GS501 – Why Globalization Studio Matters in Dynamics 365 Finance & Supply Chain

Image: Source Microsoft – Globalization Studio overview – Finance | Dynamics 365 | Microsoft Learn

When your business operates in multiple countries, keeping up with each country’s tax rules, document formats, and compliance obligations is no small task. Many companies rely on local customizations, partner solutions, or even spreadsheets, making it hard to scale or remain audit-ready.

Globalization Studio in Dynamics 365 Finance & Supply Chain was created to change that. It offers a configuration-first approach to manage global compliance, without code.

In this first article of my 25-part series, I’ll explain what Globalization Studio is, why it exists, and how it can help you transform your global rollout strategy. You’ll also find references to other articles in this series for deeper learning.

🌍 What Is Globalization Studio?

Globalization Studio is a built-in workspace in Dynamics 365 (starting version 10.0.39+) that helps businesses manage country-specific compliance features using tools like:

Electronic Reporting (ER)

• A no-code/low-code tool to define how data is exported from or imported into Dynamics 365 in formats like Excel, XML, JSON, and PDF. Purpose: Enables country-specific regulatory reporting, file exchange, and structured data transformation. Use when: You need to generate legally required exports (e.g., SAF-T, eInvoices) or import external data (e.g., tax portal responses).

Business Document Management (BDM)

• A user-friendly, Office-integrated designer built on top of Electronic Reporting that allows business users to customize document templates in Word, Excel, and other supported ER formats. Purpose: Enables format editing for printed documents like invoices, orders, or checks without developer support. Use when: You want business users to safely update document layouts (e.g., invoice headers, logos, translations) using familiar Microsoft Office tools, without code changes or deployments.

Electronic Invoicing

• A cloud-based configurable service for generating, signing, submitting, and receiving e-invoices in government-mandated formats. Purpose: Handles end-to-end e-invoice lifecycle including digital signing, web service communication, and receiving validation responses. Use when: You need to send invoices to tax authorities (e.g., FACe in Spain, MyDATA in Greece) or comply with country-specific e-invoice mandates.

Tax Calculation Service

• An external tax engine offering flexible, rule-based logic beyond the standard D365 sales tax framework. Purpose: Supports complex tax rules, jurisdiction-level overrides, and integration with external services. Use when: You need advanced tax handling, including multi-country logic, custom tax formulas, or real-time integration.

Lifecycle and version control

Dataverse integration for Application Lifecycle Management (ALM)

Devops Pipeline

Power Platform

It replaces the separate Regulatory Configuration Service (RCS) and brings everything into one unified place within the ERP system.

👉 Learn more about this transition in GS502 – From RCS to Globalization Studio.

💡 Why Does It Matter?

Let’s say your company operates in the UK, Italy, and India. Each has different legal formats and submission rules. Without a structured toolset, compliance becomes costly and error-prone.

Here’s how Globalization Studio helps:

🧰 What’s Included?

Each of these components will be explored in-depth throughout this series:

• GS503 – Getting Started with the Globalization Studio Workspace
• GS504 – Feature Lifecycle and Applicability Rules
• GS513 – Configurable Business Documents Using BDM

🧾 Real-Life Example 1: United Kingdom – Digital VAT Submissions

If you operate in the UK, you’re required to submit VAT returns digitally to HMRC under Making Tax Digital (MTD).

Using Globalization Studio:

• Import the UK VAT feature from Microsoft’s repository
• Use Electronic Reporting to generate MTD-compliant XML
• Submit data through Azure Logic Apps or web service integration
• Monitor submission status in the logs

This setup eliminates manual exports and ensures compliance with UK law.

🧾 Real-Life Example 2: Italy – FatturaPA Electronic Invoicing

In Italy, all B2B and B2G invoices must be submitted to the government platform (SDI) in a format called FatturaPA.

With Globalization Studio:

• Import the Italy FatturaPA feature
• Use BDM to customize the invoice layout (header, footers, QR codes) directly in Word
• The ER format generates compliant XML
• The invoice is signed, submitted, and logged, all automatically

👉 A full walkthrough of this is covered in GS507 – Electronic Invoicing Overview and GS513 – Configurable Business Documents Using BDM

🧾 Real-Life Example 3: Brazil NFe (Nota Fiscal Eletrônica)

Let’s say your company is expanding into Brazil. To operate legally, you must issue government-approved invoices (NFe) using XML files signed with digital certificates and submitted via a secure web service.

Using Globalization Studio:

• You download a ready-made Brazil NFe feature from the global repository.
• You deploy it to your environment, assign a certificate from your Azure Key Vault, and activate the processing pipeline.
• Once a sales order is posted in D365, the electronic invoice is automatically created, signed, submitted, and confirmed, fully compliant and auditable

🔄 What’s Different from Before?

Previously, companies used RCS or code-heavy setups to manage local requirements. With Globalization Studio, things are far more efficient:

⚠️ Things to Know Before You Start

📘 Coming Up Next

In GS502 – From RCS to Globalization Studio, we’ll explore:

• Why Microsoft is retiring RCS
• What architecture has changed
• How to start planning your move from legacy setups

📖 [Continue reading: GS502 – From RCS to Globalization Studio →]