France's tax administration mandated electronic submission of VAT refund requests by businesses established outside the European Union, effective 1 July 2021, replacing the previous postal procedure for form 3559-SD.

The new procedure applies to VAT refund claims under Directive 86/560/EEC and requires fiscal representatives of non-EU enterprises to submit applications through the secure messaging system in their professional account on impots.gouv.fr. All supporting documentation, including bank details, invoices, and import documents for transactions exceeding €1,000 (or €250 for fuel expenses), must be transmitted electronically alongside the refund request.

The electronic system replaces postal submissions to the VAT Refund Service (SR-TVA) of the Direction des impôts des non-résidents (DINR). The change modifies application procedures set out in article 242-0 Z septies of Annex II to the General Tax Code and aligns with France's broader digitalization of tax procedures for cross-border VAT compliance.