Create a company: Check if the proposed activity is regulated

Verified 01 September 2024 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

Regardless of the legal form of the company set up, it is imperative to ascertain whether the proposed activity is regulated.

An activity is regulated when it is subject to conditions of access and/or conditions of exercise or operation.

A regulated activity can be commercial, artisanal or liberal.

In the craft sector, a list of activities requiring a professional qualification is available.

In the liberal field, regulated professions are divided into three families: health professions, legal or judicial professions, and technical and living environment professions. For more information on regulated professions, please see the dedicated card.

Example :

  • Regulated commercial activities: real estate agent, buralist, etc.
  • Regulated craft activities: hairdresser, baker, etc.
  • Regulated liberal activities: architect, mountain guide, psychologist, etc.

Conditions of access

If the proposed activity is regulated, all the conditions for access must be verified before the activity starts.

They are varied and depend on the profession. These include:

  • Diploma requirements
  • Conditions of professional experience
  • Conditions for prior training
  • Minimum age requirements
  • Conditions of good repute (for example, not having been convicted by a French or foreign court)
  • Financial conditions (for example, having a minimum amount of capital)

Example :

To open a hairdressing salon, you must have a BEP hairdressing certificate, a master's degree in hairdressing or a diploma approved or registered in the national register of professional certifications. Find all the required conditions on our dedicated card.

At the time of registration of the company, the company formalities office request to provide all supporting documents.

FYI  

Where a national of the European Union (EU) or the European Economic Area (EEA) If he wishes to carry out a regulated liberal activity in France, he must apply for recognition of his professional qualifications or for authorization to practice in France. There are over 250 regulated professions.

Conditions for the exercise

Unlike the access conditions that must be met before starting the activity, the exercise conditions will be checked in operation.

These exercise conditions may be as follows:

  • Continuing education and training requirements
  • Fitness requirement
  • Condition for keeping one or more registers
  • Condition for regular reporting to one or more administrations
  • Condition for taking out one or more insurances

Example :

One second-hand dealer must keep a police register during the exercise of his activity.

In case of non-compliance with these conditions, sanctions may be incurred.

Warning  

Additional rules (hygiene, storage of products, safety, reception of the public, etc.) must often be respected in the exercise of certain activities.

There is no exhaustive list regulated activities.

However, to check if the proposed activity is regulated, you can consult the following directory:

Search for regulated activities or professions

You can find all the conditions of access and exercise of the following regulated professions on our website:

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