Creating a Business in France
With more than 25 years of experiance our experts are uniquely qualified to
assist with creating a business in France.
- Explanation of how French business entities
differ, business-wise and tax-wise, from U.S. entities
- Choice of appropriate business and tax
efficient structure, which may include one or more entities
- Determination of whether a sole proprietorship
(self-employed, or "travailler indépendant")
activity is suitable for a French business
- Creating the business entity - French
or U.S., including registrations with appropriate Governmental
agencies
- All phases of getting a new business
off the ground, including opening bank account, negotiating
the business lease, hiring employees, analyzing the problems
of the legal manager
We assist those who wish to create a business
in France. Certain threshold key decisions have to be made such
as deciding the appropriate structure. Should it be an unincorporated
sole proprietorship (self-employed) or should a legal entity,
such as a corporation or partnership, be set up? If a French
corporation seems to fit the bill, which, among the various possible
forms, is most suitable to your needs? What are the pros and
cons of each choice - the tax impact, the operational costs,
the related issues of hiring and firing employees, Social Security
charges for employees, whether as owner, you can be salaried,
and, moreover, from a cost point of view, whether you should
be an employee? Are there other options, such as operating a
business already created in the U.S. or other country as a French
branch?
We can assist you to determine what is the
appropriate visa and work permit for you in order to operate
your business. If you are not from a country within the European
Union, special issues must be dealt with. U.S. citizens have
rights under treaty to enter France in order to create a French
business. Once the appropriate visa for you (and your family)
is decided, we can help you to prepare the dossier for submission
to the Ministry of Labor so that it will go through as quickly
as possible.
We can discuss with you more arcane (and
often misunderstood) techniques such as operating through a branch
of a foreign company. You might be eligible to create a liaison
office (also known as a "Bureau de Répresentation")
for a foreign company.
Among the numerous other items we can help
you to understand are TVA, personal social security obligations,
other business taxes, engaging an outside accountant, joining
a special organization (Société de Gestion Agréée)
that would permit you to claim a supplemental deduction of as
much as 20% each year on your personal tax return.
Last but not least, we can help you to prepare
individual income tax returns for France and the U.S., to report
your business and other income, and can recommend, where possible,
how to report in a manner that will minimize your global tax
burden. If an American citizen becomes owner of a French company,
he or she is required to file a special form (5471) with the
IRS to disclose certain required information on an annual basis.
We can help you with this.
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