The risks of undeclared employment in France

If you employ staff without declaring them you take a lot of risks!

By employing staff I mean 2 different things. You run your own business in France ie a restaurant or you need a tradesman to do some work at your property in France.

If you get caught by URSSAF, you could face 2 types of sanctions:

- Penal sanctions:

• Up to 3 years imprisonment and a fine of €45 000 for a private individual
• A fine of €225 000 and dissolution and closure of the business for a company
  

- Administrative sanctions:

• Back payment of contributions and taxes plus penalty charges.
• Standard liability equivalent to at least 6 months of guaranteed minimum wage
• Cancellation of previous tax rebates and exoneration.

So if you need to employ an artisan in France, see my post here.

Employing a registered builder in France

If you wish to employ an artisan to do some work in your cottage in France, here is a list of documents you need to ask him/her before signing a 'devis' (estimate).

• an extract from the Register of Commerce (extrait d'inscription au registre du commerce et des sociétés),
• a certificate of registration in the Register of Craft Trades (carte justifiant l'inscription au Répertoire des Métiers),
• a company document (estimate, publicity) stating the company name, address and registration number.

The artisan should be able to supply you with the above documents without hesitation. If he/she finds excuses, you will know the person is not insured or registered. Find another tradesman! It will save you trouble and money!

Read my post about employing someone in the Black in France here.