The French e-invoicing law: which texts, and what do they say?
Enter your headcount, turnover and balance sheet: the tool applies the 2008 decree thresholds and gives your size category, hence your date.
Your category
SME
Issuing mandatory on 1 September 2027; receiving for everyone on 1 September 2026.
| Micro | < 10 staff and turnover or balance sheet ≤ €2,000,000 |
| SME | < 250 staff and turnover ≤ €50,000,000 or balance sheet ≤ €43,000,000 |
| ETI | < 5,000 staff and turnover ≤ €1,500,000,000 or balance sheet ≤ €2,000,000,000 |
Article 3 of decree no. 2008-1354. The category used for e-invoicing is the one on 1 January 2025.
Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · Tax code, BOFiP and approved-platform list checked on 25 October 2026
Mandatory e-invoicing rests on a set of texts, from the most general to the most technical. Article 289 bis of the French tax code sets the duty to issue, send and receive invoices between taxable persons electronically, through an approved platform. The 2024 finance act set the current timetable: receiving for all and issuing for large and mid-sized companies on 1 September 2026, issuing for the others on 1 September 2027. A December 2024 decree added the new invoice mentions. The 2026 finance act revised the fines, in their version in force since 21 February 2026. Finally, a decree and an order of 27 July 2026 set out how platforms work, how to switch platforms, e-reporting frequencies and the base formats. The size category, which decides the issuing date, is worked out under the 2008 decree on business categories, from the data of the last financial year closed before 1 January 2025.
The texts in order
| Text | What it sets |
|---|---|
| Article 289 bis of the tax code | The duty to issue, send and receive electronically |
| 2024 finance act, article 91 | The timetable: 1 September 2026 and 1 September 2027 |
| Decree of 21 December 2024 | The four new invoice mentions |
| 2026 finance act, article 123 | The fines, in force since 21 February 2026 |
| Decree of 27 July 2026 | Platforms, switching platforms, e-reporting |
| Order of 27 July 2026 | Base formats and technical standards |
| Decree of 18 December 2008 | Business size categories |
The law and the code
Article 289 bis of the French tax code is the core of the system. The 2024 finance act gave it its current timetable, after an earlier postponement. The 2026 finance act reworked the penalties of articles 1737 and 1788 D: a fine per invoice, per missed transmission and for not receiving after formal notice. These amounts are used in the fine simulator.
The implementing texts
The new mentions come from article 242 nonies A of annex II to the tax code. The decree of 27 July 2026 set the rules for platforms and e-reporting in annex II, and the order of the same day the formats in annex IV. These texts are technical, but they give the periods and frequencies that this site’s tools calculate.
Your category
Your category
SME
| Micro | < 10 staff and turnover or balance sheet ≤ €2,000,000 |
| SME | < 250 staff and turnover ≤ €50,000,000 or balance sheet ≤ €43,000,000 |
| ETI | < 5,000 staff and turnover ≤ €1,500,000,000 or balance sheet ≤ €2,000,000,000 |
The size category
The issuing date depends on the category, defined by decree no. 2008-1354: micro-business, SME, mid-sized company or large company, by headcount, turnover and balance sheet total. The category used is that of the last financial year closed before 1 January 2025. The tool at the top of the page applies these thresholds; the full check adds your customers and VAT regime.
Keeping up with changes
The reform’s texts have changed often since it was launched. The tax code article numbers quoted on this site are those in force on the reading date shown in each source, and will be updated if the code is renumbered. The rules themselves only change with a new text published in the Journal officiel.
What the texts do not say
No text imposes one platform over another, nor a price, nor software. None requires issuing electronically to a consumer or a foreign customer: those transactions fall under e-reporting. And none removes the usual invoicing rules, which keep applying: continuous numbering, payment terms, record keeping. The reform changes the form and circuit of the invoice, not what it must say, apart from the four added mentions.
When in doubt about a specific case, the text itself, read in the version dated on this site, remains the reference, before any summary.