.

Rollout timelines and some specifics differ between the three Basque territories, each retaining its own tax powers.