Payroll in France

French payroll is monthly. The general rule is one payment each month, at the same period each month. There is no single statutory payment date, so agree the payday in the contract or offer and keep it consistent. Employees who are not paid monthly, including temporary agency employees, generally need payment at least twice a month at intervals of no more than 15 days. Confirm the rule for the actual arrangement before you set up the pay calendar.

Payslips and deductions

The payslip should show gross pay, the employee deductions and net pay as separate lines. Employee social contributions are separate from employer charges, and each has its own contribution base. The general 2026 social-security ceiling is EUR 4,005 per month or EUR 48,060 per year. Some charges use that ceiling, some a multiple of it, and some apply to all covered pay.

Employee deductions include basic pension at 6.90% up to the ceiling and 0.40% on all covered pay. CSG, CRDS, supplementary pension and any employee health-plan share also apply, each with its own base and exceptions. Employer rates before relief include health insurance at 13%, family allowances at 5.25%, and unemployment at 4% within its ceiling. Supplementary pension, accident insurance and other levies are additional, so there is no single universal employer total. From 1 January 2026 the RGDU reform generally replaces the former reduced health and family rates, and it is calculated on the January 2026 SMIC reference.

Withholding and remittance

Income tax is withheld at the rate the tax administration notifies for the employee. It is not a flat deduction, and the 2026 assessment scale has marginal bands from 0% to 45% that depend on household tax shares. The dossier does not set out remittance deadlines for contributions or withholding, so confirm the filing calendar and channel for your employer category with the social-security and tax authorities before the first pay run. Keep the employee payday and the remittance dates as separate entries in your payroll calendar.

Working time that affects pay

The legal full-time reference is 35 hours per week. It is not an absolute maximum. General adult limits are 10 hours a day, 48 in a week and a 44-hour average over 12 consecutive weeks, subject to authorised exceptions. The adult SMIC from 1 June 2026 is EUR 12.31 gross per hour, or EUR 1,867.02 a month for the 35-hour week. Apply any higher collective-agreement minimum.

Without a different valid collective provision, the first 8 overtime hours in a week carry 25% extra pay and later hours 50%. A collective rate must be at least 10%. Compensatory rest and annual-quota rules can apply. Employees on a valid forfait jours arrangement follow different rules, with an ordinary annual limit of 218 days.

France does not have a single flat rate for income tax on salary. Employees pay tax on a progressive scale, and payroll withholds it using a rate supplied by the tax administration. Social contributions are a separate set of deductions with their own rates and bases.

Income tax bands

The 2026 assessment scale, which applies to 2025 income, has 5 bands with marginal rates from 0% to 45%. The top marginal rate is 45%. The dossier does not give the band thresholds, so check the current official scale before quoting any band limit to an employee. The scale also depends on household tax shares, so it is not a flat payroll deduction and not a final tax schedule for salary earned in 2026.

How withholding works

Payroll applies the withholding rate that the tax administration communicates for each employee. You do not work it out from the scale yourself. Two employees on the same salary can have different rates because household circumstances differ. Confirm with your payroll provider how the rate is received and updated, and apply the rate valid for each payment.

Allowances and credits

The dossier does not list specific allowances or tax credits. The household tax share system is the main driver of differences between employees. Ask your payroll provider which personal deductions and credits are reflected in each employee's rate.

Employee social deductions

Employee social contributions are about 11.31% of gross pay overall. They are withheld from pay and are separate from employer payroll charges. The general rates and bases are:

• Basic pension: 6.90% up to the social-security ceiling, plus 0.40% on all covered pay.
• Supplementary pension (2026): 3.15% on tranche 1 and 8.64% on tranche 2. Tranche 1 runs to the social-security ceiling. Tranche 2 runs from 1 to 8 ceilings.
• Other deductions: CSG and CRDS apply, and so may an employee health-plan contribution. Each has its own base and exceptions, and the dossier gives no rates for them. CEG and, where applicable, CET and Apec contributions are additional.

The general 2026 social-security ceiling is EUR 4,005 per month, or EUR 48,060 per year. Each charge has its own base: some use the ceiling, some a multiple of it, and some all pay. Mayotte has a different ceiling. Scheme-specific rates can differ from the standard ones above.

Employer rates before relief also include health insurance at 13%, family allowances at 5.25% and unemployment at 4% within its ceiling. There is no single universal employer total. From 1 January 2026 the RGDU reform generally replaces the former reduced health and family rates, so check which relief applies.

Business taxes are a separate matter

The corporate tax rate is 25% and the VAT rate is 20%. These are business and transaction taxes. Neither is deducted from an employee's salary.

French employer contributions are the social charges you pay on top of gross salary. They are separate from the deductions taken from the employee's pay. There is no single universal employer total, because each charge has its own base, ceiling and exceptions, and relief can reduce several of them. The OECD figure for employer social contributions is 36.35% of gross, against 11.31% for the employee. Treat that as a headline comparison, not a payroll rate.

Employer rates by contribution

The general rates below apply before any relief. Supplementary pension, accident insurance and employer-specific levies are additional.

The supplementary pension rates are the standard called rates for 2026. Scheme-specific rates can differ, and CEG and, where applicable, CET and Apec contributions are additional.

Employee rates

The general employee basic-pension rates are 6.90% up to the ceiling and 0.40% on all covered pay. Employee supplementary pension is 3.15% on tranche 1 and 8.64% on tranche 2. CSG, CRDS and any employee health-plan contribution also apply, each with its own base and exceptions. Confirm the exact bases for the role before you build net pay.

Ceilings and thresholds

The general 2026 social-security ceiling is EUR 4,005 per month or EUR 48,060 per year. Some charges use this ceiling, some use a multiple of it, and some apply to all relevant pay. Mayotte has a different ceiling.

The RGDU reform applies from 1 January 2026 and generally replaces the former reduced health and family contribution rates, with specific exemptions retained. Eligibility and calculation use the January 2026 SMIC reference, even after the June wage increase. Relief generally applies below 3 times that reference, subject to the detailed rules.

What is and is not included

• Included in the general rates: health, family allowances, basic pension and unemployment.
• Additional: supplementary pension, accident insurance and employer-specific levies.
• Separate from statutory contributions: the collective supplementary health plan. Private employers generally must offer it and fund at least 50% of the premium.
• Separate from employer charges: employee deductions and income tax withholding.

The facts available here do not include a worked cost example for France, so none is shown. Ask for a role-specific calculation that applies the correct bases, relief and accident insurance rate before you confirm a budget.

Annual leave

The general entitlement accrues at 2.5 jours ouvrables per month, which gives 30 a year, or 5 weeks. A 5-day counting method is allowed only if it preserves at least equivalent rights. Do not treat a figure expressed in working days as the statutory rule without checking how the leave is counted for the employee.

Non-occupational sickness accrues leave at 2 such days per month, up to 24 annually. Carryover after sickness and the employer's information duties have specific rules, so check the circumstances before treating unused leave as lost.

Public holidays

The general 2026 calendar has 11 statutory holidays, with regional additions. May Day is normally a paid non-working day, and permitted work on that day receives double pay. For the other holidays, pay depends on applicable agreements and statutory conditions. A holiday date does not automatically give every employee an extra paid day off, so confirm the rule for the employee's agreement and location.

Sick pay

Statutory sickness benefit is generally 50% of capped daily reference earnings after 3 waiting days. Employees with at least 1 year's service may receive an employer top-up, normally after 7 waiting days, to 90% and then two-thirds of pay for service-dependent periods. Collective terms and excluded employment categories can change this.

Check the applicable collective agreement for any more favourable terms before setting the payroll treatment.

Maternity leave

For a first or second child, the usual entitlement is 16 weeks: 6 before birth and 10 after. It rises to 26 weeks for a third or later child, 34 for twins and 46 for three or more births. Health, family and timing conditions can alter the period.

Statutory maternity benefit is capped. An agreement may provide salary maintenance, so confirm whether the employee is entitled to a top-up and who pays it.

Paternity and additional birth leave

Paternity leave is 25 calendar days, or 32 for multiple births, in addition to 3 employer-paid working days of birth leave. Four calendar days must follow the birth leave immediately. The remaining period is generally taken within 6 months under the splitting and notice rules. The social-security benefit is conditional and capped.

From 1 July 2026, each eligible parent can take 1 or 2 additional months after the required maternity, paternity or adoption leave. The benefit is based on 70% of capped reference pay in month 1 and 60% in month 2. Births and adoptions earlier in 2026 have transitional timing rules, and this leave is separate from ordinary parental leave.

Parental leave

With at least 1 year's service, an eligible employee can take parental education leave, initially for up to 1 year. For a single birth it can normally be renewed twice, ending by the child's third birthday. Multiple births and adoption have different limits. The employer normally does not pay for time not worked, and public benefits have separate conditions.

Other family leave

Marriage or a PACS normally gives 4 paid working days. Bereavement is generally 3 days for a spouse or partner, parent, parent-in-law or sibling, with longer entitlements for a child. Collective agreements can provide more.

French employment compliance runs through five areas: right to work and pre-hire filing, the written contract, payroll and contributions, working time and records, and the rules for ending employment. Most of the detail also depends on the applicable collective agreement, which covers 98% of employees according to OECD data for 2024. Identify the agreement for each hire before you write an offer.

Before the employee starts

You must establish the person's right to work before hiring. Non-European workers may need a work authorisation, and some visas and residence cards give exemptions. Residence-title checks normally go to the prefecture at least 2 working days before hiring. Algerian nationals have separate rules. A signed agreement with an employer of record is not itself permission to work.

The pre-hire declaration (DPAE) must reach the competent social-security body before work or the trial period begins, and no earlier than 8 days before hiring. You also have employee-register and written-information duties. Agree who files and keeps proof before you confirm a start date.

The usual occupational health information and prevention visit is due within 3 months of starting. Night workers and workers under 18 need it before assignment.

Contracts and written terms

Written contracts are required for fixed-term contracts (CDD), part-time work, temporary agency work and portage, among other cases. A full-time open-ended contract (CDI) can be unwritten unless an applicable agreement requires otherwise, but the prescribed employment information is still due. Written contracts must be in French, and a foreign employee can request a translation.

A CDD must state a lawful, precise temporary reason and cannot fill a permanent role in the normal activity of the business. The general maximum is 18 months, with different rules for specified reasons.

For a CDI, the initial statutory probation maxima are:

One renewal needs the relevant extended sector agreement, a contract provision and timely employee consent.

Payroll, contributions and records

Pay is generally monthly, at the same period each month. Employees paid on a non-monthly basis, including temporary agency staff, generally need payment at least twice a month at intervals of no more than 15 days. Confirm the rule for the actual arrangement.

OECD data for 2025 puts the standard employer social contribution rate at 36.35% of gross pay and the employee rate at 11.31%. These are headline figures only. Each charge has its own base, some capped at the social-security ceiling and some on all pay, and relief under the RGDU reform applies from 1 January 2026. Check rates and eligibility against current official tables before each payroll run. Private employers generally must also offer collective supplementary health insurance and fund at least 50% of the premium.

The dossier does not set out record retention periods or filing deadlines for periodic contribution returns. Confirm these with your payroll provider or the competent bodies.

Notice and termination

A personal dismissal needs a real and serious reason and the correct procedure. The invitation to the preliminary meeting must come at least 5 working days before the meeting. The reasoned dismissal letter can follow no sooner than 2 working days afterwards. Disciplinary deadlines, economic dismissals and protected employees need separate checks.

General statutory employer notice is 1 month for service from 6 months to under 2 years, and 2 months at 2 years or more. Below 6 months, check the agreement or usage. A CDI employee dismissed with at least 8 months of uninterrupted service generally qualifies for statutory compensation, unless serious or gross misconduct excludes it. More favourable collective or contractual terms take priority.

A rupture conventionnelle needs freely given agreement. Each party normally has 15 calendar days to withdraw after signing, and the administration then has a separate 15-working-day review period. A minimum termination indemnity applies.