The entry into force of electronic invoicing is postponed indefinitely!

To everyone’s surprise, the public authorities announced, in the middle of the summer (July 28), their decision to postpone the entry into force of electronic invoicing to a later date, “in order to give the necessary time for the success of this structural reform for the economy” and “to give a more conducive conditions to all 4 million companies concerned by the transition to electronic invoicing”.

The new date of entry into force of the device will be defined as part of the Finance Act for 2024.

It should be recalled that this reform was to enter into force gradually according to the following schedule:

- receipt of electronic invoices:

. mandatory for all taxable persons, regardless of the size of the company, from July 1st, 2024.

- issuance of electronic invoices and e-reporting (transmission of transaction data):

. mandatory from July 1st, 2024, for large companies and single taxable persons (VAT groups).

. mandatory from January 1st, 2025, for mid-caps.

. mandatory from January 1st, 2026, for SMEs and micro-enterprises.

According to the public authorities, the aim of the reform is to strengthen the competitiveness of businesses through the reduction of the administrative burden and productivity gains resulting from dematerialization, to simplify, in the long term, their VAT reporting obligations through the pre-filling of declarations, to strengthen the fight against fraud, favorable to bona fide economic operators and fair competition, as well as improving real-time knowledge of the economic standing of businesses.

Highlighting the lack of preparedness of companies, employers’ organizations have therefore succeeded in delaying the entry into force of this important reform. This will give companies more time to prepare for the changes the reform introduces and the new obligations they will have in this area, but also to understand what they stand to gain.