Employers must declare all staff recruitment to the URSSAF office or MSA office (if an agricultural employee) responsible for the company’s site where the recruitment takes place by means of a « DPAE » declaration prior to recruitment, no earlier than 8 days before recruitment and no later than before the employee starts working:
- either online at www.due.urssaf.fr, www.urssaf.fr, www.msa.fr, via netentreprises.fr, or by submitting a payroll software form;
- or by sending a form, dated and signed by the employer, by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt or by fax to URSSAF or MSA.
KEY POINT
Employers who file over 50 DPAE forms in a calendar year are required to submit them electronically and may be fined if they do not.
A copy of the pre-recruitment declaration or acknowledgement of receipt must be given to the employee. Failure to fulfil this obligation is punishable by a 4th class fine. This obligation to provide this information is considered to have been met if the employee has a written employment contract and the authority with which the DPAE form was filed is indicated.
Point of attention:
If the prospective employee is a foreign national from outside the European Union, the employer must check with the prefecture that the employee has a valid work permit before taking on the job. At least two working days before taking on an employee, the employer must request verification of the authenticity of the residence permit by registered letter or e-mail from the prefecture of the place of company’s site, unless the employee is registered with the France Travail. Any employer who employs a foreign worker without a residence permit authorising him/her to work as an employee is liable to severe penalties: a fine of €15,000 to €100,000 and 5 to 10 years’ imprisonment.
KEY POINT
Failure to submit a DPAE form may result in the payment of an administrative fine (300 times the guaranteed minimum, currently €4.10) and a 5th class fine (€1,500 for an individual and €7,500 for a legal entity). Intentional failure to submit a DPAE form constitutes an offence of concealed work.
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