The French mandatory e-invoice system relies on a network of private certified service providers who connect taxpayers by facilitating the exchange of e-invoices and, additionally, connect the taxpayers to the French administration’s centralized platform (PPF) thus allowing the reporting of relevant invoice data.
The French mandate consists of 3 main obligations: e-invoicing, e-reporting of invoicing data and exchange of e-invoices lifecycle statuses.
E-invoicing: all B2B domestic supplies in France carried out between established entities, including branches of foreign companies, are subject to the e-invoicing obligation, i.e., only established entities will be impacted by this obligation.
E-reporting: the e-reporting obligation is applicable to both established as well as non-established VAT registered entities, although with varying degrees of coverage. This obligation will cover transactions not under scope of the e-invoicing obligation such as B2C supplies and cross-border transactions.
E-invoice lifecycle statuses: transmitted by the PAs providing real-time visibility on the statuses of electronic invoices being exchanged in the ecosystem. Particularly concerning transactions for which tax is payable on collection, taxpayers are required to report payment statuses as well.
The accredited PAs, who exchange the electronic invoices between taxpayers and report invoice data to the PPF, must support 3 mandatory core-set formats for the exchange of electronic invoices – UBL, CII or Factur-X (a mixed human-readable and structured format) – although other structured formats may be used.
E-invoices must include all mandatory fields as defined in the Code Général des Impôts as well as those required by commercial laws.
Exchanging e-invoices directly between trading parties who are not registered as Platforme Agréées is not allowed. Invoices must be exchanged between parties through certified service providers.
E-reporting frequencies are based on the VAT regimes that taxpayers are subject to. Taxpayers subject to the monthly VAT periodic reporting regime are required to e-report invoice data every 10 days.
Want to learn about the upcoming mandatory e-invoicing requirements in France? Download our ebook, France: A New Horizon – E-invoicing Mandate.