French Payroll Services with GME Audit

Last reviewed: July 2026

You have hired, or you are about to hire, an employee in France. Within days, a specific set of obligations starts: a declaration to URSSAF (the body that collects social contributions), a written employment contract in French, payslips on a mandatory template, and a monthly declaration known as the DSN. French payroll services run this cycle end to end, in English, so you stay compliant without decoding the French system alone.

What French Payroll Services Include

The deliverables below make up the standard engagement.

Employee registration (DPAE) and onboarding

Before an employee starts work, you must file a DPAE (déclaration préalable à l'embauche) with URSSAF, no later than the last working day before the employee begins (URSSAF). Onboarding also covers affiliation to the health and pension bodies, and adding the employee to the compulsory mutual (mutuelle) and pension plan (prévoyance).

Monthly payslips (bulletins de paie)

Each month, every employee receives a bulletin de paie on a mandatory template set by French law. It lists gross salary, social contributions broken down by contributor (employer and employee), the applicable collective agreement, paid leave balances, and the net amount paid. The template was updated by the government for 2026, and older formats are no longer valid.

DSN declarations and social-security reporting

The DSN (déclaration sociale nominative) is the single monthly declaration that transmits payroll data to URSSAF, the health insurance, the pension funds, and the tax authority. It is filed around the 5th or the 15th of the following month, depending on your company's size (service-public.fr). An error in it feeds every social body at once, so accuracy matters.

Employment contracts and amendments

A French employment contract must be written in French and specify the legal form (CDI open-ended, CDD fixed-term, or other), position, remuneration, working hours, trial period, and the applicable collective agreement. Amendments (avenants) cover any later change: a pay rise, a promotion, a move to part-time.

Leaver formalities and final settlements

When an employee leaves, the last payslip includes the solde de tout compte (final settlement): salary, paid leave indemnity, and any termination indemnity. A certificate for France Travail (the employment agency, formerly Pôle Emploi) and the employment certificate must be filed, and the DSN must reflect the end date.

Payroll postings and bookkeeping integration

Payroll produces accounting entries. Salaries, employer contributions, and tax withholdings must be posted to the right accounts each month. When the same firm runs both payroll and accounting, the figures tie out without manual reconciliation.

Who This Service Is For

Foreign employers hiring in France who need a provider who explains the obligations in English.
Expat-led SMEs that operate in English and want payroll handled without a language barrier.
French subsidiaries of international groups that need payslips that comply locally and figures that consolidate upward.
Companies hiring without a French entity, through mechanisms such as the ESEF status (établissement stable en France) or a French employer of record.

If you are at an earlier stage, our page on company registration in France explains how the legal structure you choose shapes your payroll obligations from day one.

Why Outsource Payroll in France

French payroll sits on a layer of labor law and social-security rules that change every year, and handling it internally without dedicated expertise is where most errors appear.

French social contributions explained

Employer social contributions add roughly 40 to 45 percentage points on top of gross salary for a standard private-sector employee, as of 2026. The exact figure varies with the salary level, the collective agreement, and any applicable reductions, and the rates are published and updated by URSSAF. The calculation spans multiple bodies: health, pension, unemployment, family allowances, and the Complémentaire Santé solidarity contribution.

Convention collective (collective agreement) compliance

Most employees are covered by a collective agreement (convention collective), a sector-level contract that sets rules above the legal minimum: minimum classification, specific premiums, working-time arrangements, notice periods. Applying the wrong agreement is a common and costly error. Identifying the correct one and applying its provisions on the payslip is part of compliant payroll.

Prélèvement à la source and income-tax withholding

Since 2019, France withholds personal income tax at source through the prélèvement à la source. Each month, the employer deducts the withholding rate from the employee's net salary and sends it to the tax authority via the DSN. The rate is provided by the tax administration per employee and changes when the employee's situation changes (impots.gouv.fr).

How GME Audit Runs Your Payroll

Our process is built around a clear monthly cycle and a single named contact.

Step 1: Onboarding your employees

We map your obligations: legal form, collective agreement, employee categories, benefits in kind. We register your employees with URSSAF through the DPAE, draft the contracts, and set up the pay parameters, including the taux de prélèvement à la source for each employee.

Step 2: The monthly cycle

Each month, you send us the variable elements (new hires, absences, overtime, bonuses, leave) by an agreed cut-off date. We calculate the payslips, post the accounting entries, and prepare the DSN. You receive the payslips for review before they are finalised. We then file the DSN by its deadline, and the contributions are debited from your account on the due date.

Step 3: Reporting and integration with your accounts

Because we work on Pennylane for real-time accounting, your payroll entries feed directly into your live accounts. You see the wage cost and the contribution liability the same month they occur, not months later at the balance sheet. For subsidiaries that need parent-company reporting, our outsourced CFO and controller services extend this into management reporting in the parent's format.

Request a personalized payroll quote with your headcount and structure, and we respond with a tailored proposal.

Why Choose GME Audit as Your Payroll Provider

Payroll and accounting in the same firm. Your payslips and your accounts tie out every month. Many payroll-only providers cannot do this.
Real-time figures via Pennylane. Payroll entries post into your live accounts, so your wage cost and cash position stay current during the year.
Bilingual EN/FR. French payroll, explained in plain English. Notices, declarations, and questions are handled in your working language.
Dual expertise: accounting plus statutory audit. GME Audit holds both the expert-comptable and the commissaire aux comptes qualifications.
Big Four pedigree at human-scale. Led by Steeve Elharrar, expert-comptable and commissaire aux comptes, formerly with KPMG and Deloitte, with more than 10 years of cumulative experience.
A single contact who replies all year. You work with one person who responds between deadlines, not only at the DSN cut-off.
100% digital, France-wide. Read more on our English-speaking accountant in France page.

We do not publish a public price grid. Fees depend on headcount, the collective agreement, and the setup complexity. We respond to each request with a personalised quote and a clear engagement letter.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I hire an employee in France without a French company?

In some cases, yes, through the ESEF status or a French employer of record. The payroll and declaration obligations still apply. We advise on the right route as part of the quote.

What is the DSN, and who must file it?

The DSN sends payroll data to URSSAF, the health and pension bodies, and the tax authority. Every employer with at least one employee in France must file it, generally around the 5th or the 15th of the following month. We file it on your behalf each period.

How much do French payroll services cost?

Fees depend on the number of employees, the collective agreement, and the scope included (contracts, HR support, reporting). We do not publish a public rate card. We respond to each request with a tailored quote and an engagement letter that defines what is included.

Can you handle payroll if my team works in English?

Yes. We work in French and English every day. Your payslips are issued in the French legal format, but the explanations, the contracts, and every conversation with us happen in your working language.

Get a Personalized Payroll Quote

Request a personalized payroll quote: share your number of employees, your legal structure, and what you currently handle (if anything), and we respond with a tailored proposal.

Prefer to talk first? Book a consultation with our team and we will walk through your payroll needs.

GME Audit is a Paris-based chartered accountancy and audit firm, registered with the Ordre des experts-comptables. The firm is led by Steeve Elharrar, expert-comptable and commissaire aux comptes, formerly with KPMG and Deloitte. This page provides general information for the 2026 tax year and does not replace advice tailored to your situation.