Management Data and Mandatory Accounting Records: How to Distinguish Them Under Articles 2214 and 2215-bis of the…

01

The distinction in brief

Article 2214 of the Civil Code identifies two categories of documentation for an entrepreneur carrying out commercial activity, excluding small entrepreneurs from these obligations: mandatory books proper, namely the journal book and the inventory book, and the 'other accounting records' required by the nature and size of the business. Correspondence, telegrams, and invoices received or sent are also included, which must be kept in an orderly manner for each transaction. The distinction therefore does not concern the document's form, but the source of the obligation: direct law versus the operational needs of the business.

02

Why the distinction matters even in digital form

Article 2215-bis extends the scope: books, registers, records and documentation, whether mandatory by law or regulation or required by the nature or size of the business, may be created and kept using digital tools. In both cases, the records must remain accessible at all times and constitute primary and original information, from which reproductions and copies can be made for uses permitted by law. This means that even digital management data, not just formally mandatory books, follow the same principle of integrity and availability.

03

How to map your registers

Steps

1. Identify which registers are legally mandatory: the journal book and the inventory book, under Article 2214 of the Civil Code, an obligation that does not apply to small entrepreneurs.
2. Check which other records are required by the nature or size of the business, including correspondence and invoices.
3. If kept using digital tools, apply time-stamping and digital signature at least once a year, as required by Art. 2215-bis.
4. Retain all records and documents for ten years from the date of the last entry, under Article 2220.
5. Prepare the annual inventory with assets and liabilities, signed within three months of the deadline for filing tax returns, under Art. 2217.

04

Hypothetical example

Hypothetical example: a commercial business keeps the journal book and the inventory book as mandatory records under Art. 2214, recording transactions day by day as required by Art. 2216. Separately, it retains as management data the invoices received and sent and correspondence related to each transaction, ordering them chronologically. If it decides to digitize both categories, it applies the annual time-stamping and digital signature required by Art. 2215-bis, keeping the records accessible at all times.

05

Checks to perform before archiving

• Verify whether the register falls among the mandatory books under Art. 2214, which does not apply to small entrepreneurs, or among the other records required by the nature of the business.
• Check that the journal book records transactions day by day, as required by Art. 2216.
• Ensure that the annual inventory contains the business's assets and liabilities, under Art. 2217.
• Check for stamping or authentication only where required by special laws, under Art. 2215.
• If digital, check for annual time-stamping and digital signature under Art. 2215-bis.

06

How management software can support the distinction

A business can choose to set up, together with its software partner, separate tracking between mandatory registers such as the journal book and the inventory book and the other management records required by the nature of the business, defining distinct roles for whoever maintains each register. This is a suggested operational choice, not a requirement stemming directly from the software, useful for keeping records accessible at all times, consistent with the principle set out in Art. 2215-bis.

07

Points to remember

• Mandatory books require progressive numbering, but not necessarily stamping, under Art. 2215.
• Other records, such as correspondence and invoices, must be kept in an orderly manner for each transaction, not as stamped books.
• Both categories, if digital, must remain primary and original information accessible at all times, under Art. 2215-bis.
• All records, mandatory or management, follow the same ten-year retention period set out in Art. 2220.

08

Next practical step

To correctly apply this distinction, it is useful to map existing registers, indicating for each whether it falls under the mandatory books of Art. 2214 or the other records required by the nature of the business, and to verify with your advisor that the chosen retention format, paper or digital, complies with Articles 2215, 2215-bis and 2220.