French VAT registration

What are the French VAT registration thresholds?

Resident businesses selling business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-customer (B2C) goods are required to register for VAT in France when they exceed the annual sales threshold of €85,000. For resident businesses selling B2B and B2C services, the threshold is €37,500 (decreasing to €25,000 from June 2025).

There is no VAT registration threshold for foreign (non-EU) businesses operating in France. They must register for French VAT as soon as they make a taxable sale in the country.

Ecommerce businesses based in other EU countries making cross-border sales into France (distance selling) must register for VAT if their total EU-wide sales exceed €10,000 per year, unless they opt for the One-Stop Shop (OSS) scheme.

What information is required to get a VAT registration number in France?

Businesses must provide the following information to the French tax office:

Certificate of incorporation from the business’s home country
Articles of association
VAT certificate from the business’s home country
Proof of business activity in France
Details of fiscal representative, if applicable
Name of company director and proof of ID

Where are French VAT registrations submitted?

French businesses must register for VAT through the Service des Impôts des Entreprises (SIE) — the local corporate tax office in France, via the official French tax authority.

Non-resident businesses making taxable sales in France must register through the Service des Impôts des Entreprises Étrangers (SIEE) — the foreign business tax service. Applications must be submitted online, or through a fiscal representative.

It can take up to eight weeks for submissions to be processed.

French VAT number

Once a VAT registration has been approved, a unique French VAT number is allocated to the business. All EU member states have a fixed format for their VAT numbers.