To become a notary, you need to enroll in a law school after the baccalauréat. To enter the profession, you need a Master's degree in notarial law (Bac+5), followed by a Diplôme Supérieur de Notariat (DSN) or a Diplôme de Notaire (DN), which require a further two to three years' training.
These diplomas are generally prepared at an INFN (Institut national de formations notariales). The DSN is open to lawyers with a Master's degree in notarial law. The DN is reserved for students with a Master's degree in another branch of law.
Instead of a two-year work-study program, notaries must follow a 31-month work-study program. This part of the work-study program involves learning the technical modules needed to carry out the many tasks assigned to notaries.
At the end of their seven years' training, lawyers can look forward to joining a notary's office, where they will be able to apply their knowledge in drafting deeds and contracts, as well as in their role as wealth management advisors, for example.
Trained notaries are true legal professionals, having mastered numerous legal acts.
The profession of notary has long been the archetype of social privilege. A notary's office is handed down from father to son, and a careful examination of this practice led the legislator to introduce legislation. Today, this practice is not totally abandoned, but is subject to the laws of competition.
However, while the 2015 Macron law opened up the discipline to anyone with the appropriate notary diplomas, the government limits the number of establishments that can be opened. So, if your family doesn't belong to the world of notaries, or even the professions of the gens de robe, only Alsace and Moselle may be of interest to you.
These three departments reject the venality of offices, i.e. the transfer of notarial offices. Notaries enter the profession by "musical chairs", starting their careers in small offices, before moving on to more renowned ones as their careers progress.
This is a form of merit-based appointment. So, if you can't inherit a position from someone you know, it's best to move to these regions. All you need to know is that you will have to complete your internship in the notary's offices of Alsace-Moselle, and pass a local law competitive examination.
In other words, you'll need to train at the universities of Strasbourg or Metz, which offer these courses.
Now that we've talked about the reality of setting up, it's time to talk theory. In theory, a notary can make a career in one of two ways:
- As an employee of a notary's office
- As the owner of a notary's office.
The second case is of course reserved for those who have the opportunity to buy a notary's office. Graduating with a Master's degree in notarial law, having completed the appropriate training to become a notary, the end-of-studies internship, knowing the arcana of the profession, and fulfilling one's advisory duties to clients will not be enough.
Taking advantage of the Macron law may allow you to open an office in the countryside, if you're lucky. We'll tell you right away, these are not the most lucrative offices.
So how much will you earn as a salaried notary in a notarial office?
The salary of a salaried notary in an office ranges from 35,000 euros to 60,000 euros gross per year, or between 2,300 and 3,900 euros net per month.
However, during his internship of at least two years, his income as a trainee assistant is only 1,800 euros gross per month, i.e. around 1,400 euros net per month.
By way of comparison, an established notary receives an annual remuneration in excess of 100,000 euros gross, and this amount depends directly on the geographical area in which he or she practises. Why is this? Because the notary receives a percentage of the value of the property he sells.
Your career path as a notary could take you through three different functions:
- Employed notary,
- Associate notary,
- Notary public.
Your annual income will therefore depend on whether you are able to join or have an office in an establishment that is well established in a geographical area that includes expensive goods.
When talking about the notary's profession, it is better to use the term "notarial professions", because the notary, because of the diversity of the deeds he draws up, performs a large number of functions:
- Real estate agent,
- Tax advisor,
- Business leaders' council,
- Wealth management consultant,
- Specialist in environmental law,
- etc.
Its missions are many and varied.
It's a little-known fact that notaries can also act as real estate agents. He is authorized to publish real estate advertisements and to sell them, in return for a sort of commission which is included in the calculation of the notary's fees. The value of real estate offers therefore influences his earnings.
Notaries can also act as legal advisors to entrepreneurs. He can advise a company director on tax issues, but also assist him in carrying out the acts that accompany the life of his company (setting up the business, concluding contracts, transferring the company, etc.).
Written by our expert Cyril SCHWASTIAK
September 27, 2022
