If you’re looking to hire European talent for your company, France is an excellent choice. Not only is the country a prominent member of the European Union, but it also boasts exceptional talent across many industries, from automation and aerospace to luxury goods and services. In particular, Paris is a key and growing financial sector in Europe, home to a thriving tech startup scene.

Businesses from all around the world are competing to hire employees in France, which is why it’s essential to understand the best approach. This guide explains how to hire in France efficiently and legally, and how a workforce management platform like Payoneer Workforce Management can help. 

Hiring in France: Options for U.S. companies

For American companies in France, hiring options include setting up a local entity, hiring independent contractors, or partnering with a workforce management platform. 

1) Set up a legal entity in France

Registering your business in France enables you to hire French employees directly. However, this is the most admin-heavy, long, and expensive option. You’ll also be responsible for managing payroll and ensuring full compliance with French employment laws.

While larger enterprises could consider this option, it’s not the most efficient. Companies would also need to hire a team of experts in France’s payroll, tax, and employee benefit regulations.  

2) Hire contractors in France

If you’re just looking to hire employees in France for a project or a limited time, you could opt to hire independent contractors instead. 

While this bypasses the need for setting up payroll, calculating tax deductions, and so on, it does give companies less control over the work carried out. It also runs the risk of employee misclassification, resulting in fines and penalties for your business.

3) Use a workforce management platform

A workforce management platform acts as the legal employer for local workers on behalf of businesses in other countries without local entities, helping them to hire local employees quickly and efficiently. 

A workforce management platform, like Payoneer Workforce Management, can support with the legal aspects, including onboarding, payroll, taxes, statutory employee benefits, and more, streamlining the process for hiring employees in France. 

Partnering with a workforce management platform in France helps reduce the risks of hiring abroad, as their expert teams help keep your business compliant. Plus, they may help make the cost of hiring an employee in France​ affordable for businesses of all sizes. 

Typically, companies may use an Employer of Record (EOR) to hire talent in a new country; however, this model may not be applicable in France. So companies may use a workforce management platform instead.

Find out more about using a workforce management platform in France.

Where to find employees in France

Job boards and recruitment agencies are common ways to source talent in France.

Popular job boards in France

Some of the top job directories in France are: 

• LinkedIn
• Indeed France
• Pôle Emploi
• Cadremploi
• APEC

Job boards are a great starting point for attracting candidates in France, especially if you want to reach a wide talent pool. 

Work with local recruitment agencies

To avoid searching for talent yourself, you could work with French recruitment agencies. They’re a good tool for finding specialized talent who may not be actively pursuing new roles, but could be convinced to join your company. Where candidates are primarily French-speaking, using a recruitment agency can also be beneficial for overcoming potential language barriers. 

On the other hand, recruiters can be expensive. Their services are also limited to finding candidates. Your company will have to handle anything beyond that, like onboarding and payroll.

Recruit with the support of a workforce management platform

American companies hiring in France can take assistance from a workforce management platform to source talent. The employer retains control of the recruitment process to ensure the candidate is the right fit for the role and company culture, and the workforce management platform offers support with employment contracts, onboarding, payroll, and legal compliance. 

Onboarding employees in France

When hiring in France, you’ll need to carry out certain onboarding processes to provide a good employee experience and stay compliant.

Here’s a checklist to follow:

• Submit a Déclaration préalable à l’embauche or DPAE (a pre-recruitment declaration) to the local URSSAF to register the employee for social security, health insurance, and their pension
• Enroll them in employee benefits
• Onboard them to payroll
• Order and configure their work devices
• Register their accounts
• Prepare onboarding documentation
• Schedule their orientation
• Prepare their training

Payoneer Workforce Management can help streamline employee onboarding. They assist with creating locally compliant employment contracts, collect all the relevant documents, and payroll.

Key employment laws and requirements in France

France is known for its extensive labor laws and special protections for employees. While it’s crucial for employers to comply with every associated regulation, here are some of the most important ones. 

Employment contracts

Employers need to know several key things about employment contracts in France. For instance, although permanent contracts can be verbal, fixed-term employment contracts have to be in writing. 

According to the French labor code, the following information should be included in a written employment contract:

• Identity and address of both parties
• Job title
• Professional qualifications
• Place of work
• Working hours
• Remuneration (salary and bonuses) 
• Paid leave 
• Notice periods

Collective bargaining agreements may require additional information to be included regarding probation and termination. 

Employee benefits

In France, employees are entitled to various types of leave:

• Vacation and PTO: French employees receive 30 vacation days per year, or 5 working weeks off. These vacation days are accrued at a rate of 2.5 days per month of working for an employer.
• Sick leave: From the 4th consecutive day of illness, employees may receive statutory sick pay calculated at 50% of their average daily wage, subject to legal caps and eligibility criteria based on prior work hours and social security contributions.
• Maternity leave: For the first 2 children, mothers receive 16 weeks of maternity leave, broken up into 6 weeks of prenatal leave and 10 weeks of postnatal leave. For the 3rd child or more, it increases to a total of 26 weeks, and for multiple births, they receive up to 46 weeks. 
• Public holidays: There are 11 public holidays per year in France. However, if a holiday falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, employers typically grant the Monday or Friday off as  “ponts” or bridge days.

Working hours

For full-time employees in France, the working hours are 35 hours per week, or 151.67 hours per month, or 1,607 hours per year. This limit doesn’t apply to senior executives, who may be expected to work longer hours due to their compensation packages. The maximum working hours in France are 10 hours per day, or 48 hours per week. 

Income tax obligations

Employers are responsible for withholding employee taxes in France. One of the key employee taxes is income tax, which should be calculated at the following rates:

Annual income	Tax rate
Up to EUR 10,700	0%
Between EUR 10,701 and EUR 27,475	11%
Between EUR 27,476 and EUR 78,546	30%
Between EUR 78,547 and EUR 168,424+	41%
Over EUR 168,425+	45%

Social security contributions

Both employers and employees contribute to the social security system in France, at an average of 47.02% of the employee’s gross salary. These taxes should be taken into account when calculating the cost of hiring an employee in France​. 

Termination and severance

Employees in France can be dismissed on either personal or economic grounds. The grounds for personal dismissal should be clear, serious, and permitted by the French government. For instance, employers cannot dismiss employees on discriminatory grounds. 

Where there is a collective bargaining agreement, it should determine the termination notice period. Otherwise, notice periods should be at least 1 month if employed between 6 and 24 months, or 2 months if employed for over 2 years. 

Employers should follow the termination procedure below:

1. Send the employee a letter of invitation to a pre-dismissal interview
2. Interview at least 5 working days after receipt, on which grounds are given
3. Give the employee a letter of dismissal between 2 working days and 1 month post-interview

Payoneer Workforce Management helps hire employees in France

U.S. companies looking to hire employees in France need to know how to legally employ workers in France, onboard French employees in compliance with local labor laws, and other relevant legislation. 

As you can imagine, it’s not easy navigating the tight employment laws in France, but with the help of Payoneer Workforce Management, it can be. Our platform helps companies onboard talent in 160+ countries, without setting up a local legal entity. 

• Onboarding local hires quickly and compliantly without a local entity
• Running global payroll securely in a few clicks
• Managing taxes, benefits, timesheets, and more

Book a demo to learn more.

FAQs

1) Can a U.S. company employ someone living in France?

Yes, even if you don’t have an office in France, your company can employ French residents. However, you must comply with French labor laws, make tax contributions, and withhold and pay employee taxes.

2) How to hire in France for a U.S. company?

Companies in the U.S. can hire employees in France in one of three ways:

1. Set up a local entity: Time-consuming and costly.
2. Hire independent contractors: Only for a limited time, or you’ll risk misclassification penalties.
3. Partner with a workforce management platform:  It is an efficient and cost-effective method of hiring. 

3) How can a workforce management platform help American companies hiring in France?

Workforce management platforms, like Payoneer Workforce Management, act as the legal employer on behalf of foreign employers based in the U.S. and other countries. Though the worker will carry out their day-to-day duties for your company, the platform will support with the legal aspects of hiring and managing employees. 

Services may include:

• Assisting with recruiting employees and complying with onboarding
• Creating compliant employment contracts
• Setting up the employee on payroll
• Calculating the taxes and social security contributions for the employer and employee in France
• Paying the employee in the right currency, at the right time