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Selling on Amazon France: what to settle before launch
Daniel Pawłowski · Amazonway · · approx. 7 min read
For a European brand, France is usually the second Amazon market after Germany. Your account is already in place, because the same European seller account covers amazon.fr. The differences lie elsewhere: France runs the broadest EPR system on Amazon, its own packaging-marking rules and a statutory French-language requirement. This piece sets out what to settle before your first shipment, and in which order.
To sell on amazon.fr you need: EPR numbers (IDU) for every category you sell, obtained through French compliance schemes; Triman and Info-tri marking on packaging; listings, instructions and warranty terms in French; and, if you store stock in a French warehouse, a French VAT number. A company established elsewhere in the EU does not need a fiscal representative in France.
Sources checked: 8 October 2026. Requirements come from Amazon's seller pages, the French administration (ADEME, impots.gouv.fr, Légifrance) and Citeo. This is not legal or tax advice.
What you need before the first shipment to France
| Area | What you need | When |
|---|---|---|
| Account | the same European seller account you already sell from | straight away, no new registration |
| EPR | an IDU for every EPR category you sell in (packaging and paper share one) | before selling, or Amazon deactivates listings |
| Packaging | the Triman logo with sorting information (Info-tri) | on every consumer package |
| Language | name, description, instructions and warranty terms in French | from the first listing |
| VAT | OSS when shipping from your home country; a French VAT number for stock in France | before stock goes to France |
| Customer service | replies and returns in French | from the first order |
EPR in France: a different order from Germany
France has a single producer register run by ADEME, but far more waste streams fall under EPR than in Germany. The obligation to hold an IDU (identifiant unique) has applied since 1 January 2022, separately for each stream (ADEME). Amazon lists 19 EPR categories for France, including electrical equipment, batteries, furniture, textiles, toys and chemicals (sell.amazon.fr).
The key practical difference: you do not obtain the number yourself. Under a collective scheme, the compliance organisation (éco-organisme) you sign with registers you and passes on the IDU. So the order is the reverse of Germany: a contract for each category first, then the number. Packaging and paper share one number; other categories each have their own.
If numbers are missing, Amazon states that it may deactivate non-compliant listings or comply on your behalf (sell.amazon.fr), and someone ends up paying for the second option. France is compared with Germany, Italy and Spain in our EPR registration guide.
Triman and Info-tri: marking Germany does not require
France's AGEC law requires consumer packaging to carry standardised marking: the Triman logo together with information on which bin each part of the packaging goes in (Info-tri). It covers household packaging and graphic papers, and the transition period ended in March 2023 (Citeo). In practice that means a packaging redesign or an extra label, which is best planned with production rather than after the first French order.
French is a legal requirement, not just a conversion lever
The 1994 Toubon Law makes French mandatory in, among other things, the name, offer, presentation, instructions for use and the description of the scope and terms of a product's warranty when sold in France (Légifrance, Law No. 94-665). A machine-translated listing can pass Amazon's checks and still fall short of the law if the leaflet in the box is only in English.
VAT: shipping from home or stock in France
- Shipping from your home country. Sales to French consumers above the EU-wide 10,000 EUR annual threshold carry French VAT, which you can declare at home through OSS.
- Stock in a French warehouse (FBA or Pan-EU). Moving goods into France and selling from there require a French VAT number and French returns.
Good news for EU businesses: a company established in another EU member state does not have to appoint a fiscal representative in France; it registers and files with the office for foreign businesses (impots.gouv.fr). The full VAT and OSS mechanics are in our chapter on VAT, OSS and EPR.
The order of steps
- List the EPR categories for your range and sign with French compliance schemes. Without that, there are no IDU numbers.
- Enter the IDU numbers in the compliance portal of your seller account.
- Add Triman and Info-tri to your packaging, or prepare labels.
- Translate listings, instructions and warranty terms into French.
- Decide on logistics. Shipping from home with OSS is usually enough to start; a French warehouse means a French VAT number first.
- Decide who answers French customers and handles returns.
Every new country costs more than the commission. We cost it layer by layer in our piece on what another marketplace really costs, and cover the usual first market in selling on the German Amazon.
How Amazonway handles it
We run a launch on amazon.fr as a project with a clear order: the EPR category map and compliance-scheme contracts first, then marking and translation, and listings and advertising last. We handle EPR and VAT registrations with partners, as described on our EPR and VAT registration page; the whole market-entry process is our international expansion service.
Talk to us about launching on amazon.fr →
FAQ: selling on Amazon France
Do I need a separate account for amazon.fr?
No. One European seller account covers nine Amazon stores, including amazon.fr. What is separate are the obligations: French EPR, packaging marking and the French language.
How do I get an EPR number in France?
Through a compliance scheme (éco-organisme) for each category. Under a collective scheme it registers you in the ADEME register and passes on the IDU. Each category has its own number, except packaging and paper, which share one.
Does a company from another EU country need a fiscal representative in France?
No. A business established in another EU member state does not have to appoint one. A French VAT number is needed when you store goods in France; when shipping from home, sales can go through OSS.
Do listings have to be in French?
Yes. The Toubon Law requires French in, among other things, the name, description, instructions and warranty terms of a product sold in France. It is a legal requirement, not just a matter of conversion.
Sources
- Amazon, EPR on amazon.fr
- ADEME, identifiant unique
- Citeo, Info-tri
- Légifrance, Law No. 94-665 (Toubon)
- impots.gouv.fr, VAT for EU businesses