Skip to main content

XML namespace

UBL Common Basic Components

Every leaf value in a UBL document — identifiers, dates, amounts, quantities, codes. If it holds a value rather than a structure, it is cbc:.

xmlns:cbc="urn:oasis:names:specification:ubl:schema:xsd:CommonBasicComponents-2"

UBL splits its vocabulary by shape rather than by subject. Anything that carries a single value lives here: cbc:ID, cbc:IssueDate, cbc:PayableAmount, cbc:InvoicedQuantity. Anything that groups other elements lives in the aggregate namespace instead.

The split is why a UBL invoice looks repetitive to newcomers — cbc:ID appears at almost every level, meaning something different each time depending on which cac: structure encloses it. The prefix tells you what kind of thing an element is; the parent tells you what it identifies.

Most cbc: elements accept attributes that qualify the value: currencyID on an amount, unitCode on a quantity, listID on a code. Omitting them is a common source of documents that validate and are then rejected by a business profile.

URI
urn:oasis:names:specification:ubl:schema:xsd:CommonBasicComponents-2
Prefix
cbc
Elements
IDIssueDateDocumentCurrencyCodePayableAmountInvoicedQuantity

Specification: UBL 2.1 specification

Get started

Bring order to the XML your team can't afford to ignore.

Create a free account and get a private workspace to search, validate, diff, and monitor your XML feeds, sitemaps, schemas, and vendor integrations.