How to know whether a French customer can receive e-invoices

What the timetable requires

Since 1 September 2026, every company in France must be able to receive e-invoices. This guide shows how to check a customer, what the directory tells you and what to do when a customer is not listed. Checked on 15 October 2026.

The reform is phased. According to the French tax administration, since 1 September 2026 every VAT-registered company must be able to receive e-invoices, whatever its size. Issuing comes in two steps: 1 September 2026 for large companies and mid-caps (ETI), and 1 September 2027 at the latest for SMEs and micro-businesses.

In practice, even a very small French customer has had to pick a platform to receive on. You do not ask it for a special e-mail address: you find out which platform represents it. The invoice mentions are covered in E-invoicing in France 2026: why your customers' SIREN becomes mandatory. As a foreign supplier, whether your own invoices fall under the French rules depends on where you are established and on the type of transaction: check the tax administration's page on the timetable (in French) or ask your adviser.

The official directory: what it shows

The e-invoicing directory (annuaire) is the national register of the companies concerned. It links each company to the approved platform that receives its invoices. It is free to consult, without an account, through the Chorus Pro portal: e-invoicing directory (in French). How it works is explained on economie.gouv.fr.

You search by SIREN, by SIRET or by name, and you read the customer's receiving platform and its invoicing addresses. The SIREN identifies the company, the SIRET one specific establishment, see SIREN vs SIRET: what is the difference?. If your customer has several establishments, check the one you invoice.

A company does not register itself: the platform it has chosen fills in its details. A customer can switch platform at any time, so look the customer up before each invoicing run instead of reusing old information.

GET /v2/companies/FR-123456782?include=e_invoicing
{
  "e_invoicing": {
    "applicable": true,
    "reason": null,
    "category": "PME",
    "reception": {
      "mandatory_from": "2026-09-01",
      "in_force": true
    },
    "issuance": {
      "mandatory_from": "2027-09-01",
      "in_force": false
    },
    "directory_url": "https://facturation.chorus-pro.gouv.fr/annuaire"
  }
}

Approved platforms

The official term is approved platform (French: plateforme agréée), the successor of the former "partner dematerialisation platform", PDP. These are private operators registered by the administration that send, transmit and receive invoices and pass the data on to the State. The tax administration publishes the list on impots.gouv.fr: e-invoicing and approved platforms (in French).

A company is free to choose its platform, and need not use its supplier's or customer's. Platforms talk to each other: you send from yours, it finds the recipient's platform in the directory and passes the invoice on. A so-called "compatible" software that is not registered cannot make these official exchanges.

A step-by-step example

A software vendor in Germany invoices a French haulage company in October 2026 and holds its SIREN in its customer file. It takes three steps:

• check that the SIREN exists and the company is still active;
• search that SIREN in the official directory and note the receiving platform listed;
• send the invoice from its own approved platform, which addresses it to the customer's.

If the directory lists no platform, do not block the file: ask the customer which platform it has chosen or whether it still has to name one. Until it is listed, you do not know where to address the electronic invoice.

With Jsonpage

Two tools complement the directory, which stays the reference for the platform:

• the company search: type a name, a SIREN or a SIRET, open the page and look for the "E-invoicing" section, available on company pages;
• the customer file tool: upload your list and see invalid SIREN, closed companies and duplicates before you invoice.

Searching the directory only makes sense if the SIREN is the right one: fix your file first and the platform lookups go faster.

Keep reading

• E-INVOICINGFrance e-invoicing 2026: why your customers' SIREN becomes mandatoryThe four new mandatory mentions, the 2026-2027 timeline and how to verify your customers' SIREN numbers.
• CUSTOMER FILEClean Your Customer File for E-InvoicingCheck SIRENs, spot closed companies and duplicates before e-invoicing: a 7-step method, free diagnostic, corrected file from €29 excl. VAT.
• VERIFICATIONIs this company real? Checks before signingA six-point checklist: identifier, status, name and address, VAT, signals and sanctions lists.
• APIAPI to check the SIREN and VAT numbers on your e-invoicesCheck the SIREN, SIRET and VAT number of the buyer and the seller before issuing or receiving an e-invoice: one call, examples in five languages.