Mandatory information on a French invoice

An invoice is a legal document. In France it must carry a precise set of information, and each omission is punishable by a fine of 15 euros, capped at a quarter of the invoice amount.

Start with identity. The issuer states its company name, address, legal form, registration number (SIRET) and, when registered for VAT, its intra-community VAT number. The client's name and address follow.

Then come the identifiers of the document itself: a unique sequential number, the issue date, and the date the goods were delivered or the service completed when it differs.

The body lists each line with its description, quantity and unit price excluding tax, followed by the net total, the VAT rate and amount, and the gross total. A business exempt from VAT writes the exemption wording instead.

Finally, payment terms: due date, late-payment interest rate and the fixed 40-euro recovery indemnity owed by professional clients. These last two are mandatory between businesses and are the ones most often forgotten.