The French legal framework applicable to businesses underwent several notable changes in 2026. New invoicing obligations, restricted access to registers, and increased control thresholds: these developments directly modify the internal processes of legal, financial, and compliance departments.
Register of Beneficial Owners: Restricted Access Changing the Compliance Landscape
Since April 26, 2026, full access to the French register of beneficial owners is reserved for public authorities. Journalists, NGOs, researchers, and professionals subject to anti-money laundering can obtain partial access under certain conditions. An access certificate procedure will come into effect on November 10, 2026.
For decision-makers in companies, the consequence is direct: preliminary checks in mergers and acquisitions are becoming more complicated. Identifying the beneficial owner of a partner or acquisition target now requires additional steps. Compliance teams and legal departments must anticipate longer timelines in partner due diligence (KYC) operations.
Companies relying on structured legal monitoring, such as the legal site of Décideur, can track these regulatory changes as they come into effect and adapt their internal procedures before deadlines.
Mandatory Electronic Invoicing: Timeline and Constraints for Businesses
Electronic invoicing will become an operational obligation starting September 2026 for receipt. The obligation to issue invoices will apply to SMEs and microenterprises from September 1, 2027. This gap between receipt and issuance creates a transitional period during which management systems must be able to handle both formats.
The issue goes beyond simple software updates. The legal department must verify compliance with mandatory mentions on each digital invoice, coordinate with the financial department on the choice of a partner dematerialization platform (PDP) or the use of the public invoicing portal, and ensure that the general terms of sale incorporate the new transmission methods.
Failing to anticipate this shift exposes companies to invoice rejections by clients who are already equipped, directly impacting cash flow.
Points of Vigilance for Legal Departments
- Check that ongoing contracts include a clause for adaptation to electronic format, or negotiate an amendment before the September 2027 deadline
- Ensure that the electronic archiving of invoices complies with legal retention periods and document integrity requirements
- Document the internal validation process to trace each invoice received via the chosen platform, in case of a tax audit
Control of Foreign Investments and Concentration Thresholds: Two Parallel Developments
Control of foreign investments in France expanded in 2026 to include certain French companies listed on foreign markets. This extension means that a stake acquisition in a French company listed outside Euronext may now trigger a prior authorization procedure with the Ministry of Economy.
At the same time, French concentration control thresholds have been raised starting September 2026. This increase reduces the number of transactions subject to notification to the Competition Authority. For medium-sized companies, certain acquisitions that would have required notification no longer do.
These two movements are moving in opposite directions. Foreign investment control is tightening, while concentration control is easing for smaller transactions. A decision-maker overseeing an external growth operation must therefore simultaneously check two distinct regimes, with different timelines and contacts.
Legal Privilege for In-House Counsel: Ongoing Legislative Progress
France is progressing towards the recognition of confidentiality for consultations with in-house counsel, joining the majority of European and North American countries that recognize some form of legal privilege for internal lawyers.
The framework is still under discussion, and the legislative process is not yet complete. For legal departments, the practical challenge is to structure internal document production now to benefit from this protection as soon as it comes into effect.
In practical terms, this means clearly distinguishing legal consultations (protected) from operational or decision-making documents (not protected). The drafting of internal memos must be formalized so that a judge can unambiguously identify what falls under confidential legal consultation.
- Create a legal consultation memo template with explicit confidentiality mention, referenced in the company’s document policy
- Train operational staff who consult the legal department to submit their requests in writing, to create a traceable history
- Define with the IT department a separate storage circuit for confidential legal consultations
The accumulation of these reforms within a few months imposes a continuous regulatory mapping effort on legal departments. The main risk is not so much the complexity of each text taken in isolation but the overlapping effect of closely timed implementation dates, which simultaneously engages the same teams on distinct topics.
