GDP growth is projected to edge up to 1.6% by 2018, as tax cuts and faster job growth support stronger private consumption.

Economic growth is projected to gain momentum in 2015 and 2016. Lower energy prices, improving financial conditions, slowing fiscal consolidation, strengthening external demand and a pro-competitive reform agenda should underpin an increase in consumption and export volumes. Stabilizing energy prices and euro depreciation will raise the price level, although persistent and significant economic slack will continue to put downward pressure on inflation. However, weak business confidence is still weighing on investment, implying a delayed pick-up in hiring and only a marginal decline in unemployment.

Economic growth is projected to gain momentum in 2015 and 2016. Lower energy prices, improving financial conditions, slowing fiscal consolidation, strengthening external demand and a pro-competitive reform agenda should underpin an increase in consumption and export volumes. Stabilizing energy prices and euro depreciation will raise the price level, although persistent and significant economic slack will continue to put downward pressure on inflation. However, weak business confidence is still weighing on investment, implying a delayed pick-up in hiring and only a marginal decline in unemployment.

Doing Business in France is prepared by U.S. Embassy Staff in France once a year and contains information on Doing Business in France. As the world’s fifth largest economy, centrally located within the European Union, there is strong competition for market share in all French industrial and service sectors. American exporters to France generally face more competition from European companies than from Asian ones. Positioned at the heart of the world’s largest market, France offers a favorable economic environment to potential exporters.

Business confidence among French manufacturers decreased to 103 in October of 2015 from 104 in the previous month, matching market expectations.

Doing Business in France is prepared by U.S. Embassy Staff in France once a year and contains information on Doing Business in France. As the world’s fifth largest economy, centrally located within the European Union, there is strong competition for market share in all French industrial and service sectors. American exporters to France generally face more competition from European companies than from Asian ones. Positioned at the heart of the world’s largest market, France offers a favorable economic environment to potential exporters.

Business confidence among French manufacturers decreased to 103 in October of 2015 from 104 in the previous month, matching market expectations.

Types of Business Structure in France

Expert answers and advice on starting or running a small business in France

A crucial decision to be made before you can register your business and start trading is the type of structure or entity that will best suit your business. 

Welcome to our comprehensive Guide to Starting a Business in France, your indispensable on-line resource to the formalities of running a French business, including information on French taxation and French social security contributions for a business. Many expats choose to establish a micro-enterprise, which we also review in this guide, together with the more recent business status of auto-entrepreneur. We also consider other business structures, and the formalities of business registration in France.

Once you have decided to start a business, then you need to register the new business with the authorities. If you are not proposing to set up a separate company then the registration process is very easy and cheap, as you merely need to go along to your local business registration centre to do so. This website provides information on how and where to register your business.

The company formation procedure in France is usually based on document gathering and other procedures such as drafting the articles of association, the specimen signatures, affidavits and other special forms, as well as performing public notary procedures and certified translations. Usually, a French registered office is also required for starting a company in France in order to have a mailing address to communicate to the partners and French authorities. Opening a bank account and hiring a local accountant are also required for setting up a company in France. A video is provided on how you can set up a company in France.

Company Taxation in France – Impôts sur les societés. Company tax in France is called Impôts sur les societés .Under the system of company taxation a distinction is made between income of the company and income of the owner. The rate of company tax depends on the turnover and capital structure of the business. If the capital was provided by the owners and at least 75% continues to be held by individuals then the rate of taxation is 15% for profits up to €38,120 per annum and 33% thereafter.

This website provides information needed to calculate your French Income Tax Liability. The site provides information needed to determine Composition of Household, Income Tax Rates, Income Tax Allowances, and Income Tax Credits.

The Personal Income Tax Rate in France stands at 50.30 percent. Personal Income Tax Rate in France averaged 52.91 percent from 1995 until 2014, reaching an all time high of 59.60 percent in 1996 and a record low of 45.80 percent in 2006.

Website contains list of the four different French Value Added Tax Rates.

This guide is aimed at employers. We apologise for lack of any French immigration guides optimised for employees, agents, or investors

French Government website for getting a visa for travel and for work.

Depending on the purpose of your travel to France, there are different types of visas that will apply to the occasion. Whether you are planning to go on a visit, study or work and reside permanently you will have to apply for a different Schengen visa, accordingly.

If you wish to work in France, you might need a work permit. Only EU-nationals do not need a work permit – with some exceptions.

France enjoys one of the most sophisticated infrastructures in the world, developed through the govern-ment’s heavy investment in the field and made possible by advanced technology.

France’s telecommunication system is highly developed. France is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to foreign countries.

France has the third largest telecoms market in Europe. The incumbent, France Telecom (Orange), is one of the world’s major players with interests in markets across Europe and francophone Africa. 

French Government overview of their country’s transportation and telecommunication infrastructure.

Social Security contributions from both employers and employees is described on this webpage. The webpage contains a table with all if the employer and employee Social Security rates including Family Benefits, Health/Sickness, Social Charges (CSG/CRDS, etc.), Accident at Work, Unemployment, Main Pension, Complementary Pension and Total.

In France, the legal length of the working week is 35 hours in all types of companies. The working day may not exceed 10 hours. Furthermore, employees may not work for more than 4.5 hours without a break. The maximum working day may be extended to 12 hours under a collective agreement.

You must enter into a contract under French labour law and employees enjoy extensive rights. It’s also very expensive to hire employees: in addition to salaries, you must pay a 13th month’s salary, five weeks’ paid annual holiday and 40 to 60 per cent in social security contributions, although there are reductions for hiring certain categories of unemployed people.

Hiring employees shouldn’t be taken lightly in France and must be taken into account before starting a business. There are around 1.4 million companies in France without employees – and not without reason, as many successful small businesses become less so as soon as they start to recruit!

Basic information on French employment laws. It is imperative that companies who are already doing business in France and companies who are considering doing business in France be aware of the country’s strict employment and labor laws as they apply to employment contracts, wage and hour, terminations and anti-harassment and discrimination laws. The purpose of this article is to provide a brief overview of some of the basic principles of employment law in France and to inform employers of recent developments in potential labor reform.

Health. maternity. disability. death. solidarity autonomy insurance

This website provides a table of values for the Cost of Living in France as well as a table of the cost indexes. The lists of prices include food, restaurants, transportation, groceries, utilities, clothing, rent and leisure.

Better Life Index for France. Better Life Index (BLI),[2] launched in May 2011, is an interactive tool that allows people to compare countries’ performances according to their own preferences in terms of what makes for a better life. It includes 11 “dimensions” of well-being: Housing, Income, Jobs/earnings, Community, Education, Environment, Governance, Health, Life Satisfaction, Safety, and Work-Life Balance.

Yet like any country, it has its share of crooks, pickpockets, thieves and even mere opportunists, who can turn a traveler’s dream into a nightmare.

The French education system is split into three stages: primary school (école), secondary school (collège) and high school (lycée). Primary and secondary education is free, neutral, secular and compulsory between the ages of 6 and 16. However, there are some private schools that are not subject to these obligations and particularities of the French education system.

Website provides an overview of French customs, traditions and culture. There are sections on language, religion, values, cuisine, clothing, art, holidays and celebrations.

Business communication in France. First impressions are very important to the French, and may have a strong impact on the outcome of your business relationship. There are a number of verbal and non-verbal communication issues you should consider when doing business in France. Gift-giving among business associates is not common practice in France. To express appreciation to a French business contact, it may be better to host a special(more)

Guide to doing business in France. French customs, protocol and etiquette. Doing business abroad brings with it cross cultural challenges. Prior to travelling to another country it is the norm not to consider factors such as differences in etiquette, business practices, negotiation techniques and business protocol….

When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” You’ve heard it so often that you may no longer pay attention to what it means. Yet in this age of globalization it’s as true as ever. Conversing with people from other countries over the Internet is one thing; living overseas requires tact and cultural insight. The following dos and don’ts will help you avoid some of the more common faux pas, but keeping your eyes open and observing local manners and traditions is the only way to avoid gaffes.

Three types of climate may be found within France: oceanic, continental, and Mediterranean.

A popular year-round destination, France has an affable climate with long hot summers and cool winters, which bring snow to higher ground.

Security and travel information from the US Embassy in Paris

The French University System. The French higher education system is made up of several different types of establishment, which may be in either the public or the private (…)

A listing of the eleven national holidays (including Bastille Day – July 14) and observances

A 2014 demographic profile of France

France, or the French Republic, is located in western Europe, with many overseas regions and territories. Metropolitan France extends from the English Channel and North Sea to the Mediterranean Sea and from the Atlantic Ocean to the Rhine, bordering Luxembourg, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, Spain,Andorra, and Monaco.

A complete list of France public holidays for 2015 and 2016.

French school life and the France education system explained.

France Customs regulations and procedures for importing and exporting goods at French border. Duty free items, import-export restrictions.

Government Customs website

In the current world context marked by the growing interconnection of economic and financial ties between players and the establishment of global supply chains, French and European businesses are de facto increasingly obliged to trade and/or invest on foreign markets. 

A relocation checklist to guide you through the first steps of moving to France, as well as advice for repatriation.

Experience French life at its finest. Choose from a wide variety of French holiday rentals and long term lets. 

French Tourism official site with information on Air, Train, Bus, Ferry, Public, Taxis and Car transportation information.