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Everything you always wanted to know about France - from France |
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Thinking of Setting Up Business in FranceDear Tony & Family, Thanks for including us in your newsletter mailings, very interesting news and info. In the States I have been a professional, and successful builder for many years, and have hatched a (hare-brained?) scheme that perhaps I might establish a similar business in France, considering the scarsity, as here also, of honest and reliable builders, coupled with the influx of holiday home buyers on the rise. Do you think this plan has any merit, or would the mountain of red tape and restrictions be too daunting a task for a mere mortal? I would value your input highly. Best Regards, Robert === Hello Robert Everything is possible, even starting a business in France - but making a profit, or even a living, in France is very hard. All tradespeople and self-employed have to register, a builder or building trades person will find they have fixed payments for taxes and charges in advance each month (before you can earn one cent) of over 6000 euro a year - add to this a tax on turnover (taxe professionelle) and the high insurances you have to pay, plus the taxes and charges on any profits, plus the administration costs - and you will need to earn over 50,000 euro before you can see any income and you will have paid over half of this in tax and charges already. To work without registration is highly illegal - you cannot issue invoices and if you try your competitors are going to denounce you to the authorities and many more charges will result. If you are crazy enough to employ anybody you have to double their salary with the fixed charges you have to pay - mostly in advance - they have a fixed maximum of 35 hours a week and long (to US standards) vacations, plus, in a short time they become unsackable unless your company has made a loss in the previous year, and even then it will mean dissolving your company and going broke to be able to dismiss them. An option may be to set up an individual company, a SCI, for each property and build homes one at a time using contractors for specialist jobs. Building techniques in France are to a high standard and sophisticated - easy to learn and use with a lot of automation. I am beginning to see some timber-framed construction, most from non-french residents, and I am sure there are good opportunities, but not in setting up a conventional business. When you are over do call me - we are only a couple of hours from you Best wishes Tony === Hi Tony, Thanks for the quick response, quite an eye-opener! No surprise why the French are no longer players on the world stage. They are due for a rude awakening if there's any hope to compete in the future, with emrging economies like China and India. Can't imagine how anyone could operate a profitable business under such conditions. I now have a new appreciation for how good I have it here, the labor laws are designed to protect both sides, taxes are modest, and based on net profits, other costs of doing business are minimal. However, very interested in the fractional ownership possibilities, hoping to check out some properties during my visit, I'll certainly give you a call. By the way, I mentioned to some friends of mine in L.A. about your daughter seeking a summer nanny job, they actually have a number of acquaintances in the entertainment business, and will keep their ears open. Au revoir, Robert === Hi Robert I made a challenge over five years ago for anyone to tell me about a business they had started in France and which was profitable. Not just something giving themselves a job, such as a pizza parlor or plumber - but a business which showed profit and employed people. Not one response - and I have never found anyone who has succeeded. I nearly did myself until the tax police here forced me to pack up in disgust (all in the newsletter archives). It is very hard for someone from a country like the USA or the UK to understand the mentality of a society which condemns enterprise and punishes success. Instead of praising initiative, people in France are encouraged to denounce neighbours and develop petty jealousies masked as nationalism. The risk of a fascist government is very real in France. Instead of relishing the rich history and culture of France, the French suffocate themselves with a parasitic bureaucracy and their obsession with protecting meaningless values. Whew - glad I got that off my chest - there are good values here - Health and Education services still work well - partly due to poor wages and and a non-litigation culture keeping things viable, there is very little aggression and violence is rare, plus the weather in many parts of France is good. So my simple advice for starting a business in France - do not bother, it is not that the rewards will be poor, but you will be treated as if you were bringing a plague ship into harbour. However there are opportunities, the oppressive regime makes French people scared to "think outside of the box" so there are very few entrepreneurs - if you present a service, to non-French people living in France, which involves a balance of knowledge and skills then you could find a way to make a living (until the civil servants either make it illegal or create special taxes and licences for it). I am very keen to develop ways people can invest securely in property here (still undervalued), get a good return and enjoy their asset. When you are here do try to make time for us to have a couple of glasses of wine and talk. It is a long time since I was in LA, I loved the feeling of opportunity. We would be most grateful for any help you can give for our daughter to see life outside of the box. Best wishes Tony There are over 2,000 features and articles on this site about French life and living in France. You can search from the search box above. Do browse through our website and please use the advertising links, they help pay for the site. I do try to reply to all mail - Contact Me - most is about property or living in France. I publish comments in this newsletter which I believe are of interest and may help find answers for people wanting to come to France. I hope readers will go to the adverts which help support our overheads. |
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