VAT and foreign clients: the sole trader's guide to invoicing outside France

Billing abroad? The basics to know

In France, as long as your turnover remains below the exemption thresholds, you do not charge VAT to your customers. For service provisions, these thresholds are set at €37,500 (basic threshold) and €41,250 (increased threshold) for the year 2026. For the sale of goods, they amount to €85,000 and €93,500, also for 2026.

This mechanism protects your turnover generated in France. But as soon as a customer is located abroad, a different logic applies. VAT is then determined according to the place where the customer is established, and not according to your own tax status. This is where intra-community VAT comes in, a regime specific to exchanges with other European Union countries.

What international invoicing changes for a sole trader

Staying below the exemption thresholds in France does not exempt you from specific export rules. To sell a service to a professional client established in another EU country, you generally need to request an intra-community VAT number, even if you never charge VAT to your French clients. This number serves to prove that the sale is exempt in France and taxed in the client's country, according to its own rules.

There are therefore two parallel logics. The first concerns your domestic turnover, capped by the exemption thresholds. The second concerns your international sales, governed by territoriality rules independent of these thresholds. A sole trader can very well remain non-liable for VAT in France throughout their career, while scrupulously applying export exemption rules.

How to apply the correct VAT rate according to the client's location?

Three situations occur most often: the professional client in the EU, the client outside the EU, and the case where the service is physically performed in the client's country. Each obeys its own rule.

Invoicing without VAT in the European Union (EU)

The intra-community VAT number is a unique identifier issued by the tax administration to any business, including a sole proprietorship, for its transactions with other European Union countries. When you invoice a service to a professional client established in the EU and identified for VAT, you do not apply French VAT. It is the client who declares and pays the tax in their own country, according to a mechanism called reverse charge.

Two conditions must be met. The client must be a professional, not a private individual. And you must be able to verify their VAT number, valid at the time of sale. Without this number, there is no proof that your interlocutor is acting as a professional in their country. In this case, prudence dictates applying French VAT, or verifying the client's actual status beforehand by other means.

Invoicing outside the EU: automatic zero VAT

For a client located outside the European Union, whether it's a service or a physical good, the sale is qualified as an export. No French VAT applies, regardless of the client's status, professional or private individual. The invoice mentions a zero VAT rate, with the clarification that it is an export outside the EU.

For a sole trader, this case remains the simplest to manage daily. It requires neither an intra-community VAT number nor specific verification of the client's status. It is sufficient to be able to demonstrate, if necessary, that the client is indeed established outside the European Union and that the service or good was actually delivered to them at that location.

Special cases: service performed in the client's country

Certain services fall outside the general rule of the client's place of establishment. In-person training, an event, an intervention related to real estate located abroad: in these cases, VAT is due where the service is materially performed, and not according to the client's usual address. A consultant leading a seminar in Brussels, for example, may be subject to different rules than those applicable to a consulting mission carried out entirely remotely from France. Before invoicing this type of service, it is better to check the territoriality rule that specifically applies to their activity.

Do you need to register for VAT in other countries?

Registering for VAT abroad remains, for the vast majority of sole traders, an optional step rather than a systematic obligation.

If you are VAT exempt in France

When you do not charge VAT to your French clients, you generally have no obligation to register in another country for your occasional sales to professional clients. Intra-community exemption or export outside the EU are sufficient to cover most situations. Local registration is generally only of interest for a recurring and significant activity in a given country, for example, a stock of goods stored on site or a high volume of sales to private individuals.

Thresholds and legal obligations in the EU

A European threshold exists for distance sales of goods to private individuals in the EU. Beyond this, registration in each country concerned becomes mandatory, unless opting for the One Stop Shop (OSS), which centralizes declaration and payment from France. For a sole trader who mainly sells services to professionals, this question rarely arises: the reverse charge rule is sufficient to handle the majority of sales.

Outside the EU: local tax declaration if necessary

For a client outside the EU, a local tax declaration only becomes necessary if your activity takes a lasting form there, for example, a commercial presence on site. For an occasional service invoiced from France, this scenario remains rare. In case of doubt, the safest approach is to consult the official website of the tax administration of the country concerned, or to contact an accountant accustomed to international cases.

How to declare your sales abroad to the French administration?

Invoicing without VAT does not exempt you from declaring these sales. The DGFiP and the customs administration expect a precise record of each intra-community or export operation.

VAT declaration: intra-community sales

Sales of services to professional clients in the EU are declared via a summary statement submitted to the administration. This declaration lists each client, their VAT number, and the invoiced amount. It differs depending on whether it is a sale of goods or a provision of services, both falling under distinct forms. This declaration remains independent of your situation regarding the exemption thresholds in France.

VAT declaration: sales outside the EU and exports

Sales outside the EU are not covered by this intra-community summary statement. They appear in your accounting as exports, with corresponding invoices and proof of delivery. In case of an audit, these documents justify the absence of VAT charged, much more than the simple mention on the quote or invoice.

Income declared to taxes: no difference

Whether your sales are made in France, in the EU, or outside the EU, the overall turnover is declared in the same way to Urssaf and the tax authorities. No geographical breakdown is requested at this level. Invoicing abroad does not create a risk of double taxation for a sole trader: income is declared only once, in France, according to the usual rules for micro-enterprises.

What proof should be kept to justify a sale abroad?

A VAT exemption is not decreed, it is proven. Without sufficient documents, the administration can reclassify the sale and claim the corresponding VAT.

Proof of delivery or service execution

Systematically keep the client's full address, the date of the service, and a document attesting to its execution or delivery: signed quote, purchase order, email exchange confirming the mission, or completion certificate. For a physical good, add the transport document that proves the goods have left French territory.

For clients in the EU: the VAT number

Systematically verify your client's VAT number before issuing an exempt invoice, via the European Commission's VIES system. Keep a screenshot or proof of this verification, with the date of the check. The logic is simple: a valid number at the time of sale certifies that your client is indeed a professional identified in the EU, which justifies the exemption.

Mandatory retention period

Invoices and supporting documents must be kept for 10 years from the end of the relevant financial year. This period also applies to sole traders, regardless of their VAT regime. Classify these documents by year and by client, in a backed-up digital space: this is often what is most lacking in case of an audit, long after the sale itself.

Special supporting documents for physical goods

For the shipment of goods, add the export invoice, customs slips if applicable, and any proof of border crossing: carrier tracking number, acknowledgment of receipt, or customs declaration. These documents complement the invoice and strengthen proof of export in case of verification.

Common errors and how to avoid them

Certain errors regularly occur among sole traders who are new to international business.

Applying VAT when it should have been exempt

In many cases, a sole trader starting to export instinctively applies French VAT to their first quote for a German or Belgian professional client, before correcting it once the client's VAT number is verified. This error is simply corrected: a credit note cancels the VAT wrongly charged, and a new, compliant invoice replaces it. It is better to verify the client's status before issuing the first invoice, rather than after.

Not keeping enough proof

Without proof of destination or delivery, the administration can reclassify a sale as a domestic sale and claim the corresponding VAT. If the failure is deemed deliberate, the surcharge can reach 40%, increased to 80% in case of fraudulent maneuvers or undeclared activity. A good faith error, spontaneously corrected as soon as it is identified, falls under a completely different logic: simple regularization. Hence the importance of documenting each sale from its issuance, rather than reconstructing a file years later.

Confusing service and good for intra-EU sales

The rules are not identical depending on the nature of the sale. A consulting service follows the general rule of reverse charge to a professional client. Software sold by download or an online subscription, however, may fall under a specific regime for electronic services, with VAT due in the country of the end customer. Before invoicing, it is better to precisely qualify what is being sold: a good, a classic service, or an electronic service, as each follows its own rule.

Simplify management with Quickote

Invoicing abroad multiplies the mentions not to forget: client status, sales destination, reason for exemption. Quickote allows you to create quotes and invoices by indicating these elements, which leaves an exploitable trace when preparing your declarations. Quickote génère vos factures au format Factur-X. Le raccordement à une Plateforme Agréée, nécessaire à l'émission obligatoire de septembre 2027, est en cours de finalisation.

In summary

The VAT on a sale abroad depends on the country and the status of your client, not on your exemption thresholds in France. In the EU, an identified professional client allows for an invoice without VAT, thanks to the reverse charge. Outside the EU, export applies with a zero VAT rate. Systematically keep proof of destination and delivery for 10 years, and verify the VAT number of your European clients before each exempt invoice. In case of doubt about a specific country or situation, official administration documentation remains the reference to consult.