A liberal profession is a professional activity carried out independently. It consists in the performance of intellectual, technical or care services in the interest of the client or the patient. In fact, these are all professions that are not commercial, artisanal, industrial or agricultural.

There is no specific list of all liberal professions.

For more information on regulated and non-regulated professions, please visit:

Liberal, regulated and regulated professions

Companies Branch (DGE)

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Some liberal professions are regulated. This means that they have the following specific features:

• The rules of operation and organization of the profession are defined by law or a statutory instrument: they have a “legislative or regulatory status”.
• The use of title is protected. For example, a person who is practicing the profession of psychologist without having the required qualifications is committing an act of impersonation. This is an offense punishable by imprisonment and a fine.
• They are subject to ethical principles or professional ethics. For example, lawyers or architects must comply with a number of rules that are set out in a code of conduct.
• Compliance with the rules of the profession is controlled by a professional body : professional order, professional chamber, trade union. For example, the Council of the Order of Architects ensures compliance with the code of ethics and can issue disciplinary sanctions (e.g. warning, reprimand, suspension or removal from the Order's roster).

Since 1^er september 2024, the regulated liberal professions are organized into three families:

• Health professions
• Legal or judicial professions
• Technical and living professions of the other liberal professions

Health professions

Health professions include, but are not limited to, the following medical and other health professions:

• Doctor
• Dental surgeon
• Midwife
• Pharmacist
• Physical therapist
• Dietitian

Legal or judicial professions

The list of legal or judicial professions is established by decree. It includes the following professions:

• Notary
• Commissioner of Justice
• Lawyer and lawyer at the Council of State and the Court of Cassation
• Administrator and court representative
• Registrar of Commercial Courts

Technical and living environment professions

This category includes the other liberal professions. These include the following professions:

• Accountant
• External auditor
• Surveyor-expert
• Industrial Property Consulting
• Architect

The liberal professional practices in one of the following ways:

• Only: individual entrepreneur
• In business (by being alone or with several partners)
• As an association or group

Exercise only: sole trader (in his own name)

The sole trader carries out one or more regulated activities in his own name.

It has a professional heritage that is separate from personal heritage. This separation allows him to protect his personal assets during the period of his activity.

The liberal professional can choose the micro-company tax system when the turnover is less than €77,700. However, the micro-social scheme is not applicable in most cases. It is reserved for regulated professions under Cipav (e.g. architect, mountain guide, osteopath, psychologist, etc.)

Before starting his activity, the individual contractor must first register with the organization to which he belongs: professional order (order of architects, order of veterinarians, order of doctors, etc.), professional chamber, trade union.

Once the organization has validated the registration, the entrepreneur can proceed with its registration at the company formalities office:

Company Formalities Window

Individual business For complete steps to create a dedicated card.

Exercise in business

To practice a regulated profession, a liberal professional may choose one of the following businesses:

• Professional Civil business (PCS) : it enables the same regulated liberal profession or several regulated professions to be practiced together. However, this social form is not open only to certain liberal professions whose members have been expressly authorized by decree to group into PCS: these include architects, lawyers, justice commissioners, public accountants, etc.
  For a complete list of occupations authorized to practice as PCS, see the dedicated card.
• Liberal Exercise business (SEL) : for the exercise of a regulated liberal profession, there are four possible types of commercial business of liberal practice:
  
  • SELARL (business of liberal practice with limited liability) and SELARLU (business of liberal practice with single-person limited liability)
  • SELAS (simplified liberal share business) and SELASU (single-person simplified liberal share business)
  • SELAFA (anonymous liberal exercise business)
  • SELCA (Liberal limited partnership business)
  
  Decrees specific to each profession may determine or complete the conditions for the application of SEL. Decrees have been issued for the following professions: administrators and judicial agents, lawyers, lawyers at the Council of State and the Court of Cassation, commissioners of justice (formerly called judicial auctioneers and bailiffs), industrial property consultants, registrars of commercial courts, notaries.
• Multi-professional business of practice (SPE) : it allows the exercise of several liberal professions regulated in the same business. This type of business is available to the following regulated professions: lawyer, lawyer at the Conseil d’État and the Cour de cassation, public accountant, commissioner of justice, notary, court administrator, judicial agent, industrial property consultant, auditor, surveyor-expert. The SPE may be of different types: limited liability company (SARL), public limited liability company (SA), simplified share business (SAS), limited partnership (SCA).
• Business for participation : it allows the exercise of a regulated profession. It is not registered and does not have legal personality. It therefore has no heritage of its own.

Before commencing its activity, the business must first register with the organization to which it belongs: professional order (order of architects, order of veterinarians, order of doctors, etc.), professional chamber, trade union. Once the registration has been validated, she can register with the company's formalities office:

Company Formalities Window

Exercise in the form of an association or grouping

Professionals who do not wish to work as part of a business have specific formulae for association or grouping. They are often offered by their professional association.

This is one of the following forms:

• Civil business of Medium (SCM) : regulated professions may constitute a civil business of means (CMS) for pooling the means of exploitation (sharing of staff, pooling of professional equipment) necessary for their professional activity. The SCM does not allow the exercise of an activity but it facilitates the exercise of the profession. The partners pool certain means of operating their business in order to reduce its cost. They retain complete independence as regards their professional activity: there is neither profit-sharing nor a common clientele but only contribution to common costs.
• Joint Exercise Agreement : it is a contract concluded between two or more professionals to reduce exercise costs and to provide customers with continuous service by arranging replacements (notably for the health sector).
• Common-cost exercise contract : this contract is for the pooling of professional expenses without sharing of fees. This type of agreement is akin to a civil business of means (SCM), but the formula is more flexible because no business is set up to manage the means of exercising the profession. On the other hand, the common-cost exercise contract may have a wider purpose than the civil business of means: it may provide for the organization of replacements.
• Contract of liberal collaboration : contract by which a settled professional makes available to a colleague (the liberal collaborator) the premises and equipment necessary for the exercise of the profession and generally the clientele attached to it. The Liberal staffer works with a portion of the professional's clientele. It must also have the opportunity to develop its own clientele. The settled practitioner receives a percentage fee on the fees received by the collaborator. This type of contract is used by the medical professions (in particular dental surgeons) and by lawyers. Liberal worker status is excluded for the following professions: ministerial public officers (notaries, commissioners of justice, etc.), auditors, judicial administrators and judicial agents for the recovery and liquidation of companies.

The pursuit of a regulated profession requires the possession of a professional qualification: evidence of formal qualifications, diploma or professional experience. Where a national of the European Union (EU) , of theEuropean Economic Area (EEA) or of a third country wishing to pursue a regulated liberal activity in France, he must apply for recognition of his professional qualifications or for authorization to pursue his profession in France. This amounts to having his training and/or professional experience officially recognized in France. There are over 250 regulated professions.

When the European national wishes to settle professionally in France, this is called freedom of establishment. Certain professions can also be exercised temporarily or occasionally: this is called the freedom to provide services or "LPS".