Auto-entrepreneur invoice in France: mandatory details and an example
An auto-entrepreneur (a self-employed person under France’s micro-business regime) invoice looks like any other invoice, with two particular features: the « EI » mention next to your name and, as long as you’re under the franchise en base de TVA (the VAT exemption for small businesses), no VAT but the mention « TVA non applicable, art. 293 B du CGI » (VAT not applicable, article 293 B of the CGI). Here’s when you have to invoice, every mandatory detail, a complete example, numbering, the quote, correcting a mistake and the penalties.
The rules are those in force in 2026, checked on Entreprendre.Service-Public.fr and impots.gouv.fr on 30 September 2026.
When do you have to issue an invoice?
According to Service-Public, it all depends on your client.
- A business (company, association, public body): the invoice is always mandatory, whatever the amount.
- A private individual, for a service: a bill (note) is mandatory as soon as the service exceeds €25 incl. VAT. Below that, it’s optional, unless the client asks for one.
- A private individual, for the sale of goods: the invoice is mandatory only if the client asks for it, for a distance sale or for an exempt intra-EU delivery. Otherwise, a till receipt is enough, handed over only on request.
The invoice is issued as soon as the sale is made or the service is completed. It’s also what your tracking of turnover is based on: what you declare to the URSSAF (the body that collects social-security contributions) is, according to Service-Public, what you’ve received, not what you’ve invoiced. How to declare is explained in the article on the URSSAF declaration for auto-entrepreneurs.
Mandatory details on an auto-entrepreneur invoice
Service-Public lists the general details, whether the client is a private individual, a business or a public entity:
| Detail | What to write |
|---|---|
| Date of issue | The day you draw up the invoice |
| Invoice number | A unique number, in a chronological and continuous sequence |
| Date of the sale or service | The day of delivery or of completion of the service (or of payment of the deposit) |
| Your identity | First name and surname preceded or followed by « Entrepreneur individuel » or « EI » (sole proprietor), address, SIREN number (the nine-digit business number) |
| The client’s identity | Name or company name; for a private individual, name and address (unless they object); billing address if it’s different |
| Purchase order number | Only if the client has issued one |
| Description | Nature and reference of the products; for a service, the labour and the materials supplied |
| Detailed breakdown | Quantity, name, unit price excluding VAT of each product or service |
| Reductions | Discounts, rebates and refunds granted at the date of the sale |
| Total to pay | The total amount, with any costs (transport, packaging) |
| Payment date | The day payment is due, and the early-payment discount terms; with no discount: « Escompte pour paiement anticipé : néant » (early-payment discount: none) |
| Late-payment penalties | The rate that applies if payment is made after the agreed date |
| €40 fee | The fixed recovery fee (indemnité forfaitaire pour frais de recouvrement), for a business client |
| VAT mention | Under the franchise: « TVA non applicable, art. 293 B du CGI » |
Depending on your situation, other details are added:
- Craft activity: the details of your professional insurance, the contact details of the insurer or guarantor and the geographical coverage of the contract.
- Sale of certain goods to a private individual (household appliances, computers, phones, toys, furniture…): the existence and duration of the legal guarantee of conformity, of at least 2 years.
- Member of an approved association: « Membre d’une association agréée, le règlement par chèque et carte bancaire est accepté » (member of an approved association, payment by cheque and bank card accepted).
The « EI » mention isn’t a detail. It goes on all your business documents (invoices, quotes, website, adverts) and signals that you trade as a sole proprietorship (entreprise individuelle, EI).
The « TVA non applicable, art. 293 B du CGI » mention
As long as your turnover stays below the thresholds of the franchise en base, you don’t charge VAT. In return, as impots.gouv puts it, your “only obligation” regarding VAT is to write one of these two mentions on your invoices:
- « TVA non applicable, article 293 B du Code général des impôts (CGI) » (VAT not applicable, article 293 B of the general tax code, CGI);
- « TVA non applicable, article L. 223-3 du Code des impositions sur les biens et services (CIBS) » (VAT not applicable, article L. 223-3 of the code of taxes on goods and services, CIBS).
The second has existed since 1 September 2026, the date on which the VAT rules were moved into the CIBS, with no change of substance. The BOFiP (the tax administration’s official doctrine) specifies that references to the CGI remain possible on invoices until 31 December 2027. Your current mention, often shortened to « TVA non applicable, art. 293 B du CGI », therefore stays valid until then; after that, only the reference to the CIBS may appear on your invoices.
What this changes on your invoice:
- No VAT line: your price excluding VAT is the price your client pays.
- No intra-EU VAT number: under the franchise, you don’t have one for your transactions in France, and the BOFiP exempts your invoices from this detail. The cases where you need one (clients or suppliers in the European Union) are in the article on VAT for auto-entrepreneurs.
- Never VAT by mistake: if you show VAT on an invoice, you must pay it over simply because you invoiced it.
If you go over the franchise’s raised threshold (seuil majoré) during the year, VAT applies from the date you go over it. The mention then disappears from your invoices and VAT appears on them. The 2026 thresholds and the steps to take are in the article on VAT for auto-entrepreneurs.
Example of an auto-entrepreneur invoice
Here’s an invoice for services from a graphic designer under the micro-entreprise (France’s micro-business regime), addressed to a company. The names and numbers are fictitious.
| On the invoice | Example |
|---|---|
| Issuer | Camille Martin EI, 12 rue des Lilas, 69003 Lyon, SIREN 000 000 000 |
| Client | Atelier Dupont SARL, 4 place Bellecour, 69002 Lyon, SIREN 000 000 001 |
| Number | F2026-018 |
| Date of issue | 30 September 2026 |
| Date of the service | Service completed on 26 September 2026 |
| Description | Logo design: 1 flat fee at €450.00; adaptation for social media: 3 hours at €50.00 |
| Total to pay | €600.00 |
| VAT | TVA non applicable, art. 293 B du CGI |
| Due date | Payment within 30 days, on 30 October 2026; escompte pour paiement anticipé : néant (early-payment discount: none) |
| Late payment | Pénalités de retard au taux de trois fois le taux d’intérêt légal ; indemnité forfaitaire pour frais de recouvrement de 40 € (late-payment penalties at three times the statutory interest rate; €40 fixed recovery fee) |
Add your IBAN and the payment method you expect too. It isn’t a mandatory detail, but it’s what gets an invoice paid on time.
How to number your invoices
Every invoice carries a unique number, taken from a chronological and continuous sequence: no gaps, no duplicates, no going backwards. You can start a series each year, such as F2026-001, F2026-002.
An issued invoice isn’t deleted and its number isn’t reused. If you’ve made a mistake, the correction goes through a new document, also numbered (see below).
The auto-entrepreneur’s quote
Service-Public states that a quote isn’t mandatory for every activity, but it is for some, in particular:
- building and home equipment work and repairs: masonry, plumbing, electrical work, joinery, locksmithing, painting, roofing, insulation, chimney sweeping, and more besides;
- removals, for which the quote comes with the general terms and conditions of the contract.
For this work and these repairs, the quote states the date, your name and address, the client’s name, the place where the work is carried out, the exact nature of the work, the detailed breakdown in quantities and prices, the hourly labour rate, any travel costs, the total amount to pay, how long the offer is valid and whether the quote is free or charged for. Without a quote when one was mandatory, a sole proprietor risks an administrative fine of up to €3,000.
The quote binds you as soon as the client accepts it. The client, for their part, is bound by signing it, preceded by « bon pour accord » or « bon pour travaux » (approved, approved for work). Specify whether they’re paying a deposit, an acompte (the commitment becomes firm on both sides), or earnest money, arrhes (either side can back out, the client by forfeiting the arrhes, you by paying back double). If nothing is specified, the sum paid counts as arrhes.
Even when it isn’t mandatory, a signed quote is your best proof of what was agreed. Put the « EI » mention on it and, under the franchise, « TVA non applicable, art. 293 B du CGI », as on your invoice.
Correcting an invoice: corrective invoice and credit note
An issued invoice can no longer be changed. What to do depends on when you spot the mistake:
| When | What you do |
|---|---|
| Before issue | You correct or delete the draft freely |
| After issue, before payment | You issue a corrective invoice (facture rectificative), with a new number and the mention « annule et remplace la facture n° … » (cancels and replaces invoice no. …) |
| After payment | You issue a credit note (facture d’avoir), with its own number, to cancel all or part of the invoice |
The credit note is an accounting document in its own right. It follows the same numbering rules as your invoices: you can use the same series or a separate one, for example A2026-001.
Never redo an invoice under the same number, or under a new number without cancelling the old one. Two versions of the same sale create an inconsistency between your books and your client’s, and can be penalised in an audit.
Payment terms and late-payment penalties
According to Service-Public, between businesses, the payment term is in principle 30 days after delivery or completion of the service. You and your client can agree a longer term, up to 60 days after the invoice date, or 45 days end of month if the contract provides for it.
If payment is late, penalties run without any reminder, from the day after the due date. Their rate can’t be lower than three times the statutory interest rate. On top of that, for each invoice paid late, comes the €40 fixed fee for recovery costs, due only once per invoice.
How long to keep your invoices
economie.gouv.fr explains that the invoices you issue and receive are kept for 10 years, like all accounting documents. File them with your receipts book (livre des recettes) and, if you sell goods, your purchases register: these are what the authorities will ask you for. They’re covered in detail in the article on the auto-entrepreneur receipts book.
Penalties for a non-compliant invoice
| Failure | Penalty |
|---|---|
| A missing or incorrect detail | Fine of €15 per omission or inaccuracy, capped at 25% of the invoice amount |
| No invoice when one was mandatory | Criminal fine of up to €75,000 for a sole proprietor, €150,000 for a repeat offence within 2 years |
| An invoice for a fictitious sale or service | Fine equal to 50% of the invoice amount |
What changes with the e-invoice
From 1 September 2027, according to the authorities’ FAQ, your invoices to businesses established in France will have to be electronic and go through a plateforme agréée (an approved e-invoicing platform): a PDF sent by email will no longer be enough. Your details stay the same, and four are added, including your client’s SIREN number. For private individuals, nothing changes on the invoice itself. The timetable and choosing a platform are in the article on e-invoicing for the auto-entrepreneur.
A clear, complete, numbered invoice means a client who pays without asking questions and an audit with no surprises.
💜💙 Your BravoLisa Team
This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute professional tax, legal, or accounting advice. Every situation is different — consult a qualified professional (tax adviser, accountant, or lawyer) for advice specific to your circumstances. BravoLisa does not accept liability for decisions made based on this information.
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