The e-address – a simple, secure way to communicate and receive invoices
The new year brings new requirements for businesses. Starting January 1, the use of an e-address will be mandatory for all legal entities.
What does this mean for the business environment? Every company will have its own verified, official electronic address for receiving important messages from public administration institutions. Currently, most companies rely on email or business management systems for digital document exchange; however, due to staff turnover or absences, important correspondence often sits unopened in email inboxes for weeks, failing to reach the intended recipient. This can lead to companies missing critical notices from state authorities or, at the very least, claiming they were never received. The e-address will change this situation.
Legal entities can set up an e-address in two ways: via the public services portal Latvija.lv or by integrating the solution into their company's document management or business system. This is already possible within our Jumis system, which allows companies to both receive and send invoices to clients directly via their e-address.
It should be emphasized that an e-address cannot be used to send letters to individuals or companies unless they have been entrusted with a public administration function. This means that, currently, the e-address facilitates communication between the state and its subjects—both natural and legal persons. E-address users can already receive notifications from 3,400 state and municipal institutions at any time and from any location. It is possible to communicate via e-address with all institutions included in the List of Public Persons and Institutions available on the Enterprise Register website. These include state institutions such as the Food and Veterinary Service, the State Labour Inspectorate, the Competition Council, and others, as well as municipalities, municipal institutions, municipal capital companies, the Prosecutor's Office, judicial authorities, insolvency administrators, sworn bailiffs, and sworn notaries.
For legal entities, the e-address allows not only for communication with state and municipal institutions but also for applying for a range of services, registering a company, requesting and receiving licenses and permits necessary for business operations, sending applications and invoices, conducting transactions, receiving extracts of institutional decisions, obtaining information regarding real estate tax, and carrying out other real estate-related activities.
The most significant contribution of the e-address is faster document circulation and the opportunity for the state to save funds on postal expenses. Both benefits are in the interest of companies, the state, and society as a whole. Furthermore, electronic delivery reduces the risk of information leaks, as it travels directly from sender to recipient through a highly secure channel, whereas even registered mail passes through many hands. The trees saved by no longer needing paper for letters and envelopes should also not be underestimated. Therefore, it is safe to say that with the implementation of the e-address, Latvia will become even greener and more sustainable.
To set up an e-address, the eParaksts mobile solution, which many companies and self-employed service providers adopted during the pandemic years, is sufficient. An eID card is not required. To create an e-address, go to the Latvija.lv portal and click on the "Create your e-address" section. Then, on the additional information page, locate the section for entrepreneurs and click the "Create e-address" button. You will be asked to identify yourself using an electronic signature tool, and that is essentially all there is to it. The e-address is created within a few minutes.
