{"id":2115986,"date":"2026-09-03T22:03:40","date_gmt":"2026-09-03T20:03:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kohenavocats.fr\/2026\/09\/03\/french-vat-registration-refused-delayed-foreign-company\/"},"modified":"2026-09-03T22:03:40","modified_gmt":"2026-09-03T20:03:40","slug":"french-vat-registration-refused-delayed-foreign-company","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kohenavocats.fr\/en\/2026\/09\/03\/french-vat-registration-refused-delayed-foreign-company\/","title":{"rendered":"French VAT Registration Refused or Delayed: What a Foreign Company Should Do Before Invoicing"},"content":{"rendered":"

A foreign company can have French customers, send people or goods to France, and face a practical emergency when its French VAT number has not arrived. The problem is often described as a refused or delayed VAT registration. It is not solved by placing a French-looking number on an invoice. The company must first decide whether France requires identification, whether the customer must apply the reverse charge, whether a French fixed establishment changes the analysis, and which evidence the French tax service expects. A mistake can create unpaid VAT, an invalid invoice, a blocked refund or a permanent-establishment dispute.<\/p>\n

This guide is for foreign founders and companies selling into France, including businesses from the European Union, the United Kingdom and other countries. It focuses on the narrow situation in which the company must invoice or prepare its first French transaction while its French VAT registration is pending or has been rejected. It does not replace a transaction-by-transaction place-of-supply analysis. Goods, services, stock, imports, construction work, digital services and sales to consumers can lead to different outcomes.<\/p>\n

The analysis is particularly important on 3 September 2026 because French VAT provisions are moving from familiar provisions of the Code g\u00e9n\u00e9ral des imp\u00f4ts<\/em> (CGI, General Tax Code) into the Code des impositions sur les biens et services<\/em> (CIBS, Code of Taxes on Goods and Services). The date of the taxable event and the version of the text must therefore be recorded. The operational route remains the French tax administration\u2019s foreign-company registration process, but the legal references used in a response should match the relevant period.<\/p>\n

I. Why is a French VAT number needed before a foreign company invoices France?<\/h2>\n

A. When is French VAT registration required, and when does reverse charge apply?<\/h3>\n

The first question is not whether the founder has incorporated a French subsidiary. It is whether the foreign company carries out, receives or facilitates an operation for which French VAT identification is required. The official impots.gouv.fr registration guide for VAT<\/a> starts with foreign businesses that must register because they carry out operations requiring a French VAT return or customs identification. Its decision depends on the operation, the customer, the place of supply, the company\u2019s establishment and the person legally liable for the tax.<\/p>\n

For a business-to-business transaction, or B2B transaction, the customer is acting as a business. For a business-to-consumer transaction, or B2C transaction, the customer is a consumer or another person who is not acting as a taxable business. The distinction is not cosmetic. A cross-border B2B service may be subject to reverse charge, while a service supplied to a consumer may require the supplier to collect VAT in the customer\u2019s country. A shipment from a French warehouse can create a French VAT obligation even when the company\u2019s registered office remains abroad.<\/p>\n

For periods governed by the legacy CGI wording, Article 283 states the basic allocation rule: La taxe sur la valeur ajout\u00e9e doit \u00eatre acquitt\u00e9e par les personnes qui r\u00e9alisent les op\u00e9rations imposables<\/q><\/a>. The same provision contains important exceptions. In particular, when a foreign-established supplier makes certain supplies or services to a taxable customer identified for French VAT, the customer may be liable for the French VAT through the reverse charge. The tax administration\u2019s official page should be read with the statutory place-of-supply provisions and the exact facts of the transaction.<\/p>\n

From 1 September 2026, the new CIBS structure must also be considered. Article L. 215-1 provides, in the new code, that the entity carrying out a taxable operation is generally liable. Article L. 215-2 provides a derogation in which the recipient is liable for a tax supplement in the circumstances defined by the code. The current CIBS Article L. 215-1<\/a> and CIBS Article L. 215-2<\/a> are therefore useful references for a transaction arising after the recodification date, while the old CGI articles remain relevant to earlier chargeable events and to transition analysis.<\/p>\n

A foreign company should test at least the following situations before treating a missing VAT number as a registration failure:<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Transaction pattern<\/th>\nInitial question<\/th>\nTypical consequence<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Foreign company supplies a French VAT-identified business with a qualifying cross-border service<\/td>\nIs the French customer the person liable for VAT?<\/td>\nReverse charge may apply, so French VAT may not be charged by the foreign supplier. The invoice still needs the correct wording and identifiers.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Foreign company sells to a French consumer<\/td>\nIs France the place of taxation and does a special scheme apply?<\/td>\nThe supplier may need French identification, or an applicable European One Stop Shop scheme. Do not assume B2B reverse charge.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Goods are stored in France before local sale<\/td>\nWhere are the goods when the sale or transfer occurs?<\/td>\nStock, domestic sales, transfers and fulfilment arrangements can require French registration even if the contracting entity is abroad.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Foreign company imports goods into France<\/td>\nWho is importer of record and who pays import VAT?<\/td>\nCustoms identification, import arrangements and VAT deduction must be checked separately from the VAT number request.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Foreign company performs work on French property or supplies locally installed equipment<\/td>\nDo special place-of-supply or customer-liability rules apply?<\/td>\nThe operation may fall outside the ordinary B2B service rule and require French VAT reporting.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Foreign company claims a French VAT refund<\/td>\nDoes the refund procedure require a French registration, a non-established refund route or a filing history?<\/td>\nA bank account, proof of taxable activity and supporting invoices may be requested even when the company has no subsidiary.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

The reverse charge is not a universal permission to invoice without a French VAT number. It may apply only if the customer has the required status, the operation is one of the operations covered by the rule, and the supplier is genuinely not established in France for that operation. If the French customer has no valid VAT identification, or if the transaction is a domestic sale from French stock, the result may change. The company should obtain the customer\u2019s legal name, address and VAT identification and verify the number through the VAT Information Exchange System<\/em>, or VIES, where the transaction is intra-European.<\/p>\n

A customer\u2019s request for \u201ca French VAT number\u201d is also not conclusive. Procurement systems often require one field even where reverse charge applies. The company should give the customer a short written explanation identifying the legal basis of the invoice, the country of establishment, the customer\u2019s VAT number, the place of supply and the reason no French VAT is charged. If the customer insists that the foreign company must register, request the precise transaction rule rather than submitting a generic application that does not match the facts.<\/p>\n

Conversely, a registration request should not be abandoned because the first customer says that it will reverse-charge. A foreign business may have another French obligation: a second customer, a French warehouse, an installation project, a local employee, an import, a refund claim or sales to consumers. The registration assessment must cover the expected twelve-month business model, not only the first purchase order.<\/p>\n

The official French registration page distinguishes operations requiring VAT returns from operations for which the French customer is liable. It also explains that a foreign company may need to register through the French business-formalities portal. That is why the practical file should contain a transaction map. List the customer type, goods or service, contractual supplier, delivery or performance location, movement of goods, invoice date, payment flow, customer VAT number and intended reporting line for each planned operation.<\/p>\n

B. How do the French VAT number, SIREN, Kbis and permanent establishment differ?<\/h3>\n

A French VAT number is a tax identification number. It is not proof that a French subsidiary exists and it is not, by itself, proof that the company has a French permanent establishment. The official identification-number guidance from the French tax administration<\/a> describes the French VAT number as a prefix, a two-digit key and the company\u2019s SIREN. SIREN means the nine-digit French national business identifier. SIRET means the fourteen-digit identifier associated with an establishment or administrative location. A SIREN or SIRET should never be reformatted and presented as a VAT number.<\/p>\n

The Registre national des entreprises<\/em>, or RNE, is the National Business Register. The RCS, or Registre du commerce et des soci\u00e9t\u00e9s<\/em>, is the Trade and Companies Register for commercial companies. A Kbis is the official extract traditionally used to evidence a company\u2019s registration in the RCS. The greffe<\/em> is the clerk\u2019s office of the relevant commercial court. BODACC, the Bulletin officiel des annonces civiles et commerciales<\/em>, is the official publication bulletin for certain business notices. These words appear in company-formation correspondence, but a foreign company can be registered for French VAT without having the same status as a French SAS or SARL, and a VAT number does not manufacture a Kbis.<\/p>\n

INPI means the Institut national de la propri\u00e9t\u00e9 industrielle<\/em>. It operates the French one-stop formalities system, known as the Guichet unique<\/em>. A foreign company\u2019s French business formalities may generate a French SIREN or an establishment record, but the reason for the registration must be stated accurately. The INPI identity guidance<\/a> explains that a foreign company keeps its home-country identifier while a French SIREN can be assigned for activities carried out in France. It does not turn an overseas company into a French company.<\/p>\n

SIE means Service des imp\u00f4ts des entreprises<\/em>, the business tax department. SIEE means Service des imp\u00f4ts des entreprises \u00e9trang\u00e8res<\/em>, the foreign-business tax department. DINR means Direction des imp\u00f4ts des non-r\u00e9sidents<\/em>, the Directorate for Non-Resident Taxation. The competent office depends on the company\u2019s situation and the operation. A request sent to a local office that has no authority over a non-established foreign company can create a delay that looks like a substantive refusal.<\/p>\n

The number also does not decide the permanent-establishment question. The Court of cassation\u2019s commercial chamber, in its decision of 16 October 2019, no. 17-28.122, examined the relationship between economic activity, VAT and the French location of a foreign company. The official decision no. 17-28.122<\/a> records the principle that le fait pour un assujetti de disposer d’un num\u00e9ro d’identification \u00e0 la TVA en France n’est pas suffisant en soi<\/q> to establish a French permanent establishment. The company must therefore keep separate files for VAT identification, corporate-tax exposure and corporate registration.<\/p>\n

For VAT, the question is whether the company has an establishment from which the relevant supply is made or received. The Conseil d\u2019\u00c9tat, France\u2019s supreme administrative court, explained in its decision of 15 June 2023, no. 465719, that an establishment must have un degr\u00e9 suffisant de permanence et une structure apte, du point de vue de l’\u00e9quipement humain et technique<\/q> to make the services possible autonomously. The official Conseil d\u2019\u00c9tat decision no. 465719<\/a> is not a checklist for every business, but it shows why a warehouse, local staff, equipment, authority and operational autonomy need to be documented.<\/p>\n

A mailbox, a registered-office service or a French VAT number does not automatically create a fixed establishment. The opposite is also true: calling the French presence \u201conly a sales test\u201d does not remove the risk if the company has local people, equipment and decision-making. Ask who negotiates contracts, who controls stock, where the service is technically delivered, where customer instructions are handled, who can commit the company and whether the French operation can function with a meaningful degree of autonomy.<\/p>\n

The legal references changed on 1 September 2026. Article 9 of Ordinance no. 2025-1247 of 17 December 2025<\/a> moves the VAT base and assessment rules into the CIBS. The new CIBS Article L. 215-26<\/a> addresses information about the beginning, end and nature of an activity, while the new CIBS Article L. 215-27<\/a> addresses the identification number. A response written after the transition should state which version it applies and should not copy an old CGI reference without checking the date.<\/p>\n

The distinction matters commercially. A bank may ask for a Kbis before opening an account; a customer may ask for a VAT number before approving a supplier; the tax service may ask for proof of foreign incorporation; and a customs broker may request another identifier. Give each party the correct document. If the business is still choosing between a French subsidiary, a branch and direct cross-border sales, the French company-formation and corporate-formalities service page<\/a> can be used for that separate structural decision. VAT registration should not be used as a substitute for choosing the correct French vehicle.<\/p>\n

II. What should a foreign company do when VAT registration is refused or delayed?<\/h2>\n

A. How should the company build the registration file and protect the first invoice?<\/h3>\n

A pending application should be treated as a controlled legal and accounting status, not as permission to invent a number or to stop gathering evidence. Start by saving the original submission, the date, the portal reference, the tax office, the company\u2019s selected activity and every document uploaded. Note whether the application was made through the business-formalities portal, by the foreign-company service or through a secure message to the tax administration. A later reviewer must be able to see what the administration actually received.<\/p>\n

The French tax administration\u2019s foreign-business registration guidance<\/a> identifies the practical information expected for a non-established company. The EE0<\/em> is the French form used in the relevant foreign-company registration process; \u201cCerfa\u201d is the French administrative-form numbering system. The official EE0 form, Cerfa no. 15928*01<\/a>, should be completed consistently with the company\u2019s constitutional documents and transaction map. A form submitted with a different legal name, an unexplained French address or a contradictory activity description is likely to generate questions.<\/p>\n

The core evidence pack should normally be assembled in this order:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. A recent extract from the foreign commercial or companies register showing the legal name, registration number, registered office, directors and current status.<\/li>\n
  2. The articles of association or equivalent constitutional document, together with a clear French translation when the administration requires one. A translation should preserve legal names, dates, share information and the powers of the signatory.<\/li>\n
  3. A certificate of VAT identification in the home country, and VIES evidence where the company is established in the European Union and the transaction is intra-European.<\/li>\n
  4. The director\u2019s identification and authority to act, plus a signed power of attorney if a French tax representative, accountant or other agent submits the application.<\/li>\n
  5. A short business memorandum describing the planned French customers, goods or services, locations, delivery terms, stock, imports, subcontractors, expected turnover and first invoice date.<\/li>\n
  6. Contracts, purchase orders, draft invoices, logistics documents or service statements that show why France is involved and which party is expected to account for VAT.<\/li>\n
  7. Evidence of the registered office and any French premises, warehouse, personnel or equipment, with a written explanation where the company has no French establishment.<\/li>\n
  8. Bank details suitable for French tax payments or a VAT-credit refund. SEPA means the Single Euro Payments Area; a SEPA-capable account can matter for payments and refunds, but it is not proof of a French subsidiary.<\/li>\n
  9. Any import, customs, construction, digital-service or consumer-sales documents that change the ordinary B2B place-of-supply analysis.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The administration is entitled to test whether the file describes a real business. It may ask why a company with no French establishment needs a French VAT number, why a customer\u2019s invoice instruction conflicts with the reverse charge, or why the expected French turnover is unrelated to the declared activity. Answer those questions with a transaction diagram and documents rather than with a generic statement that the group \u201cdoes business in France\u201d.<\/p>\n

    For companies established in the European Union, and for companies established in countries covered by the relevant mutual-assistance arrangements, a French tax representative is not necessarily required. The official impots.gouv.fr guidance lists the competent foreign-business service and the route for registration. For a company established in a country outside the applicable list, a French tax representative may be required. The current and transition wording can be checked against CIBS Article L. 152-2<\/a> and the legacy CGI Article 289 A provisions on a French tax representative<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    A representative is not simply a forwarding address. Under the pre-existing CIBS representative provisions, Article L. 152-5 states: Le repr\u00e9sentant fiscal est tenu \u00e0 l’ensemble des obligations s’imposant au redevable<\/q><\/a>. The representative\u2019s role, authority, fees, access to records and responsibility for returns and payments should be set out in a written mandate. The company should not describe a limited administrative agent as a representative with full tax liability, and it should not appoint a representative who cannot actually access the records needed for a VAT audit.<\/p>\n

    If the application is delayed, send a focused follow-up rather than a second inconsistent application. State the application reference, the date filed, the legal name, the foreign registration number, the proposed French VAT operations, the first invoice date and the missing answer. Ask whether the file is complete, which document is missing, whether the company is directed to the SIEE, and whether the administration considers the customer liable through reverse charge. Use the secure business mailbox where possible and retain the acknowledgement.<\/p>\n

    The Guichet unique legal-framework page<\/a> and the official supporting-document guidance<\/a> also matter when the VAT application is connected to a business-formalities filing. The portal\u2019s file rules, PDF requirements, document size limits and mandate requirements are practical causes of rejection. A tax officer cannot assess the company\u2019s VAT position if the commercial-register extract is unreadable, expired, in the wrong name or uploaded in a format that the portal cannot process.<\/p>\n

    The first invoice should be placed in one of three controlled categories:<\/p>\n