France Doubles Down on Audit Trails: VAT Record Retention Extended to 10 Years

Summary

• Law No. 2026-534 of 25 June 2026 (anti-fraud law), Article 36, amends Article L.102 B of the Tax Procedures Code, lengthening the retention period for tax records—including VAT invoices and audit evidence—from six to ten years. [vatcalc.com], [legifrance.gouv.fr]
• The change applies to documents whose existing retention period expires after 1 January 2027, giving it a retrospective practical reach over records created in earlier years. [vatcalc.com], [entreprend…ic.gouv.fr]
• It lands alongside France’s mandatory B2B e-invoicing (receiving from 1 Sept 2026; large/mid issuers from the same date, SMEs from 1 Sept 2027), so archives must keep invoice data, formats and status readable for a full decade. [vatcalc.com], [vatfaqs.com]

Article

France has extended the statutory retention period for tax records from six to ten years, aligning it with the administration’s extended audit powers and its incoming e-invoicing regime. The change stems from Article 36 of Law No. 2026-534 of 25 June 2026 on combating social and tax fraud, which amends Article L.102 B of the Livre des procédures fiscales. The measure applies broadly to books, registers, accounting records and supporting documents likely to be requested in a tax audit—sales and purchase invoices, VAT-deduction evidence, and documentation supporting the authenticity, integrity and legibility of invoices—and electronic records must remain available electronically throughout. Crucially, it applies to documents whose former six-year period had not yet expired by 1 January 2027, so businesses cannot assume it affects only future invoices. Coming as France mandates B2B e-invoicing (all businesses able to receive from 1 September 2026, large and mid-sized enterprises issuing from that date and SMEs from 1 September 2027), the reform means ERP systems and archives must preserve original invoice data, formats, status information and audit evidence for the full ten years.

Sources

• vatcalc
• Légifrance
• Service-Public Entreprendre

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