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Electronic invoicing will profoundly transform business-to-business transactions in France. Originally scheduled to take effect on July 1, 2024, the reform has been postponed following feedback from businesses and software vendors.
This new obligation concerns all companies, according to a progressive timetable, and applies to exchanges between professionals.
By collecting all of the companies’ billing data, the French government hopes to more easily steer the country’s economic activity.
Why is electronic invoicing becoming mandatory?
The widespread adoption of electronic invoicing in France aimsto modernize the management of B2B transactions and address several major challenges:
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Combating VAT FraudMore Effectively: Direct Data Transmission Prevents Intentional Omissions and Simplifies Tax Audits.
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Automate auditing and reporting to make life easier for businesses and government agencies.
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Gain a real-time view of economic activity by centralizing data flows.
This strategy is part of a broader European initiative and supports the digital transition of the French workforce.
What is an electronic invoice?
An electronic invoice (or e-invoice) is a document that certifies the existence and content of a commercial transaction between a supplier and its customer. It should not be confused with a simple paperless invoice.
It is created, transmitted and received in electronic form.
The General Tax Code defines electronic invoices as :
| “An invoice issued, transmitted or received in dematerialized form and which necessarily includes a minimum base of structured data”. |
It must contain data structured in a format specified by regulation (Factur-X, UBL, CII).
It is therefore distinguished by:
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an electronic invoice (plain PDF, scanned image), which is not considered compliant,
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a compliant electronic invoice that combines readability (PDF) with standardized data (embedded XML or a separate file).
Electronic invoicing: nothing new for the public sector
Electronic invoicing has already been in use for several years by all companies providing a service to the State, a local authority or any other public institution.
In fact, the supplier company is obliged to send him an invoice in electronic format.
This obligation applies to all companies, including micro-businesses.
Invoices are sent through a platform set up by the government, Chorus Pro.
Who is affected by the widespread use of electronic invoicing?
This applies to all businesses established in France that are subject to VAT.
- Domestic B2B transactions (between taxable businesses) are at the heart of the system.
- Other transactions (international B2B, B2C, and exempt transactions) will be subject to reporting requirements (e-reporting).
The Two Pillars of the Electronic Invoicing System
- The e-invoicing obligation: Companies will have to issue, transmit and receive invoices in electronic form for transactions between taxable persons.
- The obligation to transmit invoice data (e-reporting): This applies to all commercial transactions not covered by e-invoicing. This involves transmitting international B2B and B2C transaction data, as well as data relating to the payment of services, to the tax authorities.
Special Case: Businesses Not Subject to VAT and Established in France
They will not be obliged to issue invoices in electronic format, but must be able to receive them from their suppliers.
New Official Timeline for Electronic Invoicing
The reform will begin on September 1, 2026, with a phased rollout based on company size:
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September 1, 2026: Reporting requirement for all companies + reporting requirement for large companies and mid-sized companies (ETI).
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September 1, 2027: Issuance requirement for SMEs and micro-enterprises.
👉 This means that as of 2025, no French company is yet required to issue invoices in the legally mandated electronic format, but many are already preparing to be ready in time.
How Can You Ensure Compliance with Electronic Invoicing Requirements?
When your company, relative to its size, reaches the deadline for issuing invoices in electronic format, your invoicing process will have to allow for this.
Companies will have two options for electronic invoicing:
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The Public Billing Portal (PPF), based on Chorus Pro.
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An Approved Platform (AP)
The Approved Platform
Formerly known as the Tax Administration’s Partner Dematerialization Platform (PDP), the Authorized Electronic Invoicing Platform (PA) must be certified by the tax authorities and offer enhanced services (format conversion, interoperability, and transaction tracking). A PA is responsible for converting PDF invoices into a format that complies with legal requirements.
You may already have a software solution that will be certified as an Approved Platform in the coming months or years, while still meeting your deadline.
The Public Billing Portal
You can choose to use the Chorus Pro (PPF) billing portal, which is currently used for transactions with the government and public entities.
You can then upload your batches of invoices to Chorus Pro without using an Approved Platform.
On the other hand, this complicates the billing process. It is recommended to use a payment agency.
Possible formats for an electronic invoice
To be an electronic invoice, an invoice in France must be in one of the following three formats:
UBL (Universal Business Language)
This is an XML-based electronic invoice format, which provides a standard data model for electronic invoicing.
UBL was developed by the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards (OASIS) and is maintained by the OASIS Technical Committee on UBL.
CII (Cross Industry Invoice)
Inter-Industry Invoice is a technical specification used to create the message syntax that can be exchanged worldwide between trading partners.
CII was developed by the United Nations Centre for Trade Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT).
Factur-X
Factur-X is a format that contains both a user-readable PDF file and its attached data in XML, and is the most widely used format for being inexpensive compared with processes such as tax EDI.
Factur-X was developed jointly by the French tax authorities (DGFiP), the Union Interdépartementale pour la Facturation Electronique (UIEE) and experts from various industries in France.
E-reporting: Don’t Forget This Parallel Requirement
E-reporting follows the same timeline as e-invoicing (2026–2028). This means that all businesses will be required to regularly submit data to the tax authorities regarding:
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their transactions with individuals (B2C),
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their operations with foreign entities,
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certain regulations governing the provision of services.
Veryswing already handles the preparation of these data flows within its solutions, ensuring that your obligations are met without adding complexity for your teams.
Please note: VAT-exempt operations do not fall within the scope of e-reporting.
This applies in particular to certain banking and insurance operations, medical and health services, educational services and operations carried out by non-profit organizations.
Companies must submit e-reporting transaction data through the same transmission channel used for electronic invoicing—that is, through the Public Invoicing Portal or an Authorized Platform.
VSActivity and VSPortage are ready for electronic invoicing
At Veryswing, we anticipated this reform so that our VSActivity and VSPortage solutions can support your teams throughout the entire billing cycle:
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native generation of invoices compliant with the Factur-X format,
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Receipt and processing of supplier invoices via OCR and structured formats,
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the ability to interface with partner payment processors pending official approval.
Our goal is to ensure a smooth transition for you, regardless of your implementation timeline.
Veryswing, Certified Platform
Veryswing has been registered as an Approved Platform with the tax authorities (subject to approval).
This allows our VSActivity and VSPortage ERP systems to communicate directly with Chorus Pro (PPF) and thus process the entire data flow.
It should be noted that the application required for certification as a PA involves very advanced security requirements, including ISO 27001 certification: This is already the case for Veryswing, which has held ISO 27001 certification since Q4 2022 for all of the company’s processes and its SaaS application solutions (VSActivity, VSPortage, and VSExperience).
Y-diagram of electronic invoicing workflows integrating VSActivity / VSPortage with the Veryswing Authorized Platform
Get ready for the arrival of electronic billing with Veryswing
If you’re already using one of our vsa or vsp ERP systems—or if you’re considering doing so—please note that with Veryswing, you’ll have a single point of contact for electronic invoicing.
All invoices issued or received in our ERP systems will be transmitted to the Public Invoicing Portal via the Veryswing Authorized Platform.
You won’t need to take any further action.
👉 To learn more, request a callback from a Veryswing advisor by clicking here.
