North America

France: Two New Declarations to Replace the DEB

Sam Wichman
November 25, 2021

This blog was last updated on November 25, 2021

As of 1 January 2022, the Declaration of Exchange Goods (DEB) will be replaced by two new declarations, a statistical survey and a VAT summary statement.

Current requirements

Currently, taxpayers must complete the DEB, which is a single declaration that merges a statistical section and a tax section. Taxpayers must fill out both sections of the DEB if their company breaches the €460,000 threshold. Companies below the collection threshold are not required to report statistical data but must still fill out the tax section of the DEB.

French companies that sell services to other EU Member States are also required to file the Declaration of Services (DES) to establish the statistics of the foreign trade of France and to control the taxation of the VAT of the provision of services. As of November 2021, France has not released a notice indicating that there will be any changes to the DES in 2022. We will continue to track any potential changes related to the DES in France.

Requirements beginning 2022

Beginning 1 January 2022, the DEB is repealed and replaced by two separate declarations: the statistical survey on trade-in intra-EU goods and a VAT summary statement for intra-EU supplies of goods.

These declarations are commonly known in the EU as “Intrastat” and “EC Sales Listing”. This change will bring France in line with the Regulation (EU) 2019/2152 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 November 2019 relating to European Business Statistics (EBS Regulation). Currently, France is one of only two EU Member States that has failed to adopt the two separate declarations required by the EBS Regulation, the other being Italy.

Intrastat declaration

  • The statistical survey is meant to supply data on foreign trade to the General Directorate of Customs and Indirect taxes (DGDDI).
  • To minimise the changes affecting collection, the DGDDI will define a list of companies called a “sample”. The sample should be very similar to the population of companies subject to report the DEB in 2021. These companies will receive a notice letter in December 2021 informing them of their obligation to respond to the statistical survey. Only companies included in the sample and receive a notice letter are accountable for this declaration. A company should not spontaneously report a response.
  • Each company retains legal responsibility for responding to the survey even if it distributes the task to multiple correspondents or outsources it to a third party declaring.
  • Every year, the DGDDI will incoporate the survey into an order relating to the annual survey program.
  • Introduction of new or changing variables on the statistical survey include:
    • At shipment, the variable “country of origin” of the goods is added to the declaration.
    • On dispatch, the variable “customer identification VAT number” will be added for regime 29 unless specifically exempted.
    • Changes to transaction codes.

    EC sales

  • The VAT summary report is intended for the General Directorate of Public Finances (DGFiP) and tax services of the Member States.
  • Unlike the statistical survey, companies must always spontaneously declare the tax information for which they are responsible.
  • The data required to be collected for the VAT summary report remains unchanged.

Other changes for businesses to note

  • Only one declaration will be collected per month. Companies will no longer be allowed to submit several declarations for the same flow and period. The monthly declaration is mandatory, even if there is no flow.
  • The “DEB WEB” portal has been modified to clearly show the separate entry of the “VAT summary report” and the “answer to the statistical survey.”
  • To limit the response time for businesses, the VAT summary report may be pre-filled from a company’s response to the statistical survey. This option is only offered to companies who have previously completed their statistical survey obligations.

Take Action

To find out more about what we believe the future holds, download Trends: Toward Continuous Transaction Controls and follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter to keep up-to-date with the latest regulatory news and updates.

Sign up for Email Updates

Stay up to date with the latest tax and compliance updates that may impact your business.

Author

Sam Wichman

Sam Wichman is a Junior Regulatory Counsel at Sovos. Within Sovos’ Regulatory Analysis function, Sam focuses on international VAT, global sales tax, and domestic sales tax issues. Sam received his B.A. in Political Science and Economics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his J.D. from Boston College Law School. Sam is pending admission to the Massachusetts Bar.
Share this post

E-Invoicing Compliance North America
July 15, 2025
SOVOS + KPMG Blog Series: Part 2

Regional Approaches To e-Invoicing: A World Tour For U.S. Multinationals By Paula Smith, Managing Director, Indirect Tax Technology Practice, KPMG LLP; Lauren Tallman, Global Invoicing Specialist and Senior Manager, KPMG LLP; and Christiaan Van Der Valk, General Manager, Indirect Tax, Sovos   The global e-invoicing landscape resembles a patchwork quilt rather than a uniform blanket. […]

France's E-Invoicing Reform
E-Invoicing Compliance EMEA North America
July 15, 2025
France’s E-Invoicing Reform: We’re Ready to Support Businesses During the Pilot Phase

This blog was last updated on July 15, 2025 With the pilot phase of France’s e-invoicing reform fast approaching, we’re prepared to support businesses every step of the way. As a global provider of tax compliance solutions and a trusted technology partner, we’re ready to help companies navigate the upcoming transition with confidence. Preparing for […]

North America Tax Information Reporting
July 7, 2025
The Hidden Cost of the One Big Beautiful Bill: Why Raising Tax Reporting Thresholds Could Cost America Billions

This blog was last updated on July 7, 2025 In the whirlwind of tax policy changes sweeping through Congress, one provision of the recently passed “One Big Beautiful Bill” (OBBB) has quietly slipped through with minimal public scrutiny, despite its potentially massive fiscal impact. The bill increases the reporting threshold for Forms 1099-NEC and 1099-MISC […]

ShipCompliant Wine Summit
North America ShipCompliant
July 3, 2025
The 20th Annual Sovos ShipCompliant Wine Summit: Top Takeaways

This blog was last updated on July 3, 2025 For 20 years, the Sovos ShipCompliant Wine Summit has been about gathering winery professionals with the authorities and leaders who make the industry move. At this year’s Wine Summit, attendees heard directly from the regulators, attorneys and brand leaders shaping the future of the wine industry. […]

E-Invoicing Compliance North America
July 1, 2025
SOVOS + KPMG Blog Series: Part 1

This blog was last updated on July 4, 2025 The Global E-Invoicing Revolution: What U.S. Multinationals Need to Know By Paula Smith, Managing Director, Indirect Tax Technology Practice, KPMG LLP; Lauren Tallman, Global Invoicing Specialist and Senior Manager, KPMG LLP; and Christiaan Van Der Valk, General Manager, Indirect Tax, Sovos    If you’re a financial […]

See for yourself how the Sovos Compliance Cloud can meet your business' unique tax compliance challenges.
Book a Demo
© 2025 Sovos Compliance, LLC. All rights reserved.
Why Sovos?
Resources
About
Products
Indirect Tax Suite
Information Reporting and Withholding Suite
Specialty Products
Solutions
By Tax or Document Type
By Industry
By Team or Initiative
By Region