France E-invoicing Mandate
France's e-invoicing reform requires all VAT-registered businesses to receive structured invoices from 1 September 2026, with send obligations phasing in through 2027. Here is what the calendar means in practice.
Format
Factur-X / UBL / CII
Infrastructure
PPF + PDP network
Receive obligation
1 Sep 2026 (all)
Send obligation
Sep 2026 (large) / Sep 2027 (all)
Mandate timeline
1 Sep 2026
All businesses: receive obligation
Every French VAT-registered business must be able to receive structured e-invoices via a PDP or the PPF. Accepting a plain PDF email is no longer sufficient.
1 Sep 2026
Large companies: send obligation
Large enterprises (grandes entreprises) must send structured invoices via a registered PDP. They must also report transaction data (e-reporting) for cross-border sales.
1 Sep 2027
Mid-size companies (ETI): send obligation
Entreprises de taille intermediaire (250-4999 employees or >€50m turnover) must send structured invoices.
1 Sep 2027
SMEs and micro businesses: send obligation
All remaining French VAT-registered businesses must send structured invoices. The reform is fully in effect.
Exceptions: Invoices under €150, invoices from the financial sector under specific exemptions, and transactions within a VAT group are subject to simplified rules. B2C (consumer) invoices are not covered. This is a B2B mandate only.
PPF and PDP: how French e-invoicing routing works
France built a two-layer infrastructure. You choose how to connect, but every invoice must pass through one of these two routes.
PPF — Portail Public de Facturation
The government's free public portal. Businesses without a PDP connect directly to the PPF. Suitable for lower-volume senders who do not need ERP integration.
- + Free to use
- + Web interface and basic API
- - No automated ERP-to-ERP routing
- - Manual upload for many scenarios
PDP — Plateforme de Dématérialisation Partenaire
Registered private platforms that connect directly to your ERP and route invoices between sender and receiver PDPs (and the PPF as fallback). Equivalent to Peppol Access Points in other EU countries.
- + Automated ERP integration
- + Multi-format support (Factur-X, UBL, EDI)
- + Handles e-reporting for cross-border transactions
- - Fee-based service
E-reporting: the cross-border obligation
The French reform includes not just e-invoicing (domestic B2B) but also e-reporting: a requirement to report transaction data for sales not covered by the e-invoicing mandate.
E-reporting applies to:
- Sales to foreign buyers (B2B with a non-French buyer VAT number)
- B2C sales (all consumer transactions above certain thresholds)
- Payments received (separate reporting of payment dates)
If you are a non-French company invoicing French buyers, you are not subject to the e-invoicing mandate (you don't need to use a French PDP). However, your French buyer must be able to receive a structured invoice. Sending a Factur-X or UBL invoice is the cleanest cross-border approach.
Accepted invoice formats
Factur-X
Hybrid (PDF/A-3 + CII XML)MINIMUM through EXTENDED
The preferred French format. Human-readable PDF with machine-readable CII XML embedded. Directly equivalent to ZUGFeRD 2.x.
UBL 2.1
Pure XMLEN 16931 compliant
Accepted by PDPs. Widely used for Peppol-routed invoices. No PDF component.
CII (UN/CEFACT)
Pure XMLEN 16931 compliant
Accepted by PDPs. Same data model as Factur-X's embedded XML, but delivered standalone.
Frequently asked questions
I am a non-French company invoicing a French customer. Am I affected?
Does France accept Peppol / UBL invoices?
What is the difference between the French mandate and Chorus Pro?
How long must invoices be retained in France?
Send compliant Factur-X invoices via API
JSON in. Sealed Factur-X PDF/A-3 with embedded CII XML, RFC 3161 timestamp, and Legal Evidence Pack out.