France Invoicing Peppol

France: the e-invoicing obligation has applied since 1 September 2026

VAT-taxable businesses established in France must be able to receive e-invoices through an approved platform. Large companies and ETI must additionally issue e-invoices and submit e-reporting data. This article sets out the obligations, the process and the points that affect companies outside France.

1 September 2026

9 min read

After two postponements, the French e-invoicing reform entered into force on 1 September 2026. The DGFiP published the first list of approved platforms on 16 January 2026. There is no further transition period for the receiving obligation.

What determines the implementation is not the date alone, but the difference between an approved platform and a merely compatible solution. Only the approved platform may transmit, receive and report on your behalf.

The obligations since 1 September 2026

According to the French Ministry of the Economy, around ten million VAT-taxable economic operators are affected, across all sectors. The issuing obligation is staggered by company size. The receiving obligation is not.

All companies

Every VAT-taxable business established in France must be able to receive electronic invoices through an approved platform or a compatible solution connected to one.

Large companies and ETI

Grande entreprise and Entreprise de taille intermédiaire (ETI, mid-sized companies) have had to issue structured e-invoices and submit e-reporting data since 1 September 2026.

SMEs and micro-enterprises

For PME, TPE and the self-employed, the issuing obligation starts on 1 September 2027. The ability to receive electronic invoices is already required.

Note: The receiving obligation has no turnover threshold and no phased introduction. It has applied to every affected company since day one.

PDP becomes plateforme agréée

The terminology has changed. The term used during the preparatory phase has been replaced by one that expresses approval by the DGFiP.

previously

PDP

Plateforme de Dématérialisation Partenaire

now

plateforme agréée, approved by the DGFiP

Alongside it stands the term solution compatible. Both terms are used in the offers of service providers, but they describe different roles.

Plateforme agréée

May transmit invoices to your customer's platform, receive invoices on your behalf and report invoice, transaction and payment data to the administration.

Solution compatible

May not perform any of these functions on its own. It can serve as the interface within your setup, but only when connected to an approved platform.

Check which category your provider falls into. The label compatible does not replace approval. The DGFiP published the first list of 101 approved platforms on 16 January 2026 and introduced a dedicated mark to identify them. Providers that have not yet obtained approval are continuing the procedure, and the list is being extended. What matters is whether your provider appears on the official list at the time you check.

The invoice process

France has chosen an open model: services operated by the administration on one side, a network of private but approved and supervised platforms on the other. Your platform sends the invoice to the buyer's platform and, in parallel, submits the required data extract to the administration.

Addressing

Annuaire

The directory of invoice recipients operated by the administration. It resolves which platform an invoice has to be sent to. France has also opened a route to join through the Peppol network.

Transmission

Accepted formats

Factur-X, UBL and UN/CEFACT CII. Factur-X combines PDF/A-3 with embedded XML and is therefore usually the simplest route for companies that have until now sent their invoices as a PDF by email.

Reporting

PPF

The Portail Public de Facturation receives the required data extract. It is the directory and data hub of the administration, not a free invoicing portal for every single invoice.

Exposure for companies outside France

Three situations require separate assessment.

French VAT registration and establishment

A French VAT registration alone does not create an e-invoicing obligation. Foreign businesses without a fixed establishment in France for VAT purposes are outside the receiving and issuing requirements of this reform. Depending on their transactions, they may nevertheless have e-reporting obligations.

You invoice French customers across borders

These transactions fall outside the e-invoicing obligation but inside e-reporting. The data still has to reach the administration, through your trading partner's obligations or through your own, depending on the setup.

Your ERP system outputs XRechnung or Peppol BIS

The syntax overlaps, the profile does not. A German XRechnung is not a compliant French invoice. The French process requires the French data extract, addressing through the Annuaire and an approved platform.

Implementation checklist

Confirm your provider's approval

Check whether your provider is registered as a plateforme agréée and reconcile this against the official DGFiP list.

Demonstrate that you can receive

This is the obligation that has applied to every affected company since 1 September. An incoming test invoice is enough to evidence it.

Identify the entities that must issue

Establish which of your entities qualify as Grande entreprise or ETI and therefore also carry the issuing and e-reporting obligation.

Review your master data

SIREN and SIRET, VAT identification numbers and the addressing details in the Annuaire have to be complete and correct.

Run one end-to-end test

A test invoice across the full route, from the ERP through the platform to the recipient, exposes addressing and format errors before they affect a real invoice.

How we help

As a certified Peppol access point we connect your ERP system once and handle the country-specific requirements behind it: format conversion to Factur-X, UBL or CII, validation before transmission, and addressing into the French process alongside your existing European invoice traffic.

If your French entity is not yet able to receive, establishing that capability should take priority. Invoice-Portal handles receiving, issuing and reporting through a single connection.

Set up your invoice traffic with France

Test the platform free for 14 days, with no installation in your ERP system.

Start free trial

Frequently asked questions

Does the French e-invoicing obligation apply to small companies as well?

The receiving obligation has applied since 1 September 2026 to VAT-taxable businesses established in France, regardless of size. For issuing, PME and TPE have until 1 September 2027.

What is the difference between a plateforme agréée and a solution compatible?

A plateforme agréée is registered with the DGFiP and may transmit invoices, receive them on your behalf and report data to the administration. A solution compatible may not perform these regulated functions itself and has to be connected to an approved platform.

Which invoice formats are accepted in France?

The accepted structured formats are Factur-X, UBL and UN/CEFACT CII. Factur-X combines PDF/A-3 with embedded XML and is often the simplest migration path.

Are cross-border invoices to French customers affected?

They fall outside the e-invoicing obligation but inside e-reporting. The transaction and payment data still has to reach the administration, usually through your trading partner's obligations or through your own setup.

Sources

Ministère de l'Économie: list of the first 101 approved platforms (16 January 2026) DGFiP: Facturation électronique, official information page DGFiP: list of approved platforms

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