eInvoicing in France and Belgium: what changes, and when
Belgium's B2B eInvoicing mandate has been live since 1 January 2026. France's begins on 1 September 2026, when every VAT-registered business in France must be able to receive a structured electronic invoice, whatever its size. Transalis is connected in both countries and is on the French tax authority's register of approved eInvoicing platforms.
Which eInvoicing deadlines apply in France and Belgium?
Two mandates, five dates. Belgium is already in force. France opens on 1 September 2026 and completes a year later.
- BelgiumIn force
Every VAT-registered business in Belgium must issue and receive structured eInvoices for domestic B2B trade. Already in force.
- FranceIn force
Every VAT-registered business in France must be able to receive structured eInvoices. Large and mid-sized companies must also issue them and begin e-reporting.
- France
Small and micro businesses must begin issuing eInvoices and meeting e-reporting obligations.
- Belgium
Near real-time reporting begins, using Peppol's five-corner model.
- Belgium
Intra-EU B2B transactions come into the reporting scope.
Mandate detail last checked: 31 August 2026.
What does the French eInvoicing mandate require?
From 1 September 2026 every VAT-registered business in France must be able to receive a structured electronic invoice, with no exemption for size. Issuing is phased, and e-reporting is a separate obligation that has to be assessed on its own.
Receiving comes first, and nobody is exempt
From 1 September 2026 every VAT-registered business in France must be able to receive a structured electronic invoice. There is no size threshold on this part. A small business cannot wait for its own 2027 date, because its larger customers and suppliers start sending from September 2026.
Issuing is phased by company size
Large companies and mid-sized companies (ETI) must issue eInvoices from 1 September 2026. Small and micro businesses follow on 1 September 2027.
eInvoicing and e-reporting are two separate obligations
eInvoicing covers structured invoices exchanged between French businesses. E-reporting covers what sits outside that: B2C sales and cross-border transactions. A business can fall into one, the other, or both, so each is assessed on its own.
Invoices travel through an approved platform
Invoices are exchanged through a state-registered platform. In July 2025 the French government replaced the term Plateforme de Dématérialisation Partenaire (PDP) with Plateforme Agréée, or approved platform. The Portail Public de Facturation (PPF) is the central business directory and the data hub for the tax authority. Businesses do not file with it directly.
Three formats are accepted
Factur-X, which is a PDF with structured XML inside it, plus UBL and CII, which are pure XML. All three align to the European standard EN 16931.
The invoice status has to travel with it
Six life-cycle statuses must be tracked and passed on, shown below. This is not an optional extra. It is part of the mandate.
The status that must travel with every French invoice
- SentIssued by the supplier
- DepositedLodged with the platform
- ReceivedDelivered to the buyer
- RejectedBuyer disputes it
- AcceptedBuyer approves it
- PaidSettled and reported
What does the Belgian eInvoicing mandate require?
Belgium went first. Since 1 January 2026 every VAT-registered business there must issue and receive structured electronic invoices for domestic B2B trade, over Peppol, and the grace period has already closed.
It is already in force
Since 1 January 2026, every VAT-registered business in Belgium must issue and receive structured electronic invoices for domestic B2B trade.
Peppol is the default route
Invoices move over the Peppol four-corner network in formats that meet EN 16931, which in practice means UBL 2.1 or CII 16B. Another channel is permitted only where both parties agree to it and the format still meets the standard.
The grace period has closed
Belgian authorities allowed a three-month tolerance across the first quarter of 2026 for businesses that could show reasonable and timely steps toward compliance. That window has passed.
Reporting follows in 2028
Near real-time reporting over Peppol's five-corner model begins in January 2028, and intra-EU B2B transactions join the scope in January 2030.
What non-compliance costs
- €1,500First offence
- €3,000Second offence
- €5,000Third within three months
Do UK businesses have to do anything?
If you trade with businesses in France or Belgium, in practice yes. Your customers there are already invoicing under the mandates, and the UK follows on 1 April 2029 using the same model.
Selling into Belgium
If your customer is a VAT-registered business in Belgium, structured eInvoicing already applies to that domestic leg of their trade, and Peppol is how Belgian business now expects to exchange documents.
Selling into France
From 1 September 2026 your French business customers must be able to receive structured eInvoices, and the larger ones must issue them. Trading partners increasingly ask suppliers to match how they now invoice.
The UK's own date
The UK mandate lands on 1 April 2029 and uses the same decentralised four-corner Peppol model. A business that connects for France or Belgium today is building the connection the UK will require anyway.
How does Transalis make you compliant in France and Belgium?
One connection, run for you, covering both mandates and the UK date that follows.
Registered in France
Transalis Limited appears on the French register of approved eInvoicing platforms held by the Direction Générale des Finances Publiques (DGFiP), the authority that runs the mandate.
Authorised Peppol Access Point
Transalis is an authorised Peppol Access Point using AS4. That is the default channel for Belgium's mandate, and the model the UK adopts in 2029.
Every invoice status, visible
Transalis eInvoiceTrack shows the status of each invoice as it moves: sent, received, accepted, rejected and paid. That is the same life cycle the French rules require you to track and pass on.
Run for you, not by you
Mapping, testing, partner onboarding and day-to-day monitoring are handled by Transalis. Your finance team does not become a compliance team.
France and Belgium eInvoicing: common questions
When does the French eInvoicing mandate start?
1 September 2026. From that date every VAT-registered business in France must be able to receive structured electronic invoices, and large and mid-sized companies must also issue them and begin e-reporting. Small and micro businesses must begin issuing on 1 September 2027.
Does every business in France have to issue eInvoices from September 2026?
No. The obligation to receive applies to every VAT-registered business from 1 September 2026, with no size threshold. The obligation to issue is phased: large and mid-sized companies from 1 September 2026, small and micro businesses from 1 September 2027.
What is a Plateforme Agréée, and what happened to the term PDP?
A Plateforme Agréée is a state-registered platform that formats, validates and transmits electronic invoices and reports them to the French tax authority. In July 2025 the French government replaced the earlier term, Plateforme de Dématérialisation Partenaire (PDP), with Plateforme Agréée. The two names describe the same role.
Is Belgium's eInvoicing mandate already live?
Yes. Since 1 January 2026 every VAT-registered business in Belgium must issue and receive structured electronic invoices for domestic B2B trade. A three-month tolerance covered the first quarter of 2026 and has since closed.
What format must a French or Belgian eInvoice use?
France accepts Factur-X, which is a PDF carrying structured XML, along with UBL and CII. Belgium requires formats that meet EN 16931, in practice UBL 2.1 or CII 16B, sent over the Peppol network. All of these align to the same European standard.
Does a UK business need to do anything?
If you trade with businesses in France or Belgium, then yes in practice. Your customers there are now invoicing under the mandates and expect the same in return. The UK's own mandate follows on 1 April 2029 using the same four-corner Peppol model, so one connection serves all three.