The reform of electronic invoicing marks a major change in the tax obligations and invoicing practices of businesses in France. From 2026, the issuing, receipt and transmission of invoices between VAT-registered businesses will be based on standardised digital processes, governed by a precise regulatory framework.
This transformation is accompanied by a specific technical and regulatory vocabulary: Public Billing Portal (PPF), Approved Platform (AP), e-invoicing, e-reporting, structured formats, Compatible Solutions (CS), invoice status, among others. These terms are essential for understanding the mechanisms of the reform, the responsibilities of each player and the technological choices to be made.
The aim of this glossary is to clarify the key concepts of electronic invoicing, to provide accessible and reliable definitions, and to help businesses and finance professionals to grasp the operational and regulatory challenges of the reform. It is a reference tool for navigating the e-invoicing ecosystem with confidence and anticipating compliance.
| Term | Abbreviation / Synonym | Definition |
| AIFE | Agency for State Financial Information Technology | French public body that manages and develops the State’s financial information systems, in particular the Public Billing Portal (PPF) and its historic component Chorus Pro. It is a key player in the implementation of the reform. |
| Directory | Directory of taxable persons | Centralised repository managed by the PPF. It contains the routing information for each company subject to VAT (its SIREN/SIRET and the identity of its Approved Platform or the associated e-mail address) to ensure that each invoice reaches the correct recipient platform. |
| B2B | Business to Business | Commercial exchanges between VAT-registered professionals. This is the core of thee-invoicing obligation. |
| B2C | Business to Consumer | Commercial transactions between a business and a private individual who is not liable for VAT. These transactions are subject to thee-reporting obligation. |
| B2G | Business to Government | Commercial exchanges between a private company and a public entity (State, local authorities, hospitals, etc.). These flows must go through Chorus Pro (integrated into the PPF). |
| Chorus Pro | The historical public portal used since 2017 to transmit B2G invoices. Under the new scheme, Chorus Pro is integrated into the PPF to manage these flows. | |
| CII | Cross Industry Invoice | One of the three structured data formats authorised for electronic invoicing (along with UBL and Factur-X). It is a highly structured XML format that can only be read by software. |
| Data Concentrator | Role of the PPF | One of the two main tasks of the Public Billing Portal (PPF). The PPF receives, processes and transmits all tax data (frome-invoicing ande-reporting) to the tax authorities (DGFiP). |
| Lifecycle | By-laws | All the regulatory stages (Filing, Rejection, Receipt, Payment, etc.) that the electronic invoice must go through. The PA is responsible for updating the statutes to guarantee traceability of exchanges with companies and the authorities. |
| Additional data | Additional compulsory information | In addition to the usual legal information, electronic invoices require specific mandatory data for the authorities: SIREN of the buyer/seller, nature of the transaction, option to pay VAT on debits, etc. |
| E-invoicing | Electronic billing | Obligation toissue, transmit and receive invoices in electronic and structured form between VAT taxable persons (B2B flows). B2B invoices must be exchanged via an Approved Platform (AP). The PPF is used exclusively for B2G flows and the centralisation of tax data. Note that the AP can also send B2G invoices. |
| E-reporting | Transaction data declaration | Obligation to send transaction and payment data (VAT amount, etc.) not covered by an electronic invoice (B2C flows, international transactions) to the tax authorities. |
| Electronic Invoice | E-bill | Invoice issued, transmitted and received in dematerialised form and must include structured data (Factur-X, CII or UBL format) enabling automated processing by IT systems. |
| Factur-X | Hybrid format | Electronic invoice format consisting of two parts: a human-readable PDF file and a machine-readable structured data file in XML format. This is the most versatile format. |
| Structured Format | Structured Data | Refers to the technical part of the electronic invoice (XML, JSON, etc.) containing all the standardised information on the invoice, enabling it to be processed automatically by IT systems. |
| OD | Dematerialisation operator / renamed Solution Compatible (SC) | Former terminology for Solution Compatible SC. Private service provider (software publisher) not registered by the DGFiP for transmission. It must be connected to a PA to transmit data flows and ensure compliance. |
| PA | Approved platform (replaces PDP) | Service provider registered by the DGFiP and authorised to issue, receive and transmit B2B electronic invoices and to extract/transmit data to the Data Concentrator / PPF. All companies must use a PA for B2B exchanges. |
| PAF | Reliable audit trail | All the documentation and internal controls put in place by a company to guarantee the authenticity of the invoice’s origin, the integrity of its content and its legibility, from the beginning to the end of its life cycle. |
| PDP | Partner dematerialisation platform | From July 2025, the term “Partner Dematerialisation Platform (PDP)” has been replaced by the term “Approved Platform”, in order to clarify the role of these players and underline their official status in the e-invoicing ecosystem, particularly in terms of regulatory compliance, interoperability and secure exchanges. |
| PPF | Public Billing Portal | State platform (evolution of Chorus Pro). The PPF focuses on two major roles: as a central recipientdirectory and as a data concentrator for the tax authorities. |
| SC | Compatible Solution | The term “SC, Solution Compatible” replaces “OD, Opérateur de Dématérialisation”. Unregistered management or invoicing software that must connect to an AP to ensure the conformity of exchanges. |
| Invoice status | By-laws | Invoice statuses describe the various stages in an invoice’s life cycle, from submission or issue to payment or final processing. In accordance with FNFE guidelines, an electronic invoice can have the following statuses: submitted, issued by the platform, received by the platform, made available, taken in charge, approved, in dispute, suspended, refused, rejected or cashed. |
| UBL | Universal Business Language | One of the XML structured data formats authorised for electronic invoicing (along with CII and Factur-X). It can only be read by software. |
| XML | eXtensible Markup Language | Structured data mark-up language. It is the basis for electronic invoicing formats such as Factur-X, CII and UBL. |
