What is a French payslip ?
A French payslip, formally called a bulletin de paie or fiche de paie, is a mandatory monthly document that every employer in France must issue to each employee alongside their salary payment. It serves as the official record of remuneration, deductions and employer contributions for that pay period.
The obligation is set out in the French Labour Code (Code du travail). Employees are required to keep their payslips indefinitely, as they can be needed for pension calculation, mortgage applications or benefit claims. Employers, for their part, must retain a copy for five years.
Since 2017, the default delivery format has been electronic. Employees can opt for a paper version on request, but the digital format is now standard. The payslip was also restructured in 2018 to improve readability, though "simplified" is a relative term when the document still typically runs to 20–30 lines.
Header: Employer and Employee Details
Employer information
The top of every bulletin de paie identifies the employing company. Four identifiers appear here:
- SIRET number, the 14-digit unique establishment identifier (the first 9 digits form the SIREN, which identifies the company; the last 5 identify the specific site)
- NAF/APE code, a 5-character code assigned by INSEE indicating the company's primary business activity. It determines which collective bargaining agreement (convention collective) likely applies
- URSSAF number, identifies the social security collection body to which contributions are paid
- Registered address of the employing establishment
Employee information
Below the employer block, you will find the employee's personal and contractual data:
- Full name and, in some formats, national social security number (numéro de sécurité sociale)
- Employment status, cadre (executive/managerial) or non-cadre. This distinction matters: cadres are subject to higher supplementary pension contributions and, often, enhanced prevoyance (disability and death) cover
- Job classification within the applicable collective bargaining agreement (convention collective)
- Seniority date (date d'ancienneté), which affects certain contractual entitlements
- Reference period for the payslip (usually the calendar month)
Gross Salary (Salaire Brut): What Goes In
The gross salary (salaire brut) is the total remuneration before any deductions. It is composed of several elements:
- Base salary (salaire de base), the fixed monthly amount set in the employment contract
- Overtime pay (heures supplémentaires), the first eight hours of overtime in a week are paid at 125% of the standard hourly rate; hours beyond that are paid at 150%, unless the applicable convention collective sets different thresholds
- Bonuses and variable pay, performance bonuses, profit-sharing (participation, intéressement) and any contractual allowances
- Benefits in kind (avantages en nature), a company car or employer-provided meals are valued at a notional rate and added to the gross for contribution calculation purposes
Worked example: an employee on a base of 3,000 EUR who works 10 hours of overtime within the same week (overtime rate uplifts apply on a weekly basis, so the calculation must be made week by week). Their hourly rate is approximately 17.31 EUR (3,000 / 173.33 standard hours). The first 8 overtime hours are paid at 125% (8 × 17.31 × 1.25 = 173.10 EUR) and the remaining 2 at 150% (2 × 17.31 × 1.50 = 51.93 EUR). Gross salary for the month: approximately 3,225 EUR.
Social Contributions (Cotisations Sociales): The Core of the Payslip
This section is where most of the complexity lies, and it is the one foreign managers find most difficult to read at a glance.
How the contribution table works: reading the columns
Each line of the contribution table follows the same four-column structure:
The calculation base is typically the gross salary, sometimes capped at the social security ceiling (plafond de la sécurité sociale, PASS). The employee and employer columns are separate: the employee deduction reduces the net salary paid, while the employer contribution is an additional cost on top of gross that does not appear in the employee's gross figure.
The five branches of French social security
French social security (Sécurité sociale) is organised into five branches. Each generates a distinct set of contribution lines on the payslip:
- Health (maladie, maternité, invalidité, décès), employer-only contribution since January 2018 for most employees (the employee rate is 0% under the standard scheme). Rate: approximately 13% employer on the full gross
- Workplace accidents and occupational illness (AT/MP), 100% employer-funded. The rate varies by sector and is set annually by CARSAT based on the company's claim history; it typically ranges from 0.5% to over 5%
- Retirement, split between the state pension (retraite de base, capped at the PASS) and the supplementary pension (retraite complémentaire AGIRC-ARRCO). For the supplementary scheme, cadres and non-cadres pay slightly different rates; a portion is calculated on salary up to the PASS (Tranche 1) and a second portion on salary above the PASS (Tranche 2). The PASS for 2026 is 48,060 EUR annually (4,005 EUR/month)
- Family allowances (allocations familiales), 100% employer-funded, at a single rate of 5.25% of the gross salary
- Unemployment insurance (assurance chômage), since 2019, the employee contribution has been removed. The employer pays 4.00% on the full gross
CSG and CRDS
Two additional levies appear on every French payslip: the General Social Contribution (CSG) and the Contribution for the Repayment of Social Debt (CRDS). Both are calculated on a base of 98.25% of gross salary (a 1.75% notional deduction for professional expenses).
- CSG: 9.20% total, of which 6.80% is tax-deductible (it reduces the taxable net) and 2.40% is not deductible
- CRDS: 0.50%, entirely non-deductible
These levies apply to the employee only; there is no employer counterpart. For an employee earning 3,000 EUR gross: base = 3,000 × 98.25% = 2,947.50 EUR. Total CSG + CRDS = 2,947.50 × (9.20% + 0.50%) = 285.91 EUR.
From Gross to Net: Three Notions Foreign Managers Confuse
The bottom of the contribution table produces three distinct net figures. Each means something different, and confusing them is one of the most common errors foreign managers make when reading French payslips.
Net salary before income tax (net avant impôt sur le revenu)
This is the straightforward arithmetic result:
Gross salary − total employee deductions (cotisations salariales + non-deductible CSG/CRDS) = net avant impôt sur le revenu
For a 3,000 EUR gross cadre employee, total employee deductions typically amount to 20–23% of gross, putting the net avant impôt in the range of 2,310–2,400 EUR. This is the figure from which income tax is then withheld.
Taxable net (net imposable)
The net imposable is not the same as the net avant impôt. The calculation adjusts for:
- The deductible portion of CSG (6.80%) is subtracted
- The employer's share of complementary health insurance (mutuelle) and prevoyance is added back, because it constitutes a benefit in kind that is taxable
The result is a figure that is typically higher than the net avant impôt for employees who have employer-funded top-up health cover. This is the figure pre-filled on the employee's annual income tax return.
Net social amount (montant net social)
Since July 2023, all French payslips must include this figure. It represents the net income to declare when applying for means-tested benefits such as RSA (income support) or the prime d'activité (activity bonus). It uses a different deduction basis than the other two net figures. For most full-time private-sector employees this figure will simply confirm they are not eligible for those benefits, but for part-time employees or those in precarious situations it is significant.
Income Tax Withheld at Source (Prélèvement à la Source)
France introduced withholding at source (prélèvement à la source, PAS) in January 2019. The employer is now responsible for deducting income tax directly from each payslip.
The tax rate applied is transmitted by the French tax authority (DGFiP) to the employer via the monthly payroll declaration (DSN, déclaration sociale nominative). Two rate options exist:
- Personalised rate (taux personnalisé), based on the employee's actual tax situation from their most recent return. This is the default
- Neutral rate (taux neutre), a standardised rate applied as if the employee had no other income and no particular situation. The neutral rate for a gross monthly salary of around 3,000 EUR is approximately 6.9%
Practical note for foreign managers: when a new employee joins who has never filed a French tax return, which is common for recently arrived international assignees, no personalised rate exists yet. The neutral rate applies automatically until the DGFiP transmits a personalised rate, typically within a few months of the employee's first declaration. Ensure the employee is aware of this from day one: they may owe a balance (or receive a refund) when they file their first French return.
Bottom of the Payslip: Totals, Leave and Employer Cost
Monthly and annual cumulative totals
The lower section of the bulletin de paie shows running year-to-date totals: cumulative gross, cumulative net imposable, cumulative social security ceiling used, cumulative employer contributions. These are essential for year-end reporting and for employees checking their pension rights.
Leave counters (congés)
French law requires leave balances to be displayed on every payslip. The standard accrual rate is 2.08 working days per month (25 working days over a full year). Two counters appear:
- N-1, the previous reference year's entitlement, available to take now
- N, the current year's entitlement, accruing for future use
Total employer cost (coût global)
This is the figure most foreign managers are unprepared for. The total cost of an employee to the company is not the gross salary, it is the gross plus all employer contributions. As a rule of thumb, the total employer cost in France is 40–45% above gross salary.
For a cadre earning 3,000 EUR gross: the total employer cost sits between approximately 4,200 and 4,350 EUR per month. This gap is wider for cadres and in sectors with high AT/MP rates.
If you manage headcount budgets or are planning a hire in France, this is the number that matters. To understand how employer contributions are structured in detail, see our guide on social security contributions in France.
Key French Payslip Terms: Quick-Reference Glossary
Managing Payroll in France
Reading a French payslip is one thing. Producing them every month, accurately, on time and in compliance with the applicable convention collective, is another matter entirely. If you are running payroll in France with your own legal entity, our payroll management service for France handles everything from contribution calculation to DSN filing. If you are considering hiring in France without setting up a French entity first, running payroll in France with your own legal entity explains when a local structure is required and what the alternatives are.
