How should a craftsman make his declaration of activity?

Verified 23 January 2025 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

Declaring your company is mandatory within 15 days maximum after the activity begins. The formality is carried out online on the one-stop shop for companies. The craftsman must attach his diplomas, diplomas or professional qualifications. He receives in return the identifiers of his company (Siren, Siret, APE).

Step-by-step approach

The conditions differ according to the nationality of the applicant.

French

The quality of craftsman can be obtained if the activity is craftsmanship or craftsmanship.

It must be a production, processing, repair or service activity relating to crafts.

Please note

To find out whether or not an activity is a craft activity, you can consult the list of craft trades and the list of crafts.

The company must also have fewer than 11 employees. More than 10 employees, the activity is then considered as commercial.

The declarant must be able to justify his competence in a craft trade either by a diploma, a certification or a training :

Contractor not to have been sentenced to prohibition on managing (subscription to the FNIG: titleContent).

Please note

If the contractor is working with his or her spouse or Civil partnership partner, he or she must make a declaration that defines a status for the spouse and meets certain criteria.

European

Conditions differ depending on whether the craft profession is regulated or not.

Regulated Profession

If the entrepreneur is from a country of the European Union or the European Economic Area (EEA), it must meet one of the following two conditions:

  • Have a diploma, one certificate or a certificate preparing them for the pursuit of a craft trade
  • Or have practiced that occupation for Minimum 3 years as the head of a company self-employed person or employee.

Please note

To find out whether or not an activity is a craft activity, you can consult the list of craft trades and the list of crafts.

Any diploma or certificate written in a foreign language must be accompanied by a translation into french certified to conform to the original by a translator sworn.

Non-regulated profession

The quality of craftsman can be obtained if the activity is craftsmanship or craftsmanship.

It must be a production, processing, repair or service activity relating to crafts.

Please note

To find out whether or not an activity is a craft activity, you can consult the list of craft trades and the list of crafts.

The company must also have fewer than 11 employees. More than 10 employees, the activity is then considered as commercial.

The declarant must be able to justify his competence in a craft trade either by a diploma, a certification or a training :

Contractor not to have been sentenced to prohibition on managing (subscription to the FNIG: titleContent).

Please note

If the contractor is working with his or her spouse or Civil partnership partner, he or she must report, define status, and meet criteria depending on the status of the spouse.

Foreigner

If the foreigners national wishes to pursue a craft activity in France for more than 3 months, he must have a residence permit authorizing the pursuit of a professional activity.

Formalities for the registration of companies with the NNE

Registration (or registration) in the National company Register (NRE) as a company in the trades and crafts sector, is mandatory to practice a craft trade as a self-employed person.

If the activity is also of a commercial nature, the company will automatically be listed on the 2 directories: RNE: titleContent and SCR: titleContent.

FYI  

The business register (RM) has been replaced since 1er January 2023 by the National Register of companies (NRS).

This reporting obligation shall apply irrespective of the legal form chosen for the company individual business (in person, micro-company or business).

The registrant must have chosen the legal form of the company before registering. This implies that he also made the choice of his domiciliation and its denomination.

Please note

For information on the steps required to register a company, please consult the folder for the steps involved in creating a company.

The registrant must register the company as soon as possible 1 month before the start of the activity and at the latest within 15 days after the activity begins.

The approach is free.

Warning  

Since 1er january 2023, it is no longer possible to carry out your procedures in a company Formalities Center (CFE). You must make them on the website of the company formalities office.

Company Formalities Window

The declarant shall create personal account. Then he has to click on the column “ Company ” and then click on “File a company”. One interactive online form of 8 pages is proposed to him; he has to fill it step by step. A user manual is available on this Single Window website.

The registrant must digitize and then upload the supporting documents following:

The companies Formalities Window sends the declarant a acknowledgement of the file. If a document is missing, he is informed and has a 15-day period renewable once to transmit the missing voucher.

The company Formalities Window keeps this data for a maximum of 3 years (the information in the declaration and the supporting documents provided).

Warning  

Extract D1 no longer exists. The registrant may download an excerpt or proof of registration at RNE: titleContent :

  • or on the website of Data inpi.fr:

Search for proof of company registration

  • or on the company Directory website:

Company Directory: Find all information in a company

If the craftsman wishes to practice as micro-entrepreneur (or self-employed person), he must be familiar with the schemes micro-fiscal and micro-social.

If the craftsman plans to practice his trade in a traveling (e.g. at markets, fairs), specific conditions apply.

Formalities for Modifying a Situation

All change of situation (e.g. change of address, name or spouse) must be reported within1 month on the website of Single window for company formalities.

Company Formalities Window

Accompaniment by the Chamber of Crafts and Crafts

The Chamber of Crafts and Crafts (CMA)from each region is the interlocutor of the craftsmen. The advisers of the CMA: titleContent are there for accompany and advisor in their efforts.

They can be reached by telephone or by mail :

Once the registration is done, the craftsman receives the company identification numbers.

He receives a Siren number. This is the unique identification number of the company aslegal unit. It must be mentioned during all procedures (quotes, invoices, etc.).

The number Siret is thegeographical identifier of each of the company's establishments. If there is only one establishment, it then receives only 1 Siret number. This number will be requested very often during the procedures.

The EPA code (also called NAF code) is the identifier specific to the main activity company.

Example :

The APE code for the activity of is 96.02A

The APE code for the baking activity is 10.71B

The installation readiness course (SPI) is now optional.

However, the craftsman can do it if he wishes.

He must have registered his company beforehand.

He must then apply to the CMA: titleContent on which he depends.

The course lasts about 30 hours over 4 or 5 days. The craftsman receives a certificate at the end of the internship.

Topics covered include:

  • artisanal company and its environment
  • Business management (market research, invoicing)
  • Legal structure (Head of company responsibility, legal status)
  • Tax regime (VAT, tax regime)
  • Social status (status of self-employed person - SST, employed spouse, social protection)
  • Company management (financial studies, profit and loss account)

The cost of the internship is approximately €194.

The craftsman can also ask the CMA: titleContent financial assistance for the internship. Some CMAs organize the course remotely, online.

Who shall I contact

A craftsman must pay the tax CMA: titleContent it is registered in the National company Register (NRE) as a company in the trades and crafts sector.

The calculation of this CMA fee evolves every year. One specific calculation applies to micro-entrepreneurs.

The CMA tax consists of a fixed tax and an additional tax.

He's paying for it additional fee only if he's already paying the company property tax (CFE). The settlement is made at the same time as the CFE.

Craftsmen working alone and those whose gross turnover excluding taxes is less than €5,000, pay only the fixed fee.

Company Formalities Window

Who can help me?

The public service accompanying companies

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