In my previous article, we discussed the common issues that are starting to make their way to the operational and finance teams.  Many companies are setting themselves up for customer service issues, delayed payments, and most importantly delayed or lost revenue recognition as they implement their Mexico CFDI electronic invoicing strategy.  In this document, we are discussing the issue of shipping and logistics. 

What you need to know:

If you are switching from a legacy, batch format (CFD or CBB) to the real-time CFDI electronic legislation like a half million other companies, you need to understand that your ability to ship is directly linked to your ability to get your invoice approved by the government based on the letter of the law.  In short, if you can’t get your invoice approved you shouldn’t ship according to the statements in Article 29 of the Mexico SAT Diaries. The issue is further clarified in the definition of Carte Porte (Transportation documents required for shipping).

Did you just unknowingly sign up for a single point of failure?

One of the most overlooked areas of CFDI evaluation is the effect on shipping.  Ask yourself one question: if we can’t ship for a day, a few days – what will be the negative outcomes. There definitely won’t be positive outcomes from your operations being shut down due to having no backup plan.

Many corporations are not aware of this legislation and requirement as it is much different from the previous batch requirements. And many companies are just looking to sign up with a single vendor.  The issue is centered on the fact that there is no “contingency” process in the model.  For example in Brazil, an organization has two different options to get the government approval if the main government systems at the SEFAZ are down, slow or unable to be reached because of network failure.  They have On Network contingency designed for fall back web service connections.  This “Provisional Danfe” or forms process allows you to still ship as long as there is power to the printer. Your solution for Nota Fiscal can then reconcile the issues automatically once the SEFAZ is back up and running.

Organizations need to understand the backup plan if the system is slow or bogged down by sudden increases in volume.  In your evaluations, ask these two simple question:

• How does your service ensure that I can always ship? 
• Do you have a multi-PAC strategy that allows me to switch automatically to get the Timbre if one data center is slow or not working properly due to volume issues?

There are solutions in the market that offer built-in contingency to get the Timbre and offer multi-PAC, multi-switching platforms that ensure that if one signature provider is down, that you can access a network of providers.  Thus – eliminating the single point of failure and your shipping issues.