A new law passed last month means that any AE who has not sent in their declaration could be liable to a fine of 45 Euros per missed declaration. If the AE persists in not sending in declarations they will be taxed on their presumed income with a fine of between 5 and 10% on top. If any of this sounds like you get in touch with URSSAF or RSI now to regularise your situation. Here's the full French version from FEDAE
Could someone please explain the concept to me?
That would be great ! But what you can do is asking a refund of the penalties if you get the form late, sending a claim letter with a copy of the enveloppe showing the post date.
Thanks Wendy for sharing this. I pay monthly, keeps it clean :-)
Yes you're right Valérie, I saw the big number and panicked!!! Can we fine them when they send the forms out late?
Me again, we do use online too but when there are 'glitches' invade their offices because the phone method is predetermined never to work out and e-mails tend not to be answered. Like Finn, we self-calculate and never receive 'bills' but statements of course and notication of repayments. The point on zero income is square on the nail too, which is how we find ourselves there at times. Then when the big cheque comes and we declare, no problems.
You would not believe how much if I tried to say! As for your second thing, right on the ball I suspect.
The fine is 45 euros per declaration not sent on time. Then more depending on the activity (services/sale) if still impossible to calculate the turnover (requested on recorded letters) for the last civil year.
Like it!! The French beauracratic system being outdone by their own system. Hihihi. I expect there was a lot of huffing and puffing when you explained that to them!
Hi Wendy,
Thanks for the info. I have always declared, even if it was zero income. I was advised to do this when I visited my local tax office and by a French accountant, but didn't realise the fine was going to be so huge for not declaring!
I think the powers that be will keep tinkering with the AE system to placate the artisans and the Chambres de Metiers etc and eventually I think it will beome so complicated and expensive that working on the black will be more attractive again for some, defeating part of the reason for introducing AE in the first place.
The French authorities don't seem to be able to introduce a simple and cheap method of starting a business, without continually moving the goal posts!! Keeps all the fonctionnaires in jobs though :-)
Yes, we do that dance regularly too. It think it might be occupational therapy for the people in their offices who usually seem to be bored and idle whenever we 'invade' them.
Just thought of something funny about that though.
We were doing work for a Vietnamese organisation who paid at the end of the contract and then their government take 25% tax off the fees. We naturally charge up to reduce the loss. We were battling the business out here and showing them that we would be paying the tax there and what relief could we get here, etc. The woman we were dealing with did not believe it and when we explained we had nearly a year to wait for the fees anyway she went ape. Then my wife reminded her that Viet Nam still has a bureaucracy that reflects that which their former rulers put in place and that all of what we were saying was a remnant of French colonial rule. We made no friends for that, but they did shut up for a while!
Just thought it was worth chucking that anecdote in to lighten a grim topic.
Yep! And you'll get a letter telling that you owe 0€ in tax. But such a letter costs, so who is paying for it ???
I got a letter from the RSI the other day telling me I'm up to date with payments and owe 0€. So this teledeclaration is meant to reduce paperwork but they just can't help themselves!!
Oh hell, just when we have a spell when 'pay days' are up to a year or even longer apart because of long contracts. So each quarter we have to declare €0? What a bureaucratic waste of time and energy!