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The electronic invoicing reform was postponed twice before taking effect. As of September 1, 2026, all VAT-registered businesses must be able to receive electronic invoices. Large companies and mid-sized companies must also issue them as of that date. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), very small businesses, and micro-enterprises have until September 1, 2027, to begin issuing them.
For an accounting firm, this reform has implications on two levels: ensuring your own firm’s compliance, and supporting your clients, who will increasingly turn to you for guidance on this topic. This article focuses on the first point from an IT perspective: what you need to prepare for technically, setting aside the tax and accounting issues that fall within your area of expertise—not ours.
What's Changing in Practice
- Receipt: Mandatory for all businesses as of September 1, 2026, regardless of size.
- Effective Date: September 1, 2026, for large companies and mid-sized companies; September 1, 2027, for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), very small businesses, and micro-enterprises.
- E-reporting: Submission of transaction data to the government, on the same schedule as the issuance.
- Terminology: The term PDP (Partner Digitalization Platform) has been officially replaced by PA (Approved Platform), although PDP remains widely used in everyday language. All invoices pass through one of these platforms registered with the tax authorities. The Public Invoicing Portal (PPF) no longer allows users to issue or receive invoices: it serves as a central directory, indicating which platform each company uses, and as a hub for data transmitted to the tax authorities (details on the role of the PPF).
What this means for your firm from an IT perspective
Choosing a platform is just the tip of the iceberg. The real work happens before and after: making sure your software integrates properly with it, and that the archiving system remains reliable for the legally required retention period.
Connect your business software to the certified platform
Cegid, Pennylane, My Unisoft, ACD, Agiris: Each of these tools has its own integration roadmap with approved platforms. Before choosing an approved platform, you must verify its actual compatibility with your current software environment—not just with the theoretical standards of the Factur-X format. A poorly chosen platform can result in duplicate data entry or a disruption in the workflow between your accounting software and your invoicing system. Our article on business software development details how we integrate these accounting environments on a case-by-case basis.
Ensuring the Security of Archiving with Legal Validity
Electronic invoices must be archived under conditions that ensure their integrity and traceability throughout the entire legally required retention period. This requires a secure storage infrastructure, with tested backups and access controls—not just a shared folder on the firm’s network.
Adapting Your Electronic Document Management (EDM) System
For law firms that process a large volume of invoices for their clients, automating indexing and approval workflows has become a key productivity issue—not just a compliance one. Now is the time to assess whether your current document management system can properly handle this new workflow or if it needs to be adapted.
Sizing the infrastructure to accommodate increased traffic
As of September 1, 2026, all businesses will receive electronic invoices. In September 2027, small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) and microbusinesses—which make up a large portion of accounting firms’ client base—will begin issuing them. The volume of transactions to be processed will therefore increase in stages, with the second stage seeing the sharpest rise. An infrastructure that is already operating at the limit of its capacity will struggle more to handle this increase than a system that has been properly scaled to meet the demand.
Mistakes to Avoid
- Waiting until the September 2027 deadline to prepare for the launch: the testing and integration phases with business software take time; starting in the last quarter leaves little leeway to correct any integration issues.
- Choosing a platform without checking its compatibility with your existing tools: There are many approved platforms, but not all of them integrate as well with Cegid, Pennylane, or My Unisoft.
- Neglecting archiving security: Regulatory compliance does not end with transmission or receipt; it also covers long-term retention.
- Approaching the issue solely from a business perspective: The reform has a real IT component (integration, security, capacity) that should be addressed in advance with your IT service provider, not just with your software vendor.
How IT Systèmes Supports Accounting Firms in This Area
We are not certified public accountants and do not provide advice on the tax aspects of the reform. Our role is limited to the IT aspect: technical integration of your approved platform with your business software, securing and archiving your data, and migration if your current infrastructure needs to be upgraded to handle the new data flow. We support accounting firms in these environments (Cegid, Pennylane, ACD, My Unisoft, Agiris, RCA, Silaé).
Receiving these documents has been mandatory since September 2026, and sending them will become mandatory for all businesses in September 2027. If your firm hasn’t yet chosen a platform or verified its connections, now is the time to do so.
To learn more about the support we offer accounting firms, visit our dedicated page.
FAQ
What is the deadline for electronic invoicing in 2026?
As of September 1, 2026, all businesses subject to VAT must be able to receive electronic invoices. Large companies and mid-sized companies must also issue them as of that date. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), very small enterprises, and micro-enterprises have until September 1, 2027, to begin issuing them.
What is the difference between a PDP and an Approved Platform (PA)?
This refers to the same system: PDP is the former name, while PA (Approved Platform) is the current official term. Both terms are used interchangeably in everyday language.
Should an accounting firm choose a different platform than its clients?
Yes, as a VAT-registered business, the firm must choose an approved platform for its own invoicing, regardless of the platforms its clients choose for theirs.
What should a firm check before choosing its approved platform?
True compatibility with its existing business software (Cegid, Pennylane, My Unisoft, etc.), the proposed conditions for legally admissible archiving, and the platform’s ability to handle the firm’s volume of invoices without interrupting the workflow.
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