E-invoicing for logistics & freight forwarding
Freight invoices are different: surcharges, ancillary costs, customs, multiple currencies and Reverse Charge right across the EU. CoolHanX comes with a ready-made freight-forwarding line-item catalog — and validates every invoice against EN 16931.
Why standard invoicing software fails at freight
A forwarding invoice rarely consists of a single line. On top of the actual freight come the bunker/fuel surcharge (BAF/FSC), terminal handling (THC), currency surcharge (CAF), peak season, demurrage and detention, customs clearance, disbursement and transport insurance. Each line item has a different tax treatment — intra-Community, third-country export, §13b.
Anyone mapping this in Word or a generic tool retypes the surcharges every time and risks formal errors with exactly the public-sector and large customers that reject automatically. CoolHanX specializes in the German e-invoice — and already knows the freight line items.
A ready-made freight-forwarding catalog — 25 line items, usable right away
With one click you load a curated catalog of typical freight line items into your item master. Each item already carries a unit (piece, kg, hour, flat rate) and a service type, so that the VAT category and mandatory text are set correctly and automatically.
| Category | Line items (examples) | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Main carriage | Sea freight, air freight, road and rail freight | Piece / kg |
| Surcharges | BAF/FSC, THC, CAF, Peak Season, ISPS, Congestion | Piece |
| Standing times | Demurrage, Detention, waiting time | Day / hour |
| Customs & documentation | Customs clearance, documentation, disbursement | Flat rate |
| Warehouse & handling | Storage, handling, palletizing | Flat rate / piece |
| Special freight | Dangerous goods, heavy lift, oversize, reefer | Piece |
| Other | Transport insurance, last-mile delivery | Flat rate |
How you invoice a shipment
- 1 · Load the catalogActivate the freight-forwarding catalog once — 25 line items are available immediately.
- 2 · Assemble the shipmentChoose main carriage + surcharges + ancillary costs as line items, enter quantities and prices.
- 3 · VAT automatically per lineIntra-Community, third-country export or §13b — CoolHanX sets the category and mandatory text per line item.
- 4 · Validate & issueEN 16931 validation incl. BR-DE, then XRechnung/ZUGFeRD — archived and deliverable to public-sector and large customers.
Cross-border — the normal case in forwarding
Especially in trade between Germany and Asia, almost every invoice is cross-border. CoolHanX handles intra-Community services, third-country export and Reverse Charge (§13b) on a rule basis and reports the recapitulative statement (ZM) correctly — with German and, for your team, Korean support in the chat.
For Korean companies in Germany
CoolHanX is aimed in particular at Germany-based companies with a Korean background: German, legally sound e-invoicing under EN 16931 — explained and supported in Korean too. The chat at the bottom right answers in both languages; the binding invoice remains German, of course.
Frequently asked questions
Are the 25 line items fixed?
No — they are a starting point you can use right away. You can adjust and extend line items or create your own.
Are surcharges taxed correctly?
Each line item carries a service type; from it CoolHanX derives the VAT category and mandatory text — including for EU/export.
Can I invoice in a foreign currency?
Invoices are issued in EUR by default; further currencies are on the roadmap. Surcharges like CAF you map as a line item.
How do I deliver freight invoices to public authorities?
As an XRechnung with a validated Leitweg-ID — for upload to the authority portal (ZRE/OZG-RE). Peppol is not needed for this.
Is there multilingual help?
Yes — the chat assistant answers in German, English, Korean and Japanese on the mandate, formats, GoBD and pricing.
Why cross-border is the normal case
In forwarding, almost every invoice is cross-border — and therefore demanding in VAT terms: a transport-related service to an EU business shifts the tax liability (Reverse Charge, §13b), a supply of goods into the EU is intra-Community, a shipment to a third country is export. CoolHanX distinguishes these cases on a rule basis by service type, country and USt-IdNr, sets the appropriate mandatory note and reports the data for the recapitulative statement (ZM) correctly — instead of guessing a rate.
| Case | VAT treatment | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Transport for an EU business (with USt-IdNr) | Reverse charge (AE) | §13b mandatory text |
| Supply of goods into the EU | intra-Community (K) | ZM-relevant |
| Shipment to a third country | Export (G) | Proof of export at the client |
| Domestic transport | Standard (S) | 19 % or 7 % |
For Korean companies in Germany
CoolHanX is aimed in particular at Germany-based companies with a Korean background — often in trade and logistics between Germany/the EU and Asia. The binding invoice is of course German and EN 16931-compliant; the explanations and the chat assistant are additionally available in Korean (and English/Japanese) so the team can understand the obligations with confidence.
Related topics
Allgemeine Produktinformation — keine Rechts- oder Steuerberatung. Verbindliche Auskünfte gibt Ihr Steuerberater bzw. Ihre Rechtsberatung.
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