SFE & Compliance

Selling Online in Bolivia: Invoicing, IVA and Reconciling QR and Transfer Payments

Online sales need the same invoice as a shop counter, and the payments arrive with no order number attached. Here is how to keep both in order.

By Contably · October 13, 2026 · 8 min read

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Selling through Instagram, WhatsApp or your own website does not change your tax obligations. The sale still needs an invoice, the IVA still applies, and the money still has to be matched to the right order. What does change is the volume of small details: dozens of QR payments and bank transfers a day, each needing to be matched to an order and an invoice.

1. Online sales are invoiced like any other sale

The SIN regulated online sales in RND 10-0044-13. Its main points, as reported at the time:

That resolution dates from 2014, so the invoicing modality you use today follows the SFE requirements for your group, not the one named back then. Our guide to SFE fines shows what mistakes cost.

2. How customers pay, and what it means for your books

QR payments
The most common method for small tickets. Industry data reported that the large majority of QR payments are under Bs 500. A static QR makes the customer type the amount, so you have to check each payment by hand. A dynamic QR is generated with the exact amount per order, which makes matching much easier, and some banks offer APIs for online stores. QR is generally reported as free for the merchant, but check with your bank.
Bank transfers
No commission, common for larger orders. The proof usually arrives by WhatsApp or email, so matching it to an order is manual.
Cards and payment gateways
Convenient for the customer, but they cost you a commission. One local gateway publishes a rate of roughly 3% to 3.5% per card transaction depending on volume. Fees vary by provider and volume, so confirm yours. Ask for an invoice for the commission so it can be considered for crédito fiscal, subject to the rules in our crédito fiscal guide.

3. The reconciliation problem

Money arrives in your bank account without an order number attached. A transfer of Bs 340 could be Maria’s order or Carlos’s. Multiply by 60 orders a week and the end-of-month close turns into detective work: unmatched deposits, orders marked paid that never were, and invoices issued for sales that were later cancelled.

An illustrative week for a small online shop
Orders placed62
Paid by QR38
Paid by bank transfer19
Paid by card or gateway5
Invoices to issue (one per delivered order)62
Payments someone must match by hand19+

Even in this tidy example, someone has to match at least the 19 transfers by hand every week, and any QR paid to a static code on top of that. That is the work to remove.

4. Seven routines for selling online without the mess

1
Show your NIT on the websiteIt is cheap to fix and carries a fixed fine if missing.
2
Include IVA in every displayed priceAdd shipping as a separate, visible line so it appears on the invoice.
3
Use one reference per orderAsk customers to put the order number in the transfer description, or use a dynamic QR per order.
4
Match payments daily, not monthlyTen minutes a day beats a weekend at month-end.
5
Invoice on delivery, from the real orderIssue the invoice with the customer’s correct NIT or name at delivery, not before payment is confirmed.
6
Handle returns with credit notesDo not cancel and reissue by hand. See our guides on credit and debit notes and cancellation.
7
Record gateway and platform commissionsAsk each one for an invoice so the cost is documented.
How Contably helps: Contably ties each order to its invoice and its payment, so incoming QR payments and transfers can be matched to open orders, invoices are issued from the order, and unmatched deposits show up in one list instead of hiding in a bank statement.

This article is general information for Bolivian businesses, not tax, legal or financial advice. The online-sales rules described are based on RND 10-0044-13 as reported at the time; payment fee figures come from provider and industry sources and vary by provider. Check current figures with your bank or gateway. Confirm how the rules apply to your business with your accountant or the SIN before acting.

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