Peppol SML Migration: What Access Point Providers Must Arrange Before 31 August 2026
Brussels, 19 July 2026 – OpenPeppol is taking over the Service Metadata Locator (SML) from the European Commission. This Peppol SML migration touches the technical core of the network: the service that lets Access Points find the correct endpoint for a trading partner. SMP providers already had to move their registration endpoints before 31 May 2026; Access Point providers now have until 31 August 2026 to migrate their DNS lookup domains.
What the SML does, and why it is moving
The Service Metadata Locator is a core component of Peppol’s dynamic discovery architecture. Through DNS lookup, the SML links a participant identifier to the correct Service Metadata Publisher (SMP), so an Access Point knows where to route an invoice. Until now, this service ran on infrastructure operated by the European Commission (DG DIGIT), as part of the broader eDelivery programme.
According to the Commission, that arrangement was always meant to function as an incubator: eDelivery helps new or emerging networks get established, with the expectation that a mature network eventually operates its core services independently. Peppol has now passed that point. Driven in large part by national e-invoicing mandates, the number of directory entries is expected to grow from a few million today to well over ten million from 2026 onwards. The Commission has stated that the SML was not designed to support that next wave of expansion, and since October 2025 it has also paused onboarding new ecosystems onto comparable CEF services.
What changes functionally, and what does not
For most Peppol participants, nothing changes functionally: registration and invoice exchange continue to work the same way. What changes is who operates the directory service for the Peppol domain: OpenPeppol instead of the European Commission. Individual companies can keep publishing and updating their own SMP registrations exactly as before.
The impact falls on configuration at the service-provider level. Two groups need to take action:
- SMP providers had to move their registration API endpoints to the new Peppol environment by 31 May 2026 (test: api.sml.test.tech.peppol.org, production: api.sml.prod.tech.peppol.org).
- Access Point providers must move their DNS lookup domains to OpenPeppol’s new participant lookup by 31 August 2026 (test: participant.sml.test.tech.peppol.org, production: participant.sml.prod.tech.peppol.org), in both test and production environments.
To reduce risk, the old and new environments will run in parallel for a period, with different redirections depending on the migration phase. This gives service providers room to migrate without everyone having to switch at once. OpenPeppol has already selected a contractor, and technical migration work is under way.
Why the timing is delicate
The migration coincides with an unusually turbulent period for the existing SML register. In Belgium, for example, millions of entries were removed and then re-published through different service providers as a result of the national e-invoicing mandate that took effect on 1 January 2026. The underlying lookup mechanism is also being modernised: in early 2026 the Commission cleaned up all Peppol CNAME records in favour of the newer U-NAPTR DNS format. Together, these shifts add operational pressure in the run-up to the migration.
The migration was first announced at the Peppol conference in June 2025; OpenPeppol and the Commission’s eDelivery team are aiming to complete it in the second half of 2026.
What this means for Dutch and Belgian businesses
End users of Peppol, the businesses sending and receiving invoices, do not need to take any action themselves. Responsibility lies with the Peppol Access Point and any SMP provider they use. It is nonetheless worth checking with your service provider whether their DNS migration is scheduled before 31 August 2026, especially since the earlier May deadline already caused unnoticed hiccups for a few smaller SMP providers. Companies currently selecting or switching Peppol providers should add this migration as a standard question in their selection process.
Practical checklist for service providers
- Confirm whether your SMP registration endpoint has already been migrated (the deadline was 31 May 2026).
- Schedule the migration of your DNS lookup domain to the new OpenPeppol environment before 31 August 2026, in both test and production.
- Test the new endpoints in the test environment (T-SML) before switching over in production.
- Consult OpenPeppol’s migration page (Peppol TECH Confluence) for the current technical specification.
Considering a switch to a different Peppol provider, or want to confirm your current provider will complete the migration on time? Compare Peppol service providers using the Peppol.nu comparison tool.
