DATEV - Chift

Overview Legend 🧭

Introduction

DATEV is German accounting software used by tax advisors and their clients. The connector reaches DATEV Rechnungswesen, its on-premise accounting system, and optionally DATEV Unternehmen online for attachments. When the DATEVconnect API URL cannot be exposed externally, Chift connects instead through a local agent on the DATEV server.

Activate DATEV

Partner keys

Partner keys are only used to send attachments to DATEV Unternehmen online, through DATEV’s accounting:documents API. Without attachments, no keys are involved. DATEVconnect itself, which reaches DATEV Rechnungswesen, authenticates with the end user’s Windows account instead of an OAuth2 app.

Use Chift's app

Ask your Chift point of contact. No developer account needed.

Use your own app

Register your own OAuth2 application on the DATEV Developer Portal for the accounting:documents API. It requires being a DATEV business partner (Geschäftspartner) and passing a technical review by DATEV before going to production.

The steps below apply if you register your own app. If you use Chift’s app, your point of contact handles the setup for you: skip straight to Test DATEV.

Join or create an organization

This requires being a DATEV business partner (Geschäftspartner). Enter your consultant number, or a partner organization is created for you.

Create the app

Create an app on the portal and retrieve its Client ID and Client Secret.

Subscribe to accounting:documents and develop against the sandbox

Every app created on the portal comes with a sandbox for the accounting:documents API.

Configure the redirect URI and scopes

Set the redirect URI to:

https://chift.app/oauth2/redirect

Request these scopes:

offline_access profile openid accounting:clients:read accounting:documents

Chift adds a client-specific scope automatically when an end user connects.

Request production access

Submit the app for DATEV’s technical review by the DATEV Consulting Ecosystem. Approval is required before end users can connect.Onboarding costs EUR 1,500, with 4 hours of consulting included, then EUR 210 per hour.

See DATEV’s first steps guide and developer FAQ for the full process.

Activate DATEV in your Chift account

In Connectors, enter your Client Id and Client Secret.

Connector settings

Attachments controls whether the connector pushes attachments to DATEV Unternehmen online: PDF invoices, receipts and supporting documents.

Yes, I want to push attachments to DATEV Unternhemen Online (default): attachments are sent.
No, I don’t want to push attachments to DATEV Unternhemen Online: no attachments are sent.

The setting only appears once a Client Id is configured at connector level, as described in Partner keys. Without an app, attachments cannot be sent. Once set at connector level, end users no longer see this choice. The setting also changes what end users enter:

With the public URL method, end users enter a consultant number and client number only when Attachments is on.
In that case, their company is deduced from the client number instead of chosen.
With the local agent, both numbers are always requested, whatever the Attachments setting.

Test DATEV


Environment	A DATEV test system, from a DATEV partner
How to get it	To test the DATEV and DATEV (LocalAgent) connectors, the only option today is a test system from a DATEV Solution Partner, such as PARTNERasp for Developer from Kuhn IT or dbc Smart IT DATEV for Developers from C&P. Chift can introduce you to its DATEV partner: ask your Chift point of contact. The sandbox that comes with apps on the developer portal is only a mock: it lets you test your requests, not run them against a real DATEV system.

Vendor fees

Software editor (you)

A paid DATEV test system, for the DATEV and DATEV (LocalAgent) connectors. See Test DATEV for where to get one.Registering your own app for attachments adds a EUR 1,500 onboarding fee, with 4 hours of consulting included, then EUR 210 per hour. See DATEV’s developer FAQ.

End user

No fees beyond their DATEV licences. Sending attachments requires a paid DATEV Unternehmen online subscription.

Connect DATEV

DATEV setup guide for end users

Connect using the public DATEVconnect API URL.

DATEV local agent guide for end users

Connect using a local agent installed on the DATEV server, when the URL cannot be exposed.

Before they start, your end users need:

a DATEV Rechnungswesen licence, held directly or through their accountant or tax advisor
a DATEVconnect licence, usually already included and free to order from DATEV’s shop if missing
a Windows user account linked to their DATEV user, with access to the relevant company and rights to use DATEVconnect
for the public URL method, their DATEV IT provider or integrator to expose the DATEVconnect API URL externally, directly or through the Riecken Cloud Gateway
to send attachments: a DATEV Unternehmen Online (DUO) licence, DATEV SmartLogin (free), and the DATEV Belegbilderservice Rechnungswesen active for their DATEV client

To connect, they:

with the public URL method, enter the DATEVconnect API URL
with the local agent method, install the agent on the server running DATEV instead
enter the Windows username and password linked to their DATEV account, and authorize the connection
with the Riecken Cloud Gateway, enter the Client Id and Client Secret Riecken provided instead of the Windows credentials
if Attachments was not already fixed at connector level and a Client Id is configured, choose whether to send attachments to DATEV Unternehmen online
if sending attachments, sign in to DATEV with SmartLogin, SmartCard or mIDentity, and approve access
if sending attachments with the public URL method, enter their consultant number and client number; their company is deduced from it
with the local agent, always enter both numbers
if not sending attachments with the public URL method, select their company after signing in; the local agent has no company choice

Rate limits

No rate limit documented by DATEV.

Limitations & specificities

Chart of accounts & VAT

Ledger accounts with VAT rates configured in DATEV only accept entry lines that carry a VAT code, at one of the rates the account allows. The VAT code goes in tax_info.The tax amount must match the VAT code’s rate.

Attachments

Attachments go only to DATEV Belege online, when an invoice or journal entry is created and Attachments is on. Each file is 20 MB maximum, and a multi-page document must be sent as a single file.

Closure

An entry in a locked fiscal year is rejected.

Multi-folder

Not supported: each connection maps to a single DATEV client.

Coverage

Troubleshooting

Specific errors for DATEV:

Error Code	Error description	Resolution
ERROR_CONNECTOR_AUTHENTICATION	An error occurred while authenticating with DATEV	Verify that your account still has the rights to use the API or that your user still exists
CREDENTIALS_ERROR	The provided Client Number and/or Consultant Number doesn’t seem to be correct or you don’t seem to have access to it	Verify that your Client Number and/or Consultant number is still valid or that your user still exists
ERROR_NO_DOCUMENT_MANAGEMENT	The client doesn’t have the document management feature	Verify that your client has access to the document management features
ERROR_ACCOUNT_NUMBER_CONFIGURATION	Ledger accounts can only be used with configured VAT codes in DATEV.	Configure the correct VAT codes on the ledger account.
ERROR_ATTACHMENT_UPLOAD	The attachment upload to DATEV Unternehmen failed.	Verify the file format and encoding, then retry the upload.
ERROR_INVALID_HOST	The DATEV API URL is not valid or not accessible.	Verify the URL starts with ‘https://’ or ‘http://’ and is a valid DATEV Rechnungswesen URL.
ERROR_INVALID_BODY	When pushing journal entries into DATEV, VAT codes must be specified using the tax_info attribute, not separate entry items for VAT.	Use the tax_info attribute to specify VAT codes instead of separate VAT line items.
ERROR_IMPORT_FAILED	The asynchronous EXTF import job returned an unknown error (DATEV Buchungsdatenservice).	Retry the request. If the error persists, contact Chift support.
ERROR_NO_EXTF_API_ACCESS	The Buchungsdatenservice/EXTF import feature is not activated for this company (DATEV Buchungsdatenservice).	Activate the Buchungsdatenservice feature in DATEV for the company.

​Introduction

​Activate DATEV

​Partner keys

Use Chift's app

Use your own app

Activate DATEV in your Chift account

​Connector settings

​Test DATEV

​Vendor fees