It is readily accepted that electronic accounting records be in compliance with provisions on tax transparency and traceability. However, meeting this obligation often proves to be very complex and requires constant and on-going liaison with tax specialists and IT directors in companies.

The rules on keeping electronic accounting records were amended by the tax administration; in an administrative statement dated 6 March 2008, it commented on the changes affecting tax inspections of electronic accounting records.

Given the extended investigative powers of the tax administration which has the option to apply the taxation procedure as a matter of course in the case of omissions (with a resulting penalty of 100%), companies consequently need to assess the compliance of their IT systems with the tax requirements in effect.

Our Practice Areas

Inspections of Electronic Accounting Records
In the interest of providing services adapted to the needs of our clients, our team of specialists intervenes in order to prevent major tax risks linked to tax audits of electronic accounting systems (CFCI) and during tax inspections to provide assistance to companies faced with tax inspections of their electronic accounting records.

• Prevention: analysing the company’s applications, drafting on-the-spot processing requests in order to assess tax compliance of the company’s IT system with the applicable tax requirements relating to tax inspections of electronic accounting records (we use the ACL software in the test stages which is used by the tax authorities during tax inspections), analysing tax compliance of the archiving system implemented by the company (with regard to tax law and regulatory standards, in particular the Afnor standard NF Z 42 013)
• Assistance: carrying out processing requests that may be made in the scope of a tax inspection of electronic tax records 
• Development  of reliable technical solutions: securing IT migrations, implementing archiving solutions for the company’s electronic data in collaboration with its appointed service providers
• Exchange of electronic data: implementing the electronic data interchange required by companies falling within the remit of the Large Companies Tax Department (DGE).

Our Approach

• A multidisciplinary approach taking into account the legal, tax and IT aspects of tax inspections of electronic accounting records. 
• Developing synergies with financial decision-makers and IT experts in companies to better understand the components and detecte anomalies.

Our mission is to: 

• Assess the tax compliance of the company’s IT system with rules governing tax audits of electronic accounting systems and legal archiving
• Detect and analyse tax risks 
• Implement an efficient and realistic action plan to standardise your IT system 
• Establish priorities based on the seriousness of the potential risks,
• Define an efficient tax strategy in the event of a tax inspection of electronic accounting records  
• Simulate an on-the-spot tax inspection using the same IT tools as those used by the tax authorities (ACL software) and list the requests that are likely to be made by the tax authorities in the event of an inspection.

Our Clients

Large French and international groups and their subsidiaries in addition to medium-sized companies in all business sectors, local authorities and their satellite bodies.

Our expertise has been sought in the sectors of mass market distribution, food-business, petrochemical engineering, real estate, industry, banking and insurance.

Our Team

Our team has recognised expertise in respect of tax inspections of electronic accounting records, in particular with regard to auditing IT systems in companies and providing assistance during tax inspections. It also has a strong reputation with regard to tax inspections of electronic accounting records, legal archiving and remote procedures.