The PEPPOL mandate, in force since 1 January 2026, has pushed thousands of Belgian freelancers and small businesses to look for invoicing software. Most tools on the market assume you'll pay a monthly subscription. But if you send 5 invoices a month, why would you pay for 100?
This article explains how pay-per-invoice works, when it's the right choice, and how DEMFACT structures it.
The problem with subscriptions for low-volume users
A typical Belgian invoicing subscription costs €20–€50 per month. Do the math for a freelance graphic designer, an occasional consultant, or a family-run bakery: 3–5 invoices per month, at €25/month subscription, means each invoice effectively costs €5–€8 in software fees alone.
Subscriptions are designed for businesses issuing 20+ invoices per month. For everyone else, they're overpaying.
How pay-per-invoice works at DEMFACT
DEMFACT's Pay As You Go plan costs €3.99 per invoice sent via PEPPOL. No subscription, no minimum, no annual commitment. If you send nothing this month, you pay nothing.
Concretely:
- Create your account (free).
- Add your company, validate your VAT via VIES.
- Buy credits when you need them (packs from €10) or top up automatically.
- Each PEPPOL invoice sent consumes one credit.
- Receiving inbound PEPPOL invoices is free — no credit consumed.
Because receiving is free, PEPPOL becomes a no-cost way to accept e-invoices from your clients — the credits only apply when you're sending.
When Pay As You Go is the right choice
- You send fewer than 8 invoices per month
- Your invoice volume varies from month to month
- You want to try PEPPOL without committing to a subscription
- You mostly receive invoices and rarely issue them (typical for a company being paid by clients but paying providers)
When a subscription becomes cheaper
Once you send more than 10–15 invoices monthly, DEMFACT's Essentials or Professional plans work out cheaper per invoice — plus they include extras like the accountant portal, advanced analytics, and bank reconciliation.
DEMFACT tells you when this crossover happens — the dashboard suggests upgrading only when it actually saves you money.
What you don't lose with pay-per-invoice
Pay As You Go isn't a "lite" version. You still get:
- Real PEPPOL access point — same infrastructure as paid plans
- Belgian VAT handling (all rates + reverse-charge)
- PDF generation with legal fiscal disclaimer
- VIES VAT validation
- Client management, invoice history, PDF archive
- Multi-language interface (EN/FR/NL/RO)
- Legal 7-year retention of your invoices
What's not included in Pay As You Go
To keep the pricing honest, some advanced features are subscription-only:
- Accountant portal (real-time access for your bookkeeper)
- Financial dashboard with cash-flow projections
- Bank reconciliation (automated matching of invoices to bank transactions)
- Bulk PEPPOL sending / API access
If you don't need those, Pay As You Go covers everything else.
Start now
You can send your first PEPPOL invoice on DEMFACT in under five minutes: create your account, add your company, and buy credits when you're ready. No subscription trap, no cancellation dance.
See all plans How to send your first PEPPOL invoice in 5 minutes →