What is a Factur-X credit note?

A Factur-X credit note is a fiscal document of type 381 (Credit note) per EN16931. It partially or fully cancels an issued invoice. It is archived in the ISCA ledger with its own sequential number AVO-YYYY-NNNN and enters the SHA-256 chain as a full fiscal document.

Can a credit note be created on a partially paid invoice?

Yes. Creditable statuses are: validated, transmitted, accepted, paid, completed. A credit note can be created on a paid invoice — the amount to refund is calculated by your client's information system. The API only validates the fiscal compliance of the credit note (no over-crediting, valid lines).

How does a partial credit note on certain lines work?

By passing the lines[] array with the invoice_line_id of lines to credit and the quantities. For example, a 3-line invoice can be partially credited on only 2 lines. Partial quantity is supported (credit 2 units out of 5). The API verifies that the sum of existing credit notes + the new credit note does not exceed the source invoice.

Is buyer_is_individual automatically inherited?

Yes. CreditNoteService automatically propagates buyer_is_individual from the source invoice. If the invoice was B2C, the credit note is B2C: BT-46 (SIRET), BT-47 (VAT), BT-48 (legal ID) tags are removed from the Factur-X, and L441-10 notices (B2B late payment penalties) are not included.

Does the credit note enter the ISCA chain?

Yes. Each credit note triggers a FiscalEntry of type credit_note_issue in the ISCA ledger of the (tenant_id, sub_tenant_id) pair. The sequence_number is contiguous, the chain_hash is calculated from the previous hash + the document hash. The credit note is archived in WORM S3 with a recorded hash.

Which invoice statuses allow credit note creation?

Creditable statuses are: validated (validated but not transmitted), transmitted (sent to Peppol), accepted (accepted by recipient), paid (paid), completed (archived). Draft and cancelled statuses do not allow credit note creation.

How do I download the credit note PDF?

Via GET /api/v1/credit-notes/{id}/download/{format}. Format pdf returns the PDF/A-3b, xml the CII XML only, facturx the full PDF/A-3b with embedded XML. The file is accessible immediately after generation. A signed URL is also available in the create JSON response.

Can I create a credit note without lines (full credit note)?

Yes. By omitting the lines[] array in the payload, the credit note covers the entire source invoice. All lines are credited for their full quantities. The InvoiceCreditable rule verifies the invoice has not already been fully credited before creating a second full credit note.

Factur-X type 381 · EN16931 · ISCA · B2C inherited · Partial/Full

EN16931-compliant credit notes linked to your invoices — automatic inheritance.

POST /credit-notes with invoice_id → Factur-X type 381 credit note, frozen buyer/seller, B2C inherited, ISCA chain. Partial or full. PHP and TypeScript SDK.

Create a credit note →View SDKs

$api = ScellApiClient::withApiKey('sk_live_...');

// Avoir total sur une facture existante
$creditNote = $api->creditNotes()->builder()
    ->forInvoice('invoice-uuid')
    ->reason('Retour marchandises — bon état')
    ->lines([
        ['invoice_line_id' => 'line-uuid-1', 'quantity' => 2],
    ])
    ->create();

echo 'Credit note: ' . $creditNote->credit_note_number;
echo 'Amount: '      . $creditNote->total_ttc;

The problem

→Impossible to maintain buyer/seller consistency — a credit note must exactly reproduce the buyer and seller information from the source invoice. If modified in the meantime (address change, corrected SIRET), the credit note diverges and may be rejected by the client or administration.
→ISCA chain and tax compliance — a credit note must enter the tax ledger with a distinct sequential number (AVO-YYYY-NNNN), a SHA-256 hash linked to the source invoice's chain. A credit note issued out of sequence creates an audit gap.
→Strict EN16931 validation — the Factur-X credit note (code 381) has its own BR rules. The buyer_is_individual inherited from the invoice must be propagated. A B2C credit note with SIRET tags creates a Schematron non-compliance.

Our solution

→POST /credit-notes with invoice_id — Scell automatically snapshots buyer and seller from the source invoice at issuance time. The buyer_* and seller_* columns on the credit note are frozen independently of any subsequent modification to the buyer or company.
→Automatic B2C inheritance — if the source invoice is buyer_is_individual: true, the credit note automatically inherits this flag. SIRET/VAT/L441-10 tags are removed without configuration, per EN16931 BR-CO-26.
→Partial or full, selective lines — the lines[] array with invoice_line_id allows a line-by-line partial credit note. Without the lines[] array, the credit note covers the entire invoice. The InvoiceCreditable rule validates the invoice is not already fully credited.

6 credit note guarantees

Strict invoice_id link

The invoice_id field links the credit note to an existing, verified invoice. Complete anti-IDOR: the invoice must belong to the same tenant/sub_tenant. Impossible to create an orphan or cross-tenant credit note.

Guaranteed invoice link

Frozen buyer/seller inheritance

The buyer_* (name, siret, address) and seller_* (company) columns are snapshotted from the source invoice at issuance. No subsequent modification to the buyer or company impacts the already issued credit note.

Immutable ISCA data

Partial by lines (invoice_line_id)

The lines[] array accepts N lines with invoice_line_id + optional quantity. A partial credit note selectively credits. Without lines[], the credit note is total. The InvoiceCreditable rule verifies no over-crediting.

Partial or full in 1 field

B2C automatically inherited

If the source invoice is buyer_is_individual: true, CreditNoteService automatically propagates the flag. BT-46/47/48 tags and L441-10 notices are removed without configuration — BR-CO-26 compliance guaranteed.

B2C inherited without config

PDF/A-3b + XML CII download

Credit note available via GET /credit-notes/{id}/download/{format}. Format pdf (PDF/A-3b), xml (CII only), facturx (full). File stored in WORM S3 with ISCA hash. Accessible via API, signed URL or webhook.

PDF + XML available

Strict validation 422 explicit

The InvoiceCreditable rule checks creditable status (validated, transmitted, accepted, paid), absence of over-crediting, line membership. Each violation returns 422 with the exact error code — no silent corruption.

0 over-crediting possible

Hébergé en FranceScaleway Paris

RGPDDonnées FR

Factur-X conformeDGFiP EN16931

eIDAS SESRègl. 910/2014

ISCA SHA-256Ledger immuable

TLS 1.3Chiffrement bout-à-bout

Frequently asked questions

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