When a foreign company wishes to hire an employee in France, it must comply with a number of administrative and social obligations. Among the first essential steps is the Prior Declaration of Employment (DPAE).
This formality is mandatory for any recruitment in France, including when the employer is a foreign company operating under the status of a Company Without an Establishment in France (ESEF).
The DPAE: a mandatory formality prior to any recruitment
The Prior Declaration of Employment, commonly referred to as the DPAE, is a mandatory formality that every employer must complete before employing a worker for the first time. It constitutes the first administrative act of the employment relationship.
The DPAE is a declaration submitted to the URSSAF (or to the MSA for the agricultural sector), which signals the imminent recruitment of an employee. It enables social protection bodies to open the employee’s entitlements as of the first day of employment.
The DPAE is governed by Articles L1221-10 to L1221-12-1 of the French Labour Code. It is mandatory for all employment contracts, whether a permanent contract (CDI), a fixed-term contract (CDD), a part-time contract, or an apprenticeship contract.
What is the purpose of the DPAE?
The DPAE allows the French administration to consolidate several formalities into a single declaration. It serves notably to:
- Combat undeclared work.
- Register the employee with the Social Security system as well as with supplementary pension and welfare funds, in order to open entitlements to social benefits (sickness, occupational accidents, retirement).
- Initiate the pre-employment medical examination with the occupational health service.
Without a DPAE, the employment is considered irregular and may be treated as undeclared work, exposing the employer to significant financial and criminal penalties.
What information must be provided?
The following principal information is required for the DPAE:
Employer information:
- Corporate name;
- Company address;
- Identification number (SIRET or number assigned to foreign employers);
- Contact details.
Employee information:
- Surname and first name;
- Date and place of birth;
- Social Security number;
Employment contract information:
- Nature of the contract (permanent, fixed-term, temporary);
- Date and time of commencement of employment;
- Duration of the probationary period.
When must the DPAE be submitted?
The DPAE must be transmitted:
- At the earliest: 8 days before the employee commences work;
- At the latest: immediately prior to the employee’s effective start date.
Compliance with this deadline is absolute: a DPAE submitted after the contract start date cannot be regularised.
It is strongly recommended to anticipate this formality in order to avoid any risk of delay or administrative error.
The declaration is made electronically. An acknowledgement of receipt is immediately issued by the URSSAF: this document is important and must be retained for a minimum of five years.
The penalties for non-compliance are severe: regularisation of contributions, administrative sanctions, and potentially criminal sanctions if the absence of a DPAE is intentional (conviction for undeclared work).
For foreign companies recruiting in France under the ESEF status, thorough knowledge of the DPAE procedures is essential to ensure compliant recruitment and avoid any risk of penalty. This is why Projinvest Services is here to support you at every stage of the process of hiring an employee in France. Do not hesitate to contact us to present your project!
