Reforming E-Invoicing in France: Why SecNumCloud Is Key for French SMBs
The electronic invoice reform is progressing rapidly. Starting in 2026, all French companies will progressively be required to issue and receive their invoices in a dematerialized format. While this transition primarily presents an opportunity to simplify exchanges and enhance efficiency, it also brings new compliance and security mandates. To meet these requirements, one name frequently arises: SecNumCloud.
What is SecNumCloud?
SecNumCloud is an official certification created by ANSSI (the French cybersecurity authority) to ensure that a cloud service meets very strict security standards. It specifically pertains to:
- Data Localization: Data must be hosted within France or Europe, protected from extraterritorial laws.
- Access Protection: Only authorized personnel can access your data.
- Technical Resilience: Services must remain available even in cases of attacks or outages.
In summary, SecNumCloud is a trust label that ensures your data is protected, confidential, and handled in a framework fully compliant with French requirements.
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Why is secnumcloud becoming a key criterion?
Digital sovereignty is a key priority for the French State. With the electronic invoicing reform in France setting strict requirements for data protection, businesses must rely on transparent and secure cloud services that comply specifically with French regulations. This is exactly what the SecNumCloud qualification guarantees.
In this context, the State requires Partner Dematerialization Platforms (PDP) to meet a high level of security using the SecNumCloud framework. This qualification is a guarantee of trust for companies looking for reliable providers to manage their electronic invoices.
By choosing a solution aligned with this French regulatory framework — like Open Bee — you’re investing in a digital ecosystem that not only protects your sensitive documents, but also secures all exchanges and data flows within your organization. It’s a strong signal of trustworthiness, allowing you to anticipate the 2026 French e-invoicing requirements while strengthening your information system for the long term.
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What other requirements to anticipate under the reform?
The electronic invoice reform also imposes very strict requirements on providers wishing to become Partner Dematerialization Platforms (PDP). The goal is to ensure a secure, interoperable ecosystem compliant with the expectations of the DGFIP (French tax authority).
Key criteria to meet include:
- ISO 27001 Certification, which attests that the provider has an efficient and structured information security management system.
- Interoperability with the French Public Billing Portal (PPF), using standardized formats (UBL, CII, etc.) to facilitate exchanges.
- Legal Archiving to ensure the traceability, integrity, and legal retention of invoices.
- Data Hosting in a Sovereign Environment, which includes SecNumCloud qualification. This certification guarantees hosting in France or Europe within a strictly controlled framework.
Even though these requirements mainly concern providers, TPEs and SMEs should consider them when choosing their solutions: opting for a provider engaged in these practices ensures reliable and compliant support for the upcoming reform.
Open Bee: a partner committed to the secnumcloud approach
To ensure compliant and sovereign hosting for its clients, Open Bee has chosen Orange Business and its Cloud Avenue offering, which is currently undergoing SecNumCloud qualification. This qualification is also part of our journey toward obtaining PDP status, an essential label for operating in the forthcoming electronic invoice ecosystem.
Marc Balleydier, founder of Open Bee, stated: “Orange was our choice among several partners. We needed to host our data in France for sovereign cloud issues.
Our clients are extremely sensitive about the security level of their data’s hosting; that’s why we chose Orange Business.”
— Marc Balleydier, Founder of Open Bee
Remember: choosing a provider committed to the SecNumCloud approach ensures that your data—and that of your clients—are hosted and processed in a secure, French, and compliant environment.
A dms simplifying compliance
Beyond meeting regulatory obligations, a Document Management System (DMS) like Open Bee allows you to automate, trace, and secure document flows throughout their life cycle.
In practical terms, a DMS like Open Bee enables:
- Automation of invoice processing (receipt, validation, legal archiving) complying with imposed formats
- Traceability of all actions performed on documents to ensure reliable audits.
- Granular access management to limit the risks of exposing sensitive data.
AND FOR TPEs AND SMEs?
It is often the smallest structures that fear the impacts of the reform. However, they have everything to gain by adopting a solution already aligned with future requirements:
- No need to reinvent the wheel: A DMS like Open Bee centralizes all documents and simplifies the transition to electronic invoicing.
- One tool for multiple needs: In addition to invoices, the solution can manage contracts, pay slips, receipts, etc.
- A secure and compliant environment to approach the reform with peace of mind while ensuring data security.
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Conclusion: choosing a certified provider means anticipating
The reform is more than a technical update; it involves a structural change in data management, with implications for compliance, security, and sovereignty.
By betting today on a solution committed to the SecNumCloud process and towards PDP certification, TPEs and SMEs ensure a smooth, secure, and compliant transition.