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France TVA Autoliquidation: B2B Reverse Charge Guide

If you invoice business customers in or from France, you will run into the word autoliquidation — the French name for the reverse charge mechanism. Instead of you charging TVA, the VAT-registered customer "self-accounts" for the tax on their own return. Get it wrong and you either charge TVA you should not have, or miss a mandatory invoice mention auditors look for. This guide explains the rules in plain English for freelancers and small businesses.

What "autoliquidation" means in plain English

In a normal sale, the supplier adds TVA to the invoice (usually at the standard French rate of 20%) and later remits that tax to the state. Under autoliquidation, the roles flip: the supplier issues the invoice net, without TVA, and the VAT-registered customer declares both the output tax and the input deduction on their own return. For the customer, the two entries normally cancel out, so no cash changes hands for the tax.

The point is administrative, not a discount: the same amount of TVA is still due, but the buyer declares and pays it. Autoliquidation is therefore different from a true VAT exemption — the transaction is taxable, but the liability moves to the customer.

France's 2026 TVA rates are 20% (standard), 10% (e.g. restaurants and passenger transport), 5.5% (food, books, some cultural goods) and 2.1% (press publications, certain medicines). Reverse charge does not change which rate applies; it changes who accounts for it.

When a supplier must NOT charge 20% TVA

There are two main cross-border situations where autoliquidation replaces French TVA on your invoice.

1. EU B2B services — article 259-1 du CGI. The most common case for freelancers, consultants, agencies and SaaS businesses. When you supply a service to a VAT-registered business in another EU member state, the "place of supply" is the customer's country, not France. French TVA does not apply: invoice net and add the autoliquidation mention (see below).

2. Intra-EU supplies of goods — article 262 ter du CGI. When you sell goods that are physically transported from France to a VAT-registered business customer in another EU member state, the supply is VAT-exempt in France (a zero-rated intra-community supply), and the customer accounts for acquisition TVA in their own country. You still need the customer's valid EU VAT number and proof of transport.

Autoliquidation also applies to certain domestic French situations: supplies of goods in France by a business not established in France, most subcontracting work in construction (article 283 CGI), and specific sectors such as CO2 certificates. If you are a non-established supplier selling B2B in France, check whether domestic reverse charge applies before registering for French TVA unnecessarily.

Need to double-check the maths? Use our France reverse charge VAT calculator to compare the "charge TVA" and "reverse charge" versions of any invoice.

The exact invoice wording to use

French invoices issued under reverse charge must carry a specific mention; auditors and clients' accountants both look for it. Use the statutory references:

Beyond the mention, your invoice must show both parties' VAT identification numbers: yours and the customer's. The customer's number proves you were entitled to apply reverse charge. Keep evidence too: transport documents for goods; contracts and proof of business status for services.

How to check a French VAT number format

A French intra-community VAT number always follows the same structure: FR + 2 characters + 9 digits, for example FR12345678901. The two characters after FR are check digits (digits or letters), and the nine digits are the company's SIREN number.

Format alone is not enough: the number must be active and valid for the customer at the time of the transaction. Verify it free of charge in the EU's VIES (VAT Information Exchange System) before issuing a net invoice. If VIES says the number is invalid, you cannot apply autoliquidation — charge the TVA or ask the customer for a correct number. Record the verification result and date; it is your proof if the tax authorities ever ask.

What the French customer does: self-accounting on the CA3

When your French customer receives an autoliquidation invoice, they declare the transaction on their TVA return (the CA3, the standard French monthly or quarterly VAT return). In the same return they report:

The two lines normally cancel each other, making reverse charge cash-neutral for a fully taxable customer. For goods from another EU country, this appears as an intra-community acquisition; for services received from abroad, as "prestations de services intracommunautaires".

Worked example: €1,000 net invoice to a German VAT-registered client

Say you are a French freelance designer billing a Berlin agency (VAT-registered, valid DE number confirmed on VIES) for €1,000 of design work. This is a B2B service under article 259-1 du CGI: the place of supply is Germany, so French TVA does not apply.

The German client then self-accounts for German VAT (19%) on their own return — €190 output and €190 input, cancelling out. You declare the supply in your French return as an intra-EU service and on the European Sales List (DEB/DES) where applicable. You can sanity-check invoices like this with our France reverse charge VAT calculator.

France's mandatory B2B e-invoicing from September 2026

From 1 September 2026, every business established in France must be able to receive e-invoices in the approved structured formats (via Chorus Pro or a registered platform), and large and mid-sized companies must also issue them. Smaller companies follow with the issuance obligation from 1 September 2027.

Reverse-charge invoices are within scope: your "TVA non applicable, art. 259-1 du CGI – Autoliquidation" mentions must appear in the structured e-invoice data, not just on a PDF. If you invoice French business clients regularly, confirm with your accounting software that it supports the French e-invoicing formats and autoliquidation codes before the deadline.

FAQ

Should I charge 20% TVA to a French business client?

Yes — for a domestic sale to a French business, charge French TVA at the applicable rate (usually 20%). Only apply autoliquidation in the cases above: cross-border EU B2B services (art. 259-1), intra-EU goods (art. 262 ter), or the listed domestic reverse-charge situations. When in doubt, the default is to charge TVA.

What if my customer's VAT number is invalid or missing?

Do not apply reverse charge. Without a valid EU VAT number confirmed on VIES, the conditions for autoliquidation are not met, and you remain liable for the TVA. Either charge French TVA on the invoice or ask the customer to provide a valid number before you bill.

Do I need a French TVA registration to use autoliquidation?

For cross-border services and intra-EU supplies, no: reverse charge is precisely what lets you invoice without charging French TVA. But if you make other domestic taxable supplies in France (for example, selling to French consumers), you may need French TVA registration — typically via the one-stop shop (OSS) or a direct registration.

Is autoliquidation the same as a VAT exemption?

No. An exempt supply is not subject to TVA at all, whereas under autoliquidation the supply is taxable but the customer accounts for the tax. That is why your invoice must show both VAT numbers and the statutory mention: you are documenting a taxable transaction, not an exempt one.

How does a French customer report reverse charge on the CA3?

The customer declares the same TVA amount twice on the CA3: once as collected (output) tax and once as deductible (input) tax. Intra-EU acquisitions of goods have dedicated lines; services received from abroad are reported as intra-community services. Fully taxable businesses end up cash-neutral; partly exempt businesses recover only a portion.

Last updated: September 2026

This article is for information only and is not professional tax advice.