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Receiving electronic invoices from September 2026: what a WooCommerce store must do

Updated: October 2026 · ~6 min read

The first deadline of the French e-invoicing reform concerns everyone, and it arrives before the obligation to issue invoices. From 1 September 2026, every VAT-registered business must be able to receive electronic invoices. Here is what that means in practice for a WooCommerce store — without the unnecessary jargon.

Contents 1. What the reform says: mandatory receiving from 1 September 2026 2. Who is affected? 3. What exactly is an "electronic invoice"? 4. The role of the approved platform and the directory 5. The concrete steps for a WooCommerce store 6. What about issuing invoices and e-reporting? Official sources

1. What the reform says: mandatory receiving from 1 September 2026

The e-invoicing reform is governed by the 2024 Finance Act (Act no. 2023-1322 of 29 December 2023, article 91). It sets out a two-stage timetable, and the very first step is the obligation to receive.

According to the official French government portal, "from 1 September 2026, all businesses established in France and subject to VAT must be able to receive electronic invoices." In other words: even if you are not yet required to issue your own invoices in an electronic format, from that date you must be able to receive them from your suppliers.

Key point: receiving applies to all VAT-registered businesses from 1 September 2026, regardless of size. Issuing, on the other hand, is phased in (see section 6).

2. Who is affected?

For receiving, the rule is simple: every business established in France and subject to VAT. This includes small operations, including micro-entrepreneurs who benefit from the VAT-exemption scheme (franchise en base) — the authorities specify that the obligation applies "including when they benefit from the VAT-exemption scheme (franchise en base)."

If you run a WooCommerce store that sells to businesses (B2B), your suppliers will gradually send you their invoices in an electronic format. You therefore need a means of receiving and viewing them — which, in practice, goes through a platform (see section 4).

3. What exactly is an "electronic invoice"?

An electronic invoice within the meaning of the reform is not a simple PDF sent by email. It is a document containing structured data, automatically readable by software, in a standardised format.

The authorities have adopted three formats, all of which are based on the European standard EN 16931:

On the receiving side, the benefit is twofold: you get a readable document, and the data can be integrated automatically into your accounting.

4. The role of the approved platform (PA, formerly PDP) and the directory

Electronic invoices do not travel directly from one mailbox to another: they pass through approved platforms (PA, formerly PDP), the official term that replaces the former name "partner dematerialisation platform" (PDP). These are private operators, approved and supervised by the State, responsible for issuing, transmitting and receiving invoices.

Important point: the Public Invoicing Portal (PPF) has been refocused. According to the French State financial IT agency (AIFE), the PPF now provides a directory function (routing invoices to the correct recipient) and a concentrator function (transmitting data to the tax authorities) — but it no longer offers a free public service for issuing and receiving invoices. In practice, to receive your invoices you will have to go through an approved platform (PA). The DGFiP has indeed begun publishing the official list of these platforms.

The directory plays a key role: it lists invoice recipients and makes it possible to route each invoice to the right platform. To be reachable, your business must be correctly identified in it (via its SIREN/SIRET).

5. The concrete steps for a WooCommerce store

Here is a sensible approach to being ready to receive, without rushing:

The important thing is to plan ahead: choosing a platform and checking your identifiers takes little time, but it is best not to leave it until 31 August 2026.

6. What about issuing invoices and e-reporting?

Receiving is only the first step. The obligation to issue invoices in an electronic format is phased in according to the size of the business: it applies to large enterprises and mid-sized companies (ETI) from 1 September 2026, then to SMEs and micro-enterprises from 1 September 2027. In addition there is e-reporting, i.e. the transmission to the authorities of data on certain transactions not covered by electronic invoicing (notably sales to private individuals and international transactions).

If your store also sells to private individuals (B2C), both of these topics will concern you. We cover them in detail in our dedicated guide: getting compliant before September 2027.

Using WooCommerce? Factella is a free extension that generates compliant Factur-X invoices from your orders and can transmit them to an approved platform such as SUPER PDP. It is a good starting point for preparing your store, alongside choosing your platform for receiving.

Official sources

This article is provided for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal or tax advice. Dates and arrangements are governed by the regulations in force and may change; check your own situation with the authorities or your chartered accountant.