KSeF correcting invoice and the document workflow: who approves it, what happens to the original

The correction goes through approval like a new invoice, while the original stays in the system unchanged.

A correction is a new document, not an edit

The legal basis is straightforward: article 106j(1) of the VAT act does not provide for amending a structured invoice after it has been sent, only for issuing a correction. To link it to the original, you need the original invoice's KSeF number, the scope of the change and the reason for the correction. There is no equivalent of a paper correction note here. In KSeF, every fix is a full correcting invoice.

The process is the same whether the correction is issued from accounting software or from the Ministry of Finance's Aplikacja Podatnika (Taxpayer Application). You find the original invoice by its date, number and KSeF number, choose the correction option, enter that number, state what changes and why, then send the document. The software generates an XML file, sends it to KSeF, and shortly afterwards you get back an official confirmation of receipt (UPO) along with a new, separate KSeF number for the correction.

What happens to the original invoice

The original does not disappear and its content does not change. It stays in the system exactly as it was sent, and the correction is added as a separate record, linked through its KSeF number. That runs against the instinct of many accounting staff, who are used to fixing a document in place as long as it has not yet gone through approval.

During implementation we keep both versions visible side by side: the original and the correction, not just the correction with its new figures. Whoever has to approve the change needs to see what is different, not guess it from the final amount alone.

Who approves the correction in the workflow

A correction has its own KSeF number, so in SaldeoSMART it is a separate document. If you use the mini-workflow for purchase invoices, it can be marked "approved" or "rejected" only once a correct KSeF number has been entered. Approving the correction does not change the status of the original invoice.

For our clients we set this up so the correction goes to the same approver as the original invoice, rather than to whoever is next in the document queue. That person knows the context of the order or contract and is more likely to notice that a correction changes the buyer, say, rather than just the amount. One caveat: if the document description in the workflow shows only the new value, with no reference to the original, a correction gets approved just as thoughtlessly as an ordinary invoice. So we make sure the description spells out the difference, not just the final figure.

Correcting a correction, and a correction to zero

A correction can itself be corrected. That is another, separate document, correctly linked to the correction it concerns, not directly to the original invoice. A correction to zero comes up less often, usually when an invoice went to the wrong buyer: one correction zeroes out the whole document, and a second, entirely new invoice is issued to the right contact. In the workflow that means two separate approvals, not one combined change, so we watch the order: the new invoice should not get approved before the zeroing correction has gone through the workflow.

One thing worth keeping in mind from practice: a correction has to be issued in KSeF even when the original invoice was created outside the system, before the obligation applied or during a transition period. The source document itself sits outside KSeF, but the fix to it does not.

Source: SaldeoSMART blog post "Faktura a korekta KSeF: jak poprawić fakturę wysłaną do KSeF?" (August 2026, updated October 2026, in Polish). Commentary and implementation examples: Forgante. We do not cover VAT settlement or the tax deadlines a correction triggers here: that question stays with your accountant or tax adviser.