The CERFA M0 form is used to declare the creation of a legal entity.
It is essential to complete this form when you decide to set up a trading company, for example. However, there are several types of M0 form, depending on the company's legal status .
Your local CFE (Centre de Formalités des Entreprises) should direct you to the correct form to fill in.
It consists of three sheets, and is used to inform the various authorities of your company's existence.
Don't neglect the information you enter, as it will be used directly by the commercial court clerk's office to issue your K-Bis.
It must be completed after your articles of association have been drafted.
The M0 form must be completed by the company founder, or a duly authorized representative.
If you make a mistake, your application may be rejected, delaying legal recognition of your company.
The M0 form has three main sections to be completed.
As a preamble, if you wish to set up a company, please tick the "Incorporation of a trading company" box. If it's a foreign company, or if you plan to start your business at an unknown future date, please tick the appropriate box.
The company name is certainly one of the most important fields. This is the exact name of your company, as defined in the articles of association.
Please note that the company name in the articles of association and on the M0 form must be exactly the same.
Then specify the purpose of your main activities. In most cases, it's best not to go into too much detail, as a company's activities may change over the course of its existence.
If the company is the result of a merger or demerger, this must also be entered in the following box.
Other information, such as the presence of an establishment in another EU member state, must also be mentioned.
We would like to draw your attention to box 6 for the address of the future company'sregistered office.
For an entrepreneur, the address of his head office is one of his top priorities.
It determines the nationality of the company, its country of taxation and the competent courts in the event of a dispute.
You can domicile your business in your own home, in rented or purchased commercial premises, or with a domiciliation company. The latter option has been a runaway success for several years now, and many entrepreneurs are taking the plunge.
Domiciliation companies are service providers for all entrepreneurs wishing to separate the address of their registered office from that of their actual place of business.
But much more than just a mailbox, they offer a host of complementary services to help business owners focus on their core missions.
All redundant, low value-added tasks are outsourced, resulting in immediately measurable gains in competitiveness on a day-to-day basis.
If you opt for this alternative, it is important to enter the address of the establishment where the activity is carried out in box 7 or 8 of the M0 form.
Other information relating to the establishment and management of the business, and to tax options (in particular, the choice between the simplified actual tax system and the normal actual tax system) is required in the following two main sections.
They depend mainly on your legal status, and are specific to each company.
There are three different M0 forms , depending on the legal status adopted:
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For SARLs and SELARLs, use form CERFA 11680*.
- For SAS, SASU, other joint-stock companies and SNC, use the CERFA 13959*05 form.
- For non-trading companies, use form CERFA 13958*01
The M0 form is not insignificant, since it is the document that will be used to issue the company's "birth certificate": the K-Bis register.
Once the information has been validated, and in the event of an error, initiating a rectification procedure is time-consuming and costly.
You will need to amend your articles of association, publish a legal notice in an approved newspaper and file an amendment with the relevant CFE.
These procedures also require the payment of processing fees that can amount to several hundred euros.
As you can see, filling in the CERFA M0 form properly is absolutely essential if you are to set up your business smoothly and with peace of mind.
It's one of the essential steps for every company director.
Written by our expert Paul LASBARRERES-CANDAU
March 1, 2019
