French e-invoicing in 2026: the calendar and what changes

Since 1 September 2026, every business in France must be able to receive electronic invoices. The obligation to issue them comes in two steps. Here is who is affected, when, and how to get ready.

Updated October 14, 2026

The calendar

Size is assessed per company (headcount, turnover, balance sheet). An SME must therefore already be able to receive its suppliers' e-invoices, even if it keeps issuing ordinary PDF invoices until September 2027.

Who is affected

• E-invoicing covers sales between VAT-registered businesses established in France.
• E-reporting covers the other transactions: sales to consumers, cross-border purchases and sales, and payment data for services.
• Micro-entrepreneurs under the VAT exemption are included: they must receive from 2026 and issue from 2027.

How invoices travel

An e-invoice is no longer simply emailed: it goes through an approved platform (PA, "plateforme agréée", formerly called PDP) registered by the tax authority. Each business chooses its platform, which receives and sends invoices and reports the VAT data to the administration.

The public invoicing portal acts as a directory and data hub: it tells which platform each business uses.

Accepted formats

• Factur-X: a human-readable PDF with an embedded XML file (our Factur-X guide);
• UBL: an XML file on its own;
• CII: an XML file on its own, the same family as the XML inside Factur-X.

An ordinary PDF, even sent through a platform, is not an e-invoice under the reform: the structured data is what counts.

New mentions on invoices

Four mentions are added: the customer's SIREN, the delivery address if it differs, the type of transaction (goods, services or both) and the option to pay VAT on debits. Details in our guide to mandatory mentions.

Penalties

• €15 per invoice not issued electronically when it should have been, up to €15,000 a year.
• €250 per missing data report (e-reporting), within the same yearly cap.
• A first offence isn't fined if it's corrected within 30 days of the tax office's request.

Getting ready

1. Choose an approved platform to receive invoices, if you haven't: it has been mandatory since 1 September 2026.
2. Update your customer records: SIREN numbers, delivery addresses.
3. Update your invoice templates with the new mentions now.
4. Keep checking the invoices you receive: an e-invoice can still carry a VAT error or a fraudulent IBAN. The format doesn't guarantee the content.

Foreign businesses

A business without an establishment in France isn't subject to the e-invoicing obligation, but its French customers will report the transactions through e-reporting. Expect French customers to ask for structured invoices and SIREN numbers on their own documents.