When should you declare your micro-business to URSSAF?

When should you declare your micro-business to URSSAF?

Declare your activity

We recommend that you set up your auto-entreprise as soon as you start your business. The formalities involved in setting up a micro-enterprise are simplified. You don't need to :

• Drafting bylaws ;
• Publish an advert in a Journal d'annonces légales (JAL);
• Build up share capital.

To declare your activity as a micro-entrepreneur, visit the Guichet unique website, managed by INPI. It only takes a few minutes to declare your start-up and take advantage of the auto-entrepreneur status to start your own business.

Create your URSSAF account

To create your URSSAF account, go to the site dedicated to auto-entrepreneurs. The site provides a form for creating your personal space. You need to fill in :

• Siret number issued by INSEE ;
• Your Social Security number.

You then need to fill in a personal data form and create a password. The SIRET number is issued by La Poste.

When should I file my sales declaration with URSSAF?

A compulsory formality for micro-entrepreneurs

Micro-entrepreneurs are legally obliged to declare their sales , even if their sales are zero for the period in question. Failure to file your sales declaration with URSSAF may result in the payment of penalties.

What are the deadlines for declaring sales for micro-businesses?

There are two options for declaring sales for micro-businesses:

• Monthly: declaration of sales collected in the previous month between 1ᵉʳ and the last day of the current month.
• Quarterly: declaration of sales received over a three-month period. The annual deadlines are January 31, April 30, July 31 and October 31.

The auto-entrepreneur chooses the sales declaration frequency when declaring the start of activity. He can change it each year before December 31 for application from January 1ᵉʳ of the following year.

How do I declare my micro-business sales?

To declare your sales, follow a few simple steps on the autoentrepreneur.urssaf.fr website

Access the auto-entrepreneur declaration

The first step is to go to the dashboard dedicated to your business and click on "my current due date" in the "declare and pay" section.

Declaring sales

This brings you to the step where you declare your sales. There are several boxes in which you can enter your sales (excluding VAT) for the last period of activity. There are three main categories for each activity:

• Sales of goods: Purchase-sale of goods, provision of accommodation, sale of foodstuffs for consumption on the premises, etc ;
• Commercial and craft services ;
• Other services: freelancers, consultants, digital marketing professionals, etc.

If you carry out a mixed activity, you need to fill in several boxes. For example, a professional providing services and selling goods.

Validating the auto-entrepreneur declaration

URSSAF automatically calculates the micro-entrepreneur's contributions. They include :

• Social security contributions for auto-entrepreneurs;
• Professional training contribution (CFP) ;
• The flat-rate withholding tax corresponds to income tax.

What are the charges for a micro-entrepreneur?

Social security contributions and professional training contribution (CFP) rates

The applicable rates vary according to the auto-entrepreneur's activities. As of October 1ᵉʳ, 2024, the applicable rates are as follows:

Changes in social security contributions for 2025 and 2026 in the BNC category

The category dedicated to other services and liberal activities (BNC) underwent a first increase on July 1ᵉʳ, 2024. Two further increases are scheduled for 2025 and 2026, as follows:

• From January 1ᵉʳ, 2025: 24.6%.
• From January 1ᵉʳ, 2026: 26.1%.

Payment in full discharge rates

When setting up their URSSAF account, auto-entrepreneurs can opt for payment in full discharge. This option allows them to pay social security contributions and income tax at the same time. In order to benefit from the payment in full discharge in 2024, the micro-entrepreneur 's reference tax income for 2023 must be less than 27,478 per unit.

The auto-entreprise micro-social and micro-tax system makes it easy to declare your sales. There are very few accounting rules, so you can concentrate on what's most important: developing your business. The tax system is simple to understand. 0 € in sales means 0 € in social security contributions.
 

Exemption from social security contributions for micro-entrepreneurs in overseas France

Micro-entrepreneurs operating in an overseas department or region (DROM) benefit from a total or partial exemption from social security contributions for the first 24 months following the start of business. The departments concerned are: French Guiana, the French West Indies (Martinique, Guadeloupe, Saint-Martin, Saint-Barthélémy), Réunion and Mayotte.

How do you pay social security contributions on your own?

There are two ways of paying social security contributions on a self-employed basis:

• Credit card ;
• SEPA direct debit.

SEPA direct debit or telepayment is an efficient way to pay your instalments. All you have to do is fill in your bank account details and validate the direct debit mandate.

It only takes a few minutes to set up your auto-entrepreneur business on the Guichet unique website, then on the URSSAF application. Registration formalities are simplified. To declare your sales, you need to do so every month or quarter, via the URSSAF website or application dedicated to auto-entrepreneurs. The micro-tax and micro-social regime for micro-businesses makes day-to-day accounting easier for individual entrepreneurs.