Artist-author: affiliation and social system

Verified 03 May 2024 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

As an artist-author, you receive artistic revenues associated with the creation of works of the mind, whether in the writing, music, graphic and plastic arts, film and audiovisual, photography or even software industries.

As such, you benefit from a special social security scheme.

The majority of the artist-author's income is subject to social security scheme for artists and authors. It is necessary to distinguish between principal and ancillary income.

Main artistic revenues

All income from an author's artistic activity falls under the social security scheme for artists-authors. This includes income from the following activities :

  • Exercise or assignment of copyright : you can earn a remuneration in return for the exploitation of your work in the context of its reproduction or representation
  • Sale or rental of original works, including receipts from crowdfunding research in return for a work of equivalent value
  • Sale of copies of the work which you yourself are responsible for reproducing or distributing (self-distributing or self-publishing)
  • Award for a work : for example, in a competition
  • Award of scholarships the design, creation of a work or exhibition, participation in a competition or response to orders and calls for public or private projects (research grants, creative grants, production grants, residence grants, etc.)
  • Residences design or production of works
  • Participation in a jury with a selection or pre-selection work for the award of an award or an award to an artist-author
  • Public Playback of one or more of your works
  • Oral or written presentation of one or more of your works, including the presentation of the creative process
  • Dedication accompanied by the creation of a work
  • Design and animation from an original editorial collection.

Ancillary income

Ancillary income is remuneration derived from activities carried out as an extension of an artistic activity. This income is also subject to the social security scheme for artists and authors.

Ancillary revenues are revenues derived from next activities :

  • Public meetings and debates unrelated to your work: no reading, no presentation of the work or its creative process and no creative dedication
  • Course data in your workshop or passing on your know-how to your peers
  • Artistic or writing workshops
  • Participation in the design, development or shaping of another artist-author's work which does not constitute an original act of creation
  • Participation in governance bodies in his/her professional field (e.g. participation in a board of directors ofIrcec: titleContent or the SSAA: titleContent).

Ancillary remuneration must be declared separately other income on your annual social return. In addition, the artist-author must first have received and reported a principal artistic income for the current year or one of the previous 2 years.

Please note

From April 25, 2024, you will need to fill in step 2 of your return, your income (principal and incidental) and the nature of the work associated, from a drop-down list. The Urssaf explains how to report your different types of income.

Ancillary income is covered by the authors' social security scheme within a ceiling, i.e. 1200 times the hourly minimum wage applicable to 1er January of the current year. The annual amount of ancillary income must not exceed €13,980 in 2024. Allowances received for participation in governance bodies are not included in the calculation.

If the ceiling is exceeded, ancillary income will be subject to the self-employed scheme, and that from 1er euro of the share exceeding this ceiling.

As an artist-author, you are affiliated with the Social security for artists and authors as soon as your declaration of activity or as soon as a third party (e.g. publisher, producer, collective management organization, local authority, company) has paid you artistic remuneration.

The Social Security of Artists and Authors accompanies you and informs you about your rights and approaches in terms of social protection, benefits and aids.

Who shall I contact

  • Social security for artists-authors (Agessa and Maison des artistes)

    By telephone

    Monday to Friday: 9am to 5pm

    0 806 804 208 (price of a local call)

    By E-mail

    http://www.secu-artistes-auteurs.fr/contact

    By mail

    60 rue du Faubourg Poissonnière

    75010 Paris

Concretely, after your declaration of commencement of activity or the advance payment by a third party, the Social Security of Artist-Authors checks within 2 months that your activity falls within the scope of the artist-author. If this is the case, you will receive a letter attesting to your membership of the scheme.

As an artist-author, you declare your artistic income and pay your social contributions only with theUrssaf Limousin.

Annual income tax return

Every year, you must declare your artistic income for the past year to Urssaf Limousin. Whatever your situation, this social declaration is essential. It is used by the Urssaf for the calculation of your social base and the opening of your social rights.

Your social statement should always be consistent with your tax return.

In 2024, you have until 10 June 2024 to report income received in 2023, from your personal space.

Urssaf Limousin (Artists-authors)

Please note

From April 25, 2024, you will need to fill in step 2 of your return, your income (principal and incidental) and the nature of the work associated, from a drop-down list. The Urssaf explains how to report your different types of income.

Calculation and payment of social contributions

The arrangements for reporting and calculating the social base vary depending on your tax system: non-commercial profits (NBC) and/or wages and salaries (TS). Only copyright paid by third parties (publisher, producer, collective management organization, company) may be declared in salaries and wages.

You declare in BNC

It's you who pays your contributions and social contributions to the Urssaf every 3 months (15 January, 15 April, 15 July and 15 October).

To attest to this with third parties (publishers, producers, collective management organizations, companies...), the Urssaf then gives you an administrative certificate. You must provide a copy of this document to each third party.

If you are in micro-BNC, your social base corresponds to amount of your turnover declared to the Urssaf. One abatement of 34%, then a increase in 15% shall be applied.

Example :

You declare €10,000 at the Urssaf, your social base is €7,590.

If you are in BNC (controlled return), your social base is amount of your profit (or your deficit) declared to the Urssaf. One increase in 15% to your benefit is applied.

Example :

You declare €10,000 at the Urssaf, your social base is €11,500.

You declare in TS

The third party (publishers, producers, collective management organizations, company...) prepayment social contributions at the time of remuneration and return the sums directly to the Urssaf.

Concretely, the advance payment corresponds to the deduction made from your remuneration by the third party who pays your social security contributions on your behalf. As such, the third party will provide you with a certificate of advance payment contributions that you must keep.

In salaries and wages, your social base corresponds to gross amount excluding tax of your income declared to the Urssaf.

Example :

You declare €10,000 at the Urssaf, your social base is €10,000.

The 2 (BNC + TS)

For income declared for tax purposes in salaries and wages, third parties (publishers, producers, collective management organizations, companies...) deduct contributions and social contributions at the time of payment and pay the sums directly to the Urssaf.

Concretely, the advance payment corresponds to the deduction made from your remuneration by the third party who pays your social security contributions on your behalf. As such, the third party will provide you with a certification of withholding tax on contributions that you must retain.

In salaries and wages, your social base corresponds to gross amount net of tax of your income declared to the Urssaf.

Example :

You declare €10,000 at the Urssaf, your social base is €10,000.

In parallel, for income declared for tax purposes under the non-commercial profits (BNC) is you who pays your contributions and social contributions to the Urssaf every 3 months (15 January, 15 April, 15 July and 15 October).

To attest to this with third parties (publishers, producers, collective management organizations, companies...), the Urssaf then gives you an administrative certificate. You must provide a copy of this document to each third party.

If you are in micro-BNC, your social base corresponds to the amount of your revenue declared to the Urssaf. One abatement of 34%, then a increase of 15% shall be applied.

Example :

You declare €10,000 at the Urssaf, your social base is €7,590.

If you are in BNC (audited declaration), your social base corresponds to the amount of your profit (or deficit) declared to the Urssaf. One increase in 15% to your benefit is applied.

Example :

You declare €10,000 at the Urssaf, your social base is €11,500.

Thus, your overall social base artist-author corresponds to the sum of the 2 social bases (BNC + TS).

Once your social base has been determined, the amount of contributions payable is calculated after application of rates following:

  • Social security : 0.40% (fully supported by the State)
  • Capped old-age insurance : 6.90% (of which 0.75% supported by the State). The social base is limited to €46,368. The contribution is therefore at most €2,853for 2024 revenues.
  • Generalized social contribution (CSG) 9.20% (of which 6.80% tax deductible)
  • Contribution to the repayment of social debt (CRDS): 0.50%
  • Contribution to continuing vocational training (MFF): 0.35%

Please note

CSG and CRDS are calculated on 98.25% of the social base if the remuneration of the artist-author does not exceed 4 times the annual ceiling of social security, i.e 185,472 in 2024. They are calculated on 100% of the part exceeding that ceiling.

Artist-writers are affiliated with the social security scheme for artists and authors, attached to the general scheme.

This affiliation allows you to benefit from the same social insurance benefits as employees.

On the other hand, you are subject to the social protection of the self-employed in respect of accidents at work or unemployment insurance.

You also benefit from a specific supplementary pension scheme.

Sickness, maternity, paternity, disability and death insurance

You benefit from the covering your healthcare costs as a result of the exercise of a professional activity on French territory.

You also benefit of daily allowances in case of interruption of your activity (due to sickness, maternity/paternity or disability), provided that you are up to date in the payment of your contributions. You must also demonstrate at least equal income in a calendar year to €6,990.

Deprivation of employment

The status of artist-author does not allow you no access to unemployment benefits, your income is not treated as wages. However, if you meet the conditions, you can take advantage of theself-employed person's allowance.

Compulsory supplementary retirement

Membership of the general scheme as an artist-author, irrespective of the professional branch, entails membership of one or more supplementary pension schemes managed by the Supplementary Educational and Creative Pension Institution (IRCEC).

All artist-writers are affiliated with a common system : the professional artist-writer scheme (RAAP), provided that their artistic income received in the preceding calendar year (year N-1) was at least equal to €10,143.

Below this threshold, membership of the RAAP is optional and is made at the request of the author-artist.

Depending on the nature of your business, you also note of one of the following schemes:

  • Regime of dramatic authors and composers (RACD): from 1er euro of copyright collected through an audiovisual or live performance activity.
  • Regime of lyrical authors and composers (RACL): for authors and composers of musical works and dubbing dialoguists who have reached the affiliation threshold. To contribute to the RACL in 2024, your 2023 copyright must have reached €3,089.54.

The IRCEC provides you with a tool to determine according to your activity to which supplementary pension scheme(s) you are affiliated.

Please note

You can also consult a guide to the supplementary retirement of artists and authors.

Who can help me?

Find who can answer your questions in your region

  • Urssaf Limousin (Artists-authors)

    By email

    https://www.artistes-auteurs.urssaf.fr/aa/accueil

    By mail

    Urssaf Limousin

    Artists and Authors - TSA 70009

    93517 MONTREUIL CEDEX

  • Social security for artists-authors (Agessa and Maison des artistes)

    By telephone

    Monday to Friday: 9am to 5pm

    0 806 804 208 (price of a local call)

    By E-mail

    http://www.secu-artistes-auteurs.fr/contact

    By mail

    60 rue du Faubourg Poissonnière

    75010 Paris

  • Supplementary education and creative retreat (Ircec)

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