In the wake of the French presidential elections to be held in April 2017, the French federation for auto-entrepreneurs (FEDAE) businesses in France has published a list of measures to simplify the auto-entrepreneur scheme.
It is using this opportunity to lobby for 17 measures that would simplify the auto-entrepreneur scheme.
- Reinstate the name auto-entrepreneur, renamed micro-entrepreneur on 1 January 2016.
- Review and simplify the auto-entrepreneur registration form.
- Expand and modernise the business activity codes used for business registrations (called APE codes).
- No longer limit civil servants in the duration of their activity. For now fonctionnaires are limited to two years, renewable once.
- Stop the compulsory registration on Chamber of Commerce et d’Industrie (CCI) or Chambre de Métiers et de l’Artisanat (CMA)’s directories.
- Review the compulsory five day training for artisans called Stage Préalable à l’Installation (SPI). Change its duration, cost, conditions for exemption and list of organisations that can provide this training. For now the training lasts five days, costs about 200 euros and can only be provided by Chambre de Métiers.
- Cancel the turnover prorata rule. For now auto-entrepreneurs in their first business year have a maximum turnover prorata to their starting date. For instance, a gite starting on 1 June would have a maximum turnover of (82,200 euros / 12) * 7 = 47,950 euros.
- Increase the auto-entrepreneur yearly turnover threshold to 50,000 euros for services (compared to 32,900 euros) and 120,000 euros for trade (compared to 82,200 euros), still with no TVA.
- Modify the calculation method for Contribution Foncière des Entreprises (CFE).
- Review the rules for calculating maternity and paternity leave.
- Benefit from daily allowances and regrouping all auto-entrepreneurs with Regime Social des Independants (RSI). For now trade and crafts activities relate to RSI, while services relate to URSSAF.
- Benefit from loss of earnings in the event of e.g. an accident, health issues preventing you from working.
- Better manage interactions with social services called Caisse d’Allocation Familiales (CAF).
- Conduct a real study on disguised employment and all forms of illegal work. Salariat déguisée refers to companies hiring auto-entrepreneurs rather than hire an employee (i.e the auto-entrepreneur does 100% of his work for one business).
- Review in depth the definition of disguised employment and the criteria used for a requalification into a work contract.
- Allow auto-entrepreneurs working in the Services à la Personne sector to invoice businesses.
- Improving the service of bodies providing social protection.
You can read the full white paper 17 mesures to simply the auto-entrepreneur published by FEDAE.