E-Invoicing in France: Agenda Updates, What's new?

From 1 September 2026, you will need to be able to receive an electronic invoice. But did you know that new obligations will be added progressively, until 2027? Find out what you need to anticipate in terms of electronic invoicing obligations.

The receipt of invoices

From 1 September 2026, it will no longer be possible to ask your suppliers for invoices in paper or simple PDF format. All businesses will have to:

• Accept electronic invoices from their suppliers;
• Be able to integrate them into their accounting or business management system.

Send the invoice

From 1 September 2026 for the largest businesses, and progressively until September 2027 for the others, all businesses will have to:

• Be able to issue electronic invoices in compliant formats;
• Be able to send them automatically to their customers via a platform of their choice.

Invoice compliance

Make sure you are compliant with four electronic invoicing methods :

• The exchange of invoices in structured formats complying with the European standard EN16931 (UBL 2.A and CII formats), with the obligation for platforms (public or private) to produce a readable PDF.
• The exchange of invoices in mixed formats complying with the European standard EN16931, combining structured data and a screen-readable PDF; the Franco-German Factur-X standard is the best known of these mixed formats. It represents the original invoice and contains a structured data file (XML).
• Optional formats (e.g. EDIFACT format), subject to acceptance by both parties (seller/buyer) and extraction of mandatory data by a partner dematerialisation platform (PDP).
• Dematerialised data flows (via EDI, API, etc.) or online input on the public platform.

Archive obligations

It will be mandatory to archive electronic invoices in their original computer format. Archiving consists of a sealed, time-stamped deposit in a digital safe.

Mandatory statuses

The creation of an invoicing network linking all BtoB players is accompanied by total transparency on the progress of each invoice, status by status:

Four obligatory statuses are communicated by all platforms:

• Submitted
• Rejected
• Declined
• Received

Other statuses (made available; taken in charge; approved; partially approved; payment forwarded), which are recommended but optional, and still others, known as free statuses, will be included or not in the services offered by the platforms. These statuses are treated as management information rather than billing information. In short, customer credit management, cash flow management and business intelligence will be greatly improved.

E-reporting

E-reporting is the transmission of data to the tax authorities. These new data flows must be submitted:

• For international B2B transactions, for invoices sent or received (excluding imports of goods);
• For B2C transactions (invoices, Z-cash, non-invoice transactions);
• For collection (when it concerns invoices for the provision of services where VAT is collected on collection).

How does it work?
The frequency of the e-reporting flows depends on the VAT regime of the company. The issuing platform chosen by the company (PPF or PDP) concentrates and transmits these flows to the tax authorities.

Do you want to know more about e-invoicing:

• SAGE E-INVOICING
• THE E-INVOICING PROCESS IN FRANCE AND ABROAD : PAPERLESS POLICY !