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Formats & Transmission Flow

When managing domestic B2B transactions under the French mandate, invoices cannot be exchanged as plain, unstructured PDFs or paper documents. Instead, they must be issued in standardized, machine-readable electronic formats. A-Cube natively supports the three core formats (formats du socle) mandated by the French tax authority, all fully compliant with the European EN 16931 standard:

  • UBL (Universal Business Language): A standardized XML format widely used across international procurement and accounting systems.

  • CII (Cross Industry Invoice): A technical XML standard developed by UN/CEFACT, explicitly optimized for automated validation. (Coming soon)

  • Factur-X: A hybrid "smart PDF" format containing a human-readable PDF/A-3 visual layer with a fully structured EN 16931 XML file embedded inside. This enables immediate visual review while ensuring absolute compliance with automated processing.(Coming soon)

Invoice Transmission Flow (E-Invoicing: Flows 1 & 2)​

When an outbound invoice is submitted via A-Cube's APIs, the platform takes complete ownership of the validation and distribution processes. The system operates in a real-time Dual Transmission mode, splitting the operation into two parallel workflows to simultaneously satisfy commercial routing and fiscal reporting obligations:

   [ Corner 1: Supplier ]
              │
              ▼ (A-Cube API)
   [ Corner 2: Sending PA (A-Cube) ]
              │
              ├───► (Flow 2: Real-time Document) ───► [ Corner 3: Receiving PA ] ───► [ Corner 4: Buyer ]
              │
              └───► (Flow 1: Tax Data Subset) ──────► [ Corner 5: PPF / DGFIP ]

  • Flow 2 (Document Transmission): A-Cube queries its synchronized local copy of the central directory (Annuaire) to identify the exact receiving platform (PA-R) designated by the buyer. The complete, unaltered invoice file is then routed in real-time to the recipient's PA, primarily using the secure Peppol network or via predefined point-to-point EDI channels.

  • Flow 1 (Tax Data Transmission): Parallel to the buyer's delivery, A-Cube's parsing engine automatically extracts the mandatory tax data subset required by law. This regulatory subset is securely transmitted in real-time to the public portal (PPF / DGFIP) for immediate control and tax compliance clearance.

Invoice Reception Flow (E-Invoicing: Flows 2 & 6)​

When a supplier transmits an electronic invoice to a company that has designated A-Cube as its certified platform (PA-R) on the Annuaire, A-Cube handles the secure reception, validation, and clearance processes. The system operates within the real-time 5-Corner framework, managing inbound delivery while synchronizing document processing milestones back to the central government:

   [ Corner 1: Supplier ] ───► [ Corner 2: Sending PA ] 
                                      │
                                      ▼ (Flow 2: Real-time Document)
                         [ Corner 3: Receiving PA (A-Cube) ]
                                      │
                                      ├───► (A-Cube Webhook / API) ───► [ Corner 4: Buyer ]
                                      │
                                      └───► (Flow 6: Real-time Status) ──► [ Corner 5: PPF / DGFIP ]

  • Flow 2 (Document Reception): A-Cube securely catches the incoming, fully structured invoice file (in UBL, CII, or Factur-X format) pushed by the supplier's platform (PA-E) via the Peppol network or predefined EDI channels. Upon reception, A-Cube immediately performs mandatory technical and application controls to guarantee file integrity and prevent system anomalies. Once cleared, the raw document is stored, and an asynchronous invoice.inbound.received webhook event is dispatched to your system.

  • Flow 6 (Status Synchronization): Parallel to delivering the document to your platform, A-Cube manages the strict regulatory tracking required by law. When the invoice is successfully received by our infrastructure—or later, when your end-user submits mandatory business responses (such as a commercial refusal)—A-Cube translates these actions into compliant XML CDAR messages. These lifecycle updates are transmitted in real-time to the public portal (PPF / DGFIP) and routed back to the supplier's PA, keeping all five corners perfectly synchronized.

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