France submits new e-invoicing timetable to Parliament

As part of the discussions around the adoption of the 2024 finance law, an amendment tabled on 17 October 2023 proposes to modify the timetable for the entry into force of the French e-invoicing reform as follows:

• The obligation to issue invoices in electronic format (e-invoicing) and the obligation to transmit invoicing and certain payment data (e-reporting) would apply:
  • From 1 September 2026 for large companies and mid-cap enterprises (instead of 1 July 2024 and 1 January 2024, respectively, according to the original timetable)
  • From 1 September 2027 for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) (instead of 1 January 2026)
• The obligation to receive invoices in electronic format through the State Platform (PPF for Portail Public de Facturation) would apply to all companies, regardless of their size, from 1 September 2026 (instead of 1 July 2024).

Each of these dates could be postponed by up to three months if the tax authorities deem it necessary for the proper implementation of the reform.

In addition, from 2025, the French tax authorities should offer the possibility of testing the PPF, allowing the exchange of electronic invoices (e-invoicing) or the filing of e-reporting files.

It should be noted that, despite requests from some economic operators, the new timetable does not provide for a separate entry into force for the e-invoicing obligation (business-to-business (B2B) domestic sales) or the e-reporting obligations (international operations, business-to-consumer (B2C) sales).

Finally, according to the amendment, this new timetable is subject to the extension of the derogation granted to France by the European Commission, which is due to expire on 31 December 2026. The Commission will examine this request in light of the proposed value added tax (VAT) in the Digital Age Directive (VIDA) of 8 December 2022, which aims to implement e-invoicing and e-reporting obligations at European Union level.

However, we will have to wait for the final adoption of the 2024 finance law at the end of December to confirm this new timetable and for the implementing decrees, expected at the beginning of 2024, to find out whether the dates of entry into force of the new mandatory invoice quotes, and the obligation to certify private platforms (PDP for Plateformes de Dématérialisation Partenaires), are also postponed.

For additional information with respect to this Alert, please contact the following:

Ernst & Young Société d'Avocats, Paris

• Gwenaëlle Bernier, Senior Partner

• Cédric Bernard, Partner

• Eric Cayrel, Partner

Published by NTD's Tax Technical Knowledge Services group; Carolyn Wright, legal editor

For a full listing of contacts and email addresses, please click on the Tax News Update: Global Edition (GTNU) version of this Alert.