E-Invoicing, E-Reporting & Invoice Digitization

Althéa’s objective is to support companies in their transition to e-invoicing/e-reporting and e-compliance ou electronic regulatory compliance to improve the efficiency of their supplier and customer invoice processing.

Anticipate new regulations and boost your efficiency

Following the e-invoicing reform, companies now need to anticipate new obligations and their impacts while improving the efficiency of their processes and IT systems for companies

Challenges and benefits of the electronic invoicing reform

The electronic invoicing reform is an opportunity to address numerous challenges for companies seeking to:

• Reduce costs, particularly those related to managing and processing paper invoices, such as printing, postal, and storage expenses
  
  
• Improve process efficiency by accelerating invoice and payment processing times and reducing delays and human errors. Increase staff productivity through new, more efficient solutions.
  
  
• Reduce low-value manual tasks by introducing automated processes for receiving, entering, matching, and validating supplier invoices. Automate customer invoice distribution processes.
  
  
• Improve traceability and transparency by enabling easier tracking of invoices throughout their lifecycle and ensuring better compliance with internal policies and external regulations.
  
  
• Reduce the risk of fraud and errors by implementing more rigorous security controls, such as electronic signature validation and restricted access to sensitive data.
  
  
• Contribute to reducing your carbon footprint by eliminating the need for paper and reducing travel related to handling physical documents.

Support Assignments for Compliance and Process Efficiency

To help our clients comply with the electronic invoicing reform and improve invoice processing processes, here are some examples of missions we carry out in France and internationally:

1. Strategic roadmap

• Definition of the vision, objectives, and priorities around invoice processing processes (customer & supplier) and RFE compliance
• Implementation of roadmaps on invoice processing challenges (customer & supplier) and RFE compliance

2. Audit and assessment of current processes

• In-depth audit of invoice processing processes (customer & supplier)
• Identification of inefficiencies, gaps, and friction points (business and user) that may hinder productivity and compliance
• Gap analysis with RFE, identification of use cases and data structure analysis, design of compliance initiatives

4. Selection support

• Support in solution selection: drafting specifications and response grids, managing the tender process, and providing recommendations

5. Project Management Assistance

• Project management
• Assistance during target process design and help collect the necessary configuration data
• Facilitation of the solution testing phase
• Facilitation of technical initiatives for interfaces and/or data migration

6. Change management and operational maintenance

• Implementation of user and administrator documentation
• Platform usage training: end users, key users
• Platform administration training
• Support

Our strategic approach focuses on helping organizations become more efficient, agile and aligned with market best practices closely aligned with market best practices.

Our References

For a French investment bank

4,000 employees

For the finance department of a French investment bank, deployment of a supplier invoice cycle digitization solution (P2P).

Deliverables:

• Detailed audit of all processes
• Interviews with key stakeholders (administrators, management, end users, assistants)
• Identification of main pain points and improvement areas
• Application mapping
• Drafting of a recommendation document and roadmap
• Benchmark of solutions considered for the tender
• Drafting of specifications for the tender
• Change management with business teams

For a major French retail player

45,000 employees

For the finance department of a leading French retail company, deployment of two invoice digitization solutions (customer and supplier).

Deliverables:

• Mapping of incoming/outgoing flows (tools, lifecycle, IT environment)
• Gap analysis with regulatory target
• Identification of impacts on processes/organization/IT
• Identification of target architecture scenarios
• Drafting of specifications and solution selection support
• Selection support for P2P and O2C solutions
• AMOA implementation of solutions

For a major international player in small domestic equipment

30 000 collaborateurs

For the finance department of a major French home appliance company, selection and deployment of a compliant e-invoicing tool in France and internationally.

Deliverables:

• Regulatory monitoring in the group’s countries of operation
• Benchmark of best customer invoice digitization solutions
• Drafting of specifications distributed to selected vendors
• Gap analysis of existing systems with electronic invoicing reform requirements
• Selection support for the O2C solution to deploy
• AMOA implementation of the solution in France and internationally

For a major international food industry player

For the finance department of a leading French food industry company, selection support for supplier and customer invoice digitization solutions.

Deliverables:

• Mapping of incoming/outgoing flows (tools, lifecycle, IT environment)
• Gap analysis with regulatory target
• Identification of impacts on processes/organization/IT
• Identification of target architecture scenarios
• Drafting of specifications and solution selection support
• Selection support for P2P and O2C solutions

Challenges

Reduce Costs & Increase Productivity

Automate invoice management to reduce costs and optimize processes.

Improve Visibility & Control

Gain visibility, optimize spending, and make informed decisions.

Ensure Regulatory Compliance

Comply with the mandatory electronic invoicing law from September 2026 to avoid penalties.

Contacts

David Bellaiche

CONTACT

Paul Remy

CONTACT

All your questions about invoice digitization

How can productivity gains from e-invoicing and e-reporting be measured?

Measuring productivity gains from tax digitization is done through several key indicators. Invoice processing time is the first indicator: reduction can reach 70% through invoicing process automation. Payment terms are also optimized, with an average improvement of 15 days.

Companies experience a significant reduction in administrative burden, particularly through:

• Reduced time spent on manual entry
• Automation of various validation processes
• Reduction of processing errors

Productivity improvement also translates into better resource allocation, allowing accounting teams to focus on higher-value tasks.

What is the impact of invoice digitization on supplier and customer relationships?

Invoice digitization profoundly transforms business relationships. The transition to electronic channels requires clear communication with all partners. The obligation to receive electronic invoices, progressively effective from September 2026, requires mutual adaptation of practices.

Digitization platforms facilitate exchanges by offering standardized formats and real-time document transmission. This modernization improves transaction transparency and reduces payment terms, thereby strengthening trust between business partners.

How should specific invoice digitization cases be managed, such as credit notes and foreign invoices?

Handling special cases in tax digitization requires specific attention. International invoices from large companies present particular challenges due to diverse regulations. Within the European Union, compliance with the harmonized EN 16931 format is becoming the standard, facilitating interoperability between different national systems. For exchanges outside the EU, the digitization solution must be able to simultaneously manage multiple tax regulations, document formats, and archiving requirements specific to each country.

Technical management of these special cases requires a robust solution capable of handling multiple currencies, automating rate conversions, and integrating different applicable tax rules. Automated controls must be particularly vigilant on these documents, notably verifying the presence of mandatory information, the validity of VAT calculations by country, and the compliance of electronic signatures.

The General Directorate of Public Finance (DGFIP) imposes strict rules for processing credits and foreign invoices. Companies subject to VAT must notably:

• Ensure tracking and traceability of modifications
• Maintain the link with original invoices
• Comply with special regimes by country

Technical implementation requires robust financial IT systems capable of:

• Managing the standardized electronic format (EN 16931)
• Automating tax controls
• Securing archiving according to legal provisions

Digitization services must therefore combine compliance with international standards and operational efficiency.

What are the mandatory retention periods for digitized invoices?

Electronic invoice retention periods align with legal accounting obligations. According to the General Tax Code, documents must be retained for a minimum of 6 years from the date of the last transaction mentioned in the books or registers, or from the date the documents were created.

Note: Electronic archiving must guarantee data integrity throughout the retention period. Electronic document management systems must enable rapid and secure access to archived invoices while ensuring their legal validity.

Comment gérer la période de transition entre papier et factures dématérialisées ?

This transformation requires a methodical approach, from selecting a reliable partner digitization platform to optimizing internal processes.

The new deployment schedule requires companies to structure their approach in several phases: an initial audit period to assess needs, followed by progressive implementation of the chosen digitization software, thereby reducing management costs while ensuring invoice content integrity. Implementation of secure electronic signatures and document flow management must facilitate the transition while ensuring compliance with tax obligations. Companies must pay particular attention to team training and support for business partners, while monitoring time savings and productivity improvements through precise indicators. The widespread adoption of electronic invoicing also involves redesigning existing accounting processes, with particular emphasis on digitizing historical paper invoices and implementing effective content management.