How to test your activity in an activity and employment cooperative (CAE)?

Verified 20 February 2024 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

You are future entrepreneur or at the very beginning of your young company. The activity and employment cooperative (EAC) allows you to test your activity while being employed by this cooperative. It offers a personalized accompaniment.

The EAC: titleContent of companies is a full-scale test of your project.

You are a "test contractor".

You sign a contract with the EAC and become salaried worker during the test period.

The EAC deals with administrative tasks. This allows you to focus solely on growing your business.

It is for you if you are in any of the following situations:

  • You are job seeker who has been compensated
  • You have an income social minima (RSA: titleContent, SSA: titleContent, etc.)
  • You are part-time employee

All types of activity are possible except the following:

  • Activities requiring commercial premises, commercial leases
  • Activities regulated

Please note

To find out whether an activity is regulated or not, you can visit our following page: “ Create a company: Check if the proposed activity is regulated ”.

The co-op will allows you to :

  • Make your market study and finalize your business plan
  • Have legal existence (a unique identification number Siren and Siret), actual billing, etc.
  • Delegate your accounting, administrative and management tasks
  • Focus on growing your business
  • Test your capacity to be head of company (real life situation)
  • Access professional networks
  • Be trained by experts

In a CAE, you test your activity by cost-saving following:

Similarly, you don't pay the TEC (territorial economic contribution).

At the beginning of your test period in a CAE

By joining a cooperative, you must sign a contract.

It is often a company project support contract, known as Cape.

You test your business by benefiting from support during a period of 6 to 18 months.

Please note

It is not an employment contract but it allows you to have social protection.

If the start of the test is conclusive and you continue the test in the EAC

If your business is profitable, you become salaried worker and sign a associate employee contractor (ASEC) contract with the co-op. This contract is for an indefinite period.

You're committing follow a company creation, recovery or management program.

To identify yourself to your customers and suppliers, you will use the Siret number EAC.

You can sell and bill your services or goods to your customers using your trade name.

You benefit from a social protection during the contract Cape: titleContent and during the contract ASEC: titleContent.

These are paid leave, occupational sickness and accident benefits, unemployment insurance and retirement benefits.

Please note

You keep your registration at France Labor (formerly Pôle emploi) during the contract Cape: titleContent.

You continue to collect your allowances during this contract.

Then if you continue with a contract ASEC: titleContent, you are no longer registered with France Travail.

This is a support over a period of 1-3 years.

After up to 3 years, you need to make a decision:

  • If you stay in the EAC, you must become one associate. You then participate in all the decisions of the shared company (for example, the choice of shared services for administrative, accounting and commercial follow-up).
  • If you leave the EAC, you can either build your companyor terminate your company project.

Please note

You may leave the EAC at any time.

At the beginning of the test, with a Cape contract

You receive a fee, which is a financial assistance.

It's not a salary.

If you continue the test with a Cesa contract

You receive a salary composed of 2 parts:

  • A fixed share is paid each month after deduction of the social security contributions related to your activity
  • A variable share depends on your turnover

Your turnover is paid directly into the bank account of the EAC: titleContent.

It makes a contribution on your turnover, on average of 10%, for the services it offers (accounting, pay, training, etc.).

You must attend a group introductory meeting.

Then you have to to prepare a dossier to present your project.

The case is examined by the EAC.

If your file is accepted, the co-op will have you sign a accompanying agreement.

To find a CAE, you can use thesearch tool next line:

Where to find an activity and employment cooperative (CAE)?

You can contact directly the EAC Federation :

You can also contact France Travail (formerly Pôle emploi).

Who can help me?

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