Factur-X explained: a PDF with embedded XML, and when to use it
Factur-X is a hybrid e-invoice: a PDF/A-3 file that a person can read, with an embedded XML file that software can process. It is a Franco-German standard, published by FNFE-MPE in France and FeRD in Germany, where the same standard is called ZUGFeRD; its XML follows the European semantic standard EN 16931 in the UN/CEFACT Cross Industry Invoice (CII) syntax. In France it is one of the three formats of the core set described by the AFNOR standard XP Z12-012, alongside UBL and CII, that approved platforms must accept on receipt. The latest release announced by FNFE-MPE is Factur-X 1.09.2 / ZUGFeRD 2.5.2, published on 4 August 2026. Use it when your customers want a readable invoice and your software can produce it; your approved platform carries it, and many platforms offer conversion between formats: ask yours.
Why a plain PDF is no longer enough
For invoices between VAT-registered businesses established in France, the reform replaces documents with data. The DGFiP states in its FAQ (version of 1 September 2026) that a plain PDF sent electronically is not an electronic invoice within the meaning of the reform. impots.gouv.fr describes an e-invoice as a file in a set format, UBL, CII or a mixed format combining structured data and an image, with the mandatory details in dedicated fields, sent through an approved platform. Receiving through a platform has been mandatory for all such businesses since 1 September 2026; SMEs and micro-enterprises issue from 1 September 2027, as set out in France's e-invoicing mandate.
Four invoice details became mandatory from 1 September 2026 under Decree no. 2022-1299 of 7 October 2022: the customer's SIREN number, the category of the transaction (goods, services or both), the option to pay VAT on debits where taken, and the delivery address of goods if different from the billing address. The tax authority collects only part of the data: 26 mandatory items in 2026, then 34 from 2027 (DGFiP FAQ). A picture of an invoice cannot carry them reliably; structured fields can.
Factur-X in one diagram
| Layer | What it contains | Who reads it |
|---|---|---|
| PDF/A-3 document | The invoice as a person sees it: layout, logo, lines, totals, legal statements | Your customer's staff, auditors, archives |
| Embedded XML file | The invoice data in CII syntax, conforming to EN 16931: parties, identifiers, lines, VAT breakdown, totals, payment terms | Platforms, accounting and purchasing software |
| XMP metadata | A declaration, inside the PDF, that it carries Factur-X data and with which profile | Software opening the file |
The two halves must say the same thing. PDF/A-3 is the archival PDF variant that allows embedded files; a PDF without the XML, or with an XML that contradicts it, is not a usable Factur-X invoice.
Profiles and the minimum profile
Factur-X comes in profiles that carry more or less data. FNFE-MPE describes them as follows:
| Profile | Content (FNFE-MPE) | Invoice lines |
|---|---|---|
| MINIMUM | The minimum invoice information required on Chorus Pro, the French public-sector invoicing portal | No |
| BASIC WL | Document-level information mostly required or useful for buyers | No |
| BASIC | BASIC WL plus the core line information | Yes |
| EN 16931 | All the invoice information present in the European standard EN 16931 | Yes |
| EXTENDED | EN 16931 with additional invoice data | Yes |
FNFE-MPE also lists reference profiles by country: EXTENDED-CTC-FR for France, described as a subset of EXTENDED. Which profiles an approved platform accepts for issuing and receiving is governed by XP Z12-012 and the DGFiP's external specifications (version 3.2 of 30 April 2026): ask your platform in writing, and do not rely on a profile without invoice lines for an invoice whose lines and VAT breakdown matter to your customer.
UBL and CII, the structured alternatives
EN 16931-1:2017 defines the semantic data model of an electronic invoice; Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2017/1870 of 16 October 2017 published its reference and the list of syntaxes, which includes UBL 2.1 and UN/CEFACT CII. The three French formats are three ways of carrying that model:
| Format | What it is | Readable by a person as is | When it fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Factur-X | PDF/A-3 with embedded CII XML | Yes | Small volumes, customers who still read invoices, software that already prints PDFs |
| UBL | XML file only (OASIS Universal Business Language) | No, the platform renders it | Integrated purchasing and accounting systems, cross-border exchanges |
| CII | XML file only (UN/CEFACT Cross Industry Invoice) | No, the platform renders it | Same uses as UBL; it is also the XML inside Factur-X |
For most small businesses the choice is made by the software and the platform: the business needs to know what its software produces, and the platform needs to accept it and convert it for customers who want another format. Format support and conversion are one of the eight criteria in how to choose an approved platform. Public-sector customers receive through Chorus Pro, which the DGFiP FAQ describes as the single platform of public entities.
Checking a received file
- Look for the attachment. In a PDF reader's attachments panel, a Factur-X invoice shows an embedded XML file. No attachment: it is a plain PDF.
- Check the profile. Software or your platform reads it from the metadata; a profile without lines limits automatic processing.
- Compare the two halves. Totals, VAT rates and amounts, your SIREN number, the supplier's identifiers and the invoice number must match between the PDF and the XML. If they differ, ask for a corrected invoice instead of booking from the picture.
- Validate. FNFE-MPE's package includes XSD schemas and Schematron rules for each profile; platforms run such checks and reject non-conforming files.
- Check the channel. Between businesses established in France, invoices are issued and received through approved platforms: check that the invoice also reached you through yours, with its lifecycle statuses. If it came only by email, see the FAQ below.
A foreign supplier without a French establishment is outside e-invoicing and may send you any format it agrees with you; see France's e-invoicing rules for foreign companies.
FAQ
Is Factur-X mandatory in France?
Not as the only option. Factur-X is one of the three formats of the French core set, with UBL and CII, that FNFE-MPE describes as mandatory on receipt under XP Z12-012; what you send depends on your software and your platform.
Can I keep sending PDF invoices to private customers?
Yes. E-invoicing applies between VAT-registered businesses established in France; for sales to private individuals, the DGFiP FAQ (question 1.1) provides for e-reporting of transaction data instead.
A supplier still emails me a PDF after 1 September 2026. Must I reject it?
Not for that reason alone. The DGFiP's practical start-up guide of July 2026 states that an invoice received by another usual channel, such as email, PDF or paper, should not be set aside on that ground alone when it matches a real transaction and contains the information needed to process it. Ask the supplier to move to the platform channel.