E-Invoicing in Chad

Chad’s Facturation Électronique Normalisée (FEN) framework requires VAT-registered taxpayers to use FEN when issuing tax invoices. The legal basis is Article 17 of Finance Law No. 016/PT/2022 for the 2023 financial year, which introduced FEN from 1 January 2023 for commercial, industrial and artisanal transactions carried out by individuals and legal entities.

Official DGI guidance also states that transactions carried out by persons subject to corporate income tax, the Impôt Général Libératoire (IGL) or VAT must be documented by a FEN invoice or an equivalent document, subject to the applicable rules. Where FEN applies, businesses must issue invoices through the approved FEN process; an ordinary PDF created outside the system is not a compliant substitute.

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Chad’s FEN platform is operational and provides a taxpayer portal for registration, login, invoice issuance, customer and item management, stock functions, purchase confirmation, and reporting. The official taxpayer guide, published in March 2024, documents the available workflow for domestic sales invoices, export invoices, cancellations, purchase records and VAT-related reports.

The official DGI guidance continues to treat FEN as a mandatory invoicing framework. It states that every taxpayer registered for VAT must use FEN to issue tax invoices to customers for each transaction. Non-compliance can lead to administrative penalties, including a fixed FCFA 100,000 monthly penalty following official notification for failure to adopt the system.

What is e‑Invoicing and why is Chad adopting it?

E-invoicing is the electronic creation, exchange and processing of invoice data under a recognised legal and technical framework. In Chad, e-invoicing operates through the tax authority’s Facturation Électronique Normalisée (FEN) framework. VAT-registered taxpayers must use FEN for tax invoices, while DGI guidance also covers transactions involving corporate income tax, IGL or VAT.

Users must issue an e-invoice for each sale and state the actual goods or services supplied and applicable tax rates. The legal framework sets the compliance obligation, while the FEN portal supports customer and item records, domestic and export invoicing, purchase confirmations, stock management and reporting.

The evolution of e‑Invoicing in Chad

Chad’s e-invoicing framework evolved from a statutory FEN obligation into an operational DGI-managed system. The timeline below highlights the legal foundation, implementation of the taxpayer portal and the practical compliance implications for affected businesses.

Legal foundation and FEN launch

• 30 December 2022: Chad adopted Finance Law No. 016/PT/2022 for the 2023 financial year. Article 17 introduced the requirement for VAT-registered taxpayers to use Facturation Électronique Normalisée (FEN) for tax invoices. 
• 1 January 2023: The FEN obligation took effect. Official DGI FEN guidance states that VAT-registered taxpayers must use FEN to issue tax invoices for every transaction. It also requires transactions carried out by persons subject to corporate income tax, the Impôt Général Libératoire or VAT to be supported by a FEN invoice or an equivalent document, including a works statement, fee schedule or advance payment document. 

Platform implementation

• 2024: Chad operationalised the FEN framework through its official taxpayer portal and published taxpayer guidance. Businesses register using an active tax identification number (NIF) validated in E-tax, then use the portal to create and manage compliant invoice data. 

Where FEN applies, businesses must issue invoices through FEN; an ordinary PDF created outside the system is not a compliant substitute.

B2G electronic Invoicing in Chad

From 1 January 2026, FEN is mandatory for every expense executed by the state, public establishments, autonomous local authorities and projects. It is the sole invoicing reference accepted in public settlement and payment workflows; an invoice not issued through FEN is invalid for the administration and must be rejected.

Suppliers and service providers seeking payment for covered public expenditure must hold active e-Tax registration and be enrolled on the FEN platform. They should issue invoices through FEN and confirm any additional procurement, supporting-document or payment requirements with the contracting public body.

B2B electronic Invoicing in Chad

For B2B transactions, Chad’s general FEN rules apply where the supplier and transaction fall within the applicable scope. VAT-registered taxpayers must use FEN when issuing tax invoices, while DGI guidance also refers to transactions carried out by persons subject to corporate income tax, IGL or VAT.

On the operational side, the FEN taxpayer portal supports domestic sales invoicing by allowing users to register customers and items and enter supplied goods or services, quantities, payment and invoicing methods, and applicable VAT.

B2C e‑Invoicing in Chad

For business-to-consumer sales, covered taxpayers must issue a FEN e-invoice for every sale, whether or not the customer requests one. Invoice issuance is therefore a seller obligation rather than an optional document provided on request. 

If the approved invoicing system is unavailable, the taxpayer must notify the tax administration within six hours. During the outage, handwritten invoices may be issued in duplicate, with the second copy retained for at least ten years; corresponding invoices must then be issued through FEN once the system is restored. Corrections to a previously issued FEN invoice must follow the prescribed refund-invoice process rather than simply deleting the original invoice.

E‑reporting and VAT compliance in Chad

Chad’s official FEN taxpayer portal supports customer and item records, domestic and export invoicing, purchase confirmations, stock management, and e-reporting through sales, purchase, VAT, daily-transaction, and cancelled-invoice reports. These functions enable taxpayers to manage FEN-related invoice data, monitor transaction activity, and prepare relevant tax reporting.

For VAT compliance, taxpayers must issue FEN invoices for covered transactions, identify the actual goods or services supplied and applicable tax rates, notify the DGI of a system outage within six hours, follow the prescribed correction process, and retain manual-invoice copies issued during an outage. Failure to state the actual goods or services and relevant tax rates may result in a fixed FCFA 100,000 administrative fine.

Preparing for e‑Invoicing in Chad

DDD Invoices gives businesses a scalable way to connect existing ERP, accounting and billing systems to e-invoicing requirements across supported markets. Through a single platform, finance and tax teams can standardize invoice data, streamline compliance workflows and reduce the complexity of managing multiple local regimes.

As Chad’s Facturation Électronique Normalisée (FEN) framework develops, businesses can assess their invoice data, processes and system architecture as part of a broader global e-invoicing strategy. DDD helps organisations build a flexible foundation for managing evolving compliance requirements as their country coverage needs grow.

FAQs

Is e-invoicing mandatory in Chad?

Yes. The official DGI guidance states that VAT-registered taxpayers must use Facturation Électronique Normalisée to issue tax invoices to customers for every transaction. The FEN framework was introduced from 1 January 2023.

Who must register for the FEN platform?

The official registration guidance applies to taxpayers with an active NIF validated in E-tax who are registered for VAT and/or profit tax or the Impôt Général Libératoire.

Can businesses issue ordinary PDFs instead of FEN invoices?

Where FEN applies, an ordinary PDF is not a compliant substitute: taxpayers must use an electronic invoicing system to issue an e-invoice for every sale.

How are export invoices issued in Chad?

The FEN portal has a dedicated export-invoice workflow. Users enter the item, payment, invoicing and customer details, then save and print the invoice.