Accounting Rules

Tax Year: From January 1 to December 31 .
Accounting Standards: Official accounting plan (PCG)
Accounting Regulation Bodies: Parliament
CNC
ANC
Accounting Reports: Annual accounts: the balance sheet, the profit and loss account and the notes to the accounts.
The annual report
The statement of source and application of funds (compulsory for large companies)
Publication Requirements: There are three levels of reporting: The basic system (Normal), an abridged system (for small companies), a developed system. They depend on the legal form and size of the companies (defined in relation to the total of the balance sheet, the turnover and the number of employees).
The reporting is annual, except for listed companies for whom reporting is quarterly.
Professional Accountancy Bodies: OEC , The Higher Council of the Order of Chartered Accountants
CNCC , The National Company of Auditors (in English)
IFAC , The International Federation of accountants
Certification and Auditing: Companies have to seek a statutory auditor to conduct an annual audit of the financial health of their organization. You can contact an external auditor: KPMG, Ernest & Young, PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Accounting News: France accounting news

Tax Rates

Consumption Taxes

Nature of the Tax: Value Added Tax (VAT)
Tax Rate: 19.6%
Reduced Tax Rate: - Reduced rate of 7% for food on-site consumption (restaurants), Non-reimbursable medications, Tickets for entertainment, Passenger transportation, Books, private televisions channels, water supply, Real estate transactions, Supplies of housing in hotels, Goods originating from farms, animal feed products
- Reduced rate of 5.5% for sales of certain foodstuffs, supplies of electricity, gas, or energy, and equipment or accommodations for the disabled.
- Reduced rate of 2.1% for certain products reimbursed by the Social Security.
To find out about the rates valid in regions outside metropolitan France, click here (in French).
Other Consumption Taxes: Domestic consumption tax on petroleum products (TIPP)
Domestic consumption tax on natural gas (TICGN)
Domestic consumption tax on coal and lignite
Domestic tax on tobacco (snuff and for smoking), cigars and cigarettes.
Domestic consumption tax on beer
A 2% tax is imposed on hotel services exceeding EUR 200 per night.

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Corporate Taxes

Company Tax: 33,1/3%
Tax Rate For Foreign Companies: Foreign companies are taxed on the profits they make in France.
Capital Gains Taxation: Long term capital gains made by companies subject to corporate tax (IS) are not taxed.
Main Allowable Deductions and Tax Credit: Expenses are deductible for depreciation or amortization, reserves, rents for premises and equipment, wages, etc.
Tax credit exists for apprenticeships especially.
Other Corporate Taxes: From January 1st 2010 the Professional Tax was replaced by a Territorial Economic contribution levied for the profit of territorial governments. The Contribution Economique Territoriale (CET) is a local tax imposed by the departmental and regional councils on businesses to assist in the funding of local services and the Chambres de Commerce/Metiers.
A Flat rate annual tax (IFA) is also levied on companies.

Individual Taxes

Tax Rate

Personal income tax (IRPP)	Updated in the Loi de Finance 2011. Progressive rate up to 41%
Up to EUR 5,963	0%
Between EUR 5,963 and 11,896	5.5%
Between EUR 11,896 and 26,420	14%
Between EUR 26,420 and 70,830	30%
Above EUR 70,830	41%

Allowable Deductions and Tax Credit: Child care, consumer credit, tax credit for young people under 26 who take a job in certain industrial sectors or geographical areas in difficulty, etc. For additional information go to Cabinetgregory.
Special Expatriate Tax Regime: In France there is a special expatriate tax regime. It especially concerns health insurance and complementary retirement pension contributions and the possible exemptions. For further information, consult CIC website.

Double Taxation Treaties

Countries With Whom a Double Taxation Treaty Have Been Signed: France has signed fiscal conventions with over 112 countries in the world.
Withholding Taxes: Dividends: 25%, Interest: 18%, Royalties: 33.33%

Sources of Fiscal Information

Tax Authorities: Web portal of the French fiscal administration
Other Domestic Resources: The fiduciary review
Information on French taxes
CIC Bank information on the French Tax system

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Intellectual Property

National Organizations: The national institute of industrial property (INPI) for patents, trademarks, models and industrial designs.
The Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers of Music (SACEM), The National Union of Authors and Composers of music (SNAC), The Society of Stage Authors and Composers (SACD), The Society of Men of Letters (SGDL), The Civil Society of Multimedia Authors (SCAM), High Authority for the Distribution of Works and Protection of Rights on the Internet (HADOPI) etc., for royalties.
Regional Organizations: For the protection of patents: the European patent office
To control trademarks, designs and models: the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market
International Membership: Member of the WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization)
Signatory to the Paris Convention For the Protection of Intellectual Property

National Regulation and International Agreements

Type of property and law	Validity	International Agreements Signed
Patent Code of intellectual property	20 years	Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT)
Trademark Code of intellectual property	10 years renewable indefinitely	Trademark Law Treaty Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks
Design Code of intellectual property	25 years renewable once
Copyright Code of intellectual property	70 years after the death of its author for inheritance tax 50 years after the first publication for registration fees	Berne convention For the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works Convention for the Protection of Producers of Phonograms Against Unauthorized Duplication of Their Phonograms Rome ConventionFor the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations WIPO Copyright Treaty WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty
Industrial Models Edict n°2001-670 of 25 July 2001 incorporating into Community law the code of intellectual property and the code of the post and telecommunications	25 years renewable once

Legal Framework

Independence of Justice: Yes
Equal Treatment of Nationals and Foreigners: Yes
The Language of Justice: French
Recourse to an Interpreter: Possible
Sources of the Law and Legal Similarities: French law has various sources: the Constitution, laws voted by Parliament, ministerial decrees and orders, international conventions and treaties ratified by France.
Because France belongs to the European Union, national law conforms to the requirements of Community legislation.
There are legal similarities with all the countries whose law has come from Roman law.
Checking National Laws Online: The constitution in English

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Standards

National Standards Organizations: AFNOR, the French standardization association.
UTE, Electricity technical union.
ETSI, European Telecommunications Standards Institute.
Integration in the International Standards Network: At the European level:
- CEN, European Committee for Standardization
- CENELEC, European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization

At the international level:
- International Standards organization (ISO)
- International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)
Classification of Standards: NF is the national certification mark.
CE is the European certification mark. It is compulsory for a country to be able to sell on the market.
Online Consultation of Standards: The AFNOR on-line shop
The on-line catalog of European standards
The ISO catalog
The most important standardization programs
Certification Organizations: See the list of independent organizations which issue the NF mark with AFNOR accreditation.

Business Practices

General Information: Doing business In France
French culture, customs and etiquette
Guide to France
Opening Hours and Days: Saturday and Sunday closed, or only Sunday in shops.
Closed for the lunch break, which may be longer or shorter, between 12 noon and 2pm.

Public Holidays

New Year's Day	January 1
Easter Sunday and Monday	in March or April
Ascension	the sixth Thursday after Easter
Labor Day	May 1
Victory Day (end of the Second World War)	May 8
National Day	July 14
Assumption	August 15
All Saints	November 1
Armistice	November 11
Christmas Day	December 25

Periods When Companies Usually Close

Christmas holidays	Between Christmas Day and New Year's Day
Summer holidays	July or August according to the company

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France: Business Environment