Correcting the record
After issue: a linked note, not an edit or a delete
ZATCA’s FAQ states that after an electronic invoice is issued and shared it must not be modified or cancelled. The supplier issues an electronic credit or debit note linked to the original. A credit note decreases value or VAT; a debit note increases them. The note follows the original’s type: simplified with simplified, tax invoice with tax invoice. Fawtar’s saved workspace refuses deletion of issued invoices and creates the note from the original.
Fawtar at fawtar.app is an independent Saudi product. It is not ZATCA’s Fatoora platform, not Fatoora.app, not Oman’s Fawtara programme, and not Jordanian Fawtara products. This page is a reading aid. Last verified 2026-08-29. It is not tax advice.
Credit or debit?
| Item | Credit note | Debit note |
|---|---|---|
| Effect | Decreases the invoice value or its VAT. | Increases the invoice value or its VAT. |
| Typical cases | Return, partial cancellation, later discount, price entered too high. | Missing line, price entered too low, later agreed extra charges. |
| Original invoice | Stays in the sequence; its number is referenced. | Stays in the sequence; its number is referenced. |
What ZATCA forbids in so many words
ZATCA’s FAQ asks whether an issued, shared e-invoice can be modified or cancelled if it contains an error. The answer is no. The VAT implementing regulations require a credit or debit note. The detailed guideline lists the ability to delete generated e-invoices as a prohibited function of an e-invoicing solution.
Numbering and notes are two jobs
The sequencing rule: the number is unique and is not erased. The correction rule: a new document is created against the original. Re-exporting a PDF under the same number after editing lines does not repair the record.
What Fawtar does here
The saved Pro workspace issues a partial or full note from the original invoice, refuses cumulative credits above that invoice, and gives the note its own PDF. The public PDF tool is a quick test; it does not hold your organisation’s sequence until you create an account.
Sources
Short questions
Is editing the PDF and resending it enough?
No. ZATCA requires an electronic note linked to the original. Editing the file after issue does not create that record.
Does the original number leave the sequence when a note is issued?
No. The original stays; the note has its own number and points at the original. See the numbering guide.
Is this tax advice?
No. It is a reading aid, last verified 2026-08-29. Your business, its adviser, and ZATCA’s sources decide.