Electronic invoicing 2027 for building-trade artisans: quotes, subcontracting and progress invoices explained

In brief: The 2027 electronic invoicing reform concerns every building-trade artisan, but the deadline that applies to you depends on the size of your business. From 1 September 2026, you must be able to receive electronic invoices; the obligation to issue your own invoices in this format will apply from 1 September 2027 for SMEs, small businesses and micro-entreprises in the building trade. On a building site, this reform affects your quotes, deposit invoices, progress invoices ("situations de travaux") and your relationships with subcontractors. This guide details, item by item, what really changes in your practice and how to prepare without disrupting your organisation.

Do building-trade artisans really need to switch to electronic invoicing in 2027?

The answer is yes, but there's no need to rush. Electronic invoicing refers to the obligation to transmit invoices as structured data, via an Authorised Platform (Plateforme Agréée), rather than as a simple PDF, email or paper document. For a building-trade artisan, this reform doesn't replace your trade. It changes how your quotes turn into invoices, and how those invoices circulate between you, your clients and your subcontractors.

The timeline that concerns you

Two dates structure the reform, and they don't cover the same obligation.

Concretely, from 1 September 2026, your business must be able to receive an electronic invoice from a supplier or subcontractor. The obligation to issue your own invoices in this format applies to you, as an artisan classed as a small business or micro-entreprise, from 1 September 2027. This gap gives you time to choose a tool and adjust your habits, without rushing.

Who is really concerned in the building trade

Your business's legal status doesn't change your situation with regard to the reform. What matters is whether you're liable for VAT. The following are therefore concerned:

• Sole traders (EI) who invoice work with VAT
• EIRLs carrying out structural work, second-fix work or finishing
• SARLs and EURLs in the building trade, regardless of size
• Micro-entreprises under the VAT exemption scheme, for the receiving obligation from 2026

If you operate under the VAT exemption scheme, the rules specific to that status are detailed in our dedicated article on micro-entrepreneurs and electronic invoicing. For a standard artisan liable for VAT, there's no question about it: you're concerned, whether you install windows, cut tiles or run a structural-work team.

Why this reform changes your daily routine

Three things actually change. First, your software or invoicing method must produce a file in a recognised electronic format, no longer a simple PDF sent by email. Second, the nature of your invoice archiving changes: it must guarantee the integrity of the structured file, not just keep a paper copy in a binder. Finally, your exchanges with your professional clients and subcontractors go through an Authorised Platform, a technical intermediary responsible for transmitting invoices and reporting certain data to the authorities. For a typical job with a deposit, an interim progress invoice and a balance, this means several electronic invoices to be produced by the rules, not just one.

How do you electronically invoice a "situation de travaux" (progress invoice) in 2027?

This is often the fuzziest point for building-trade artisans, because a job is almost never invoiced in one go.

What is a progress invoice and why is it different

A progress invoice ("situation de travaux") is an interim invoice describing the actual progress of the job at a given date, generally expressed as a percentage of contract completion. Unlike a standard invoice, which settles a one-off service, the progress invoice is part of a series of documents linked to the same contract. A renovation job can therefore generate a deposit invoice, two or three interim progress invoices, then a final balance invoice. Each of these invoices will need to comply with the mandatory electronic format at the time it is issued.

Deposit invoices under electronic invoicing

The deposit invoice remains a document in its own right, with its own mandatory details: reference to the quote or contract, deposit amount, VAT rate applied. In electronic format, it must also carry the structured data expected by the Authorised Platform, such as your business's identifier and that of your professional client. The point to watch is what follows: every later invoice, progress or balance, must restate the deposits already collected, so that the final amount matches the contract price. A common mistake among artisans starting a progress invoice is forgetting to carry forward the cumulative total of deposits already invoiced. This omission complicates the accounting reconciliation at the end of the job and sometimes delays payment of the balance.

Retention money: how to document it correctly

Retention money ("retenue de garantie") is a sum withheld by the client from each progress invoice, intended to cover any defects noted on completion of the works. The percentage withheld is set in the contract, within the limits allowed by law. On the accounting side, this retention doesn't disappear: it remains owed by the client until the defects are cleared, and must appear distinctly on the progress or final invoice, with the net amount withheld and its expected release date. The Factur-X format, which combines a readable file with structured data, makes it possible to show this retention line unambiguously, just like the other items on the invoice.

The final settlement invoice

At the end of the job, a final invoice settles all the work carried out. It restates the total contract amount, deducts the deposits and progress invoices already billed, and shows the retention money still owed. This balance invoice, sometimes called the "final account" depending on industry practice, must also comply with the mandatory electronic format. Once issued, it is archived along with all the job's documents: quote, deposit invoices, progress invoices and correspondence with the client. Accounting records must be kept for 10 years from the close of the financial year, a rule that also applies to micro-entreprises.

Managing subcontracting under electronic invoicing

On a job involving several trades, the question is no longer just about invoicing your client. You also need to know who invoices what, and to whom.

Who issues the invoice: responsibilities of the main contractor and the subcontractor

Two setups exist on the ground. In the first, you are the main contractor: you invoice the end client for the whole job, including the part carried out by your subcontractor, who in turn invoices you for their own work. In the second, rarer in the trades, the subcontractor invoices the client directly. In both cases, each business remains responsible for issuing its own invoices in electronic format, as soon as it is concerned by the reform. The VAT scheme applicable to a subcontracting service may follow specific rules depending on the nature of the contract: this point is worth checking with your accountant before drawing up your invoices.

How to incorporate the subcontractor's invoices without duplicating them

When your subcontractor sends you their electronic invoice, it must be received and archived like any supplier invoice, without being manually re-entered into your own client invoicing. The classic mistake is re-entering the subcontractor's amount into the progress invoice sent to the client, creating a duplicate that's hard to spot in the accounts. Best practice is to treat the subcontractor's invoice as an expense, and invoice your client based on your own quote or contract, without showing the same amount twice in two different forms.

Mandatory details for legal traceability

For the chain to remain clear in case of an audit, each invoice must carry precise details: a clear reference to the contract or job concerned, full identification of the issuer and recipient, net and gross amounts, and the VAT rate applied. These details apply equally to your invoice to the end client and to your subcontractor's invoice. Compliance with the Factur-X format must be respected at every link in the chain, from the subcontractor to the main contractor, so that the job's traceability remains complete.

Do my current quotes remain valid?

Yes, without reservation. The electronic invoicing reform doesn't affect your quotes as such.

The real difference between a quote and an invoice

A quote is a commercial commitment freely negotiated between the parties, whereas an invoice is a tax document attesting to a completed and taxable transaction. This difference in nature explains why the two documents don't follow the same rules. The quote commits your word and your price; the invoice commits your VAT declaration.

Do I need to reformat my existing quotes?

Paper or standard PDF quotes are not subject to the electronic invoicing obligation. You can keep drawing up your quotes as you do today, with no legal obligation to change format before the corresponding invoice is even issued. That said, a clear and detailed quote later makes it easier to create the deposit invoices and progress invoices that follow from it, especially if your tool can directly turn an accepted quote into the first invoice.

Adopting the electronic format for new quotes

Nothing obliges you to, but some artisans choose to adopt digital quotes now, to prepare for the shift to electronic invoicing in 2027. The benefit is practical: a quote created in the same tool as your future invoices avoids re-entry and reduces discrepancies between the amount accepted by the client and the amount finally invoiced.

Choosing the tool suited to your organisation

The right tool isn't necessarily the most complete one—it's the one that fits how you work without wasting your time on site.

Which software to stay compliant without disrupting your process

For an artisan, the useful criteria are concrete: being able to create a quote and an invoice quickly, including from a job site, without re-entering data between the two documents; having reliable archiving of issued documents; and making sure the output format meets the reform's requirements. Quickote addresses part of this need: the app lets you create a professional quote in under 60 seconds and generate your invoices. For mechanics specific to the building trade, such as the precise detail of a multi-lot progress invoice or the contractual tracking of retention money, check that your current setup, spreadsheet or trade software, remains compatible with the invoicing tool you choose.

Factur-X compliance explained simply

Factur-X is a hybrid electronic invoice format that combines, in a single file, a PDF readable by the human eye and structured data usable by accounting software. It is not a certification: Factur-X is a file format, and no "Factur-X certification" exists as such. The regulatory status that matters is that of Authorised Platform, registered with the DGFiP (French tax authority), through which your invoices pass. Quickote generates your invoices in Factur-X format. The connection to an Authorised Platform, required for mandatory issuance from September 2027, is being finalised.

Where to start: a smooth transition

The safest method remains gradual. Start by testing the creation of electronic quotes and invoices on one or two jobs, alongside your current method. Then check that the archiving of the documents generated is accessible and readable several months later, not just at the time of issuance. Once this step is validated, switch over your entire invoicing, keeping your old quotes and invoices in their original format: nothing requires you to convert them retroactively.