Leave for Business Creation in France: What You Need to Know

To remember:

• Business creation leave is granted under certain conditions and can last up to two years.
• The request must be sent to the employer at least two months before departure.
• Wage portage lets you test an entrepreneurial project while keeping the benefits of employee status.

Want to know more about business creation leave in France? This scheme lets an employee fully focus on their entrepreneurial project by temporarily leaving their position. As beneficial as it is, the scheme is tightly regulated, and it is not always easy to know how to request business creation leave from your employer. That is exactly what Weepo covers in this guide: from eligibility conditions to the employee's situation during the leave, through the steps to follow.

How business creation leave works

Eligibility conditions

To qualify for leave to create or take over a business, both of the following conditions must be met:

• You must have at least 24 months of seniority (consecutive or not).
• You must not have already taken business creation leave within the past three years.

Leave to create or take over a business lasts one year at most, with a possible one year extension, unless a collective agreement sets a different maximum duration.

Good to know: the seniority requirement can differ if set by a collective agreement or bargaining agreement.

Renewal

You can request an extension of your business creation or takeover leave for a maximum of one additional year. The total duration of the leave cannot exceed 2 years. The renewal request must be sent to the employer by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt 2 months before the leave ends.

End of the leave

No employee can claim to be re-employed before the leave expires. If you wish to return to the company once it ends, you must inform your employer 3 months before the end of the leave. You can then return to either your previous job or a similar position with equivalent pay.

Good to know: you are under no obligation to provide your employer with proof that you actually created or took over a business.

How to request business creation leave

To request leave to create or take over a business, you must inform your employer 2 months in advance, specifying:

• The start date of the leave.
• The duration of the leave.
• The nature of the planned activity.

Good to know: you are not required to give a full description of your activity, and your employer can neither demand one nor refuse the leave on the grounds that the description is not detailed enough.

Acceptance, postponement or refusal: the employer's response

The employer has 30 days to respond, either by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt or by hand delivery against signed receipt. If there is no response, your request is considered accepted.

The employer can also decide to postpone the business creation leave, within a limit of 6 months from the date your request was received.

The employer can also refuse your leave request for the following reasons:

• If the leave would compromise the smooth running of the business.
• If the employee does not meet the eligibility criteria.

If the employer refuses, you can bring the matter before the labor court (conseil de prud'hommes) in summary proceedings within 15 days of being notified of the employer's response.

What effect does the leave have on the employee?

An employee on business creation or takeover leave is not paid. They can, however, request that their paid annual leave be carried over, under the conditions set by the collective agreement. They also do not accrue seniority for the entire duration of the leave. As for social protection, they remain covered by Social Security for 12 months and continue to benefit from healthcare reimbursements and daily allowances during that period.

Should you request business creation leave?

Business creation leave offers employees who want to start a business a degree of security, but it is not suited to every project. Before applying, compare its main advantages and limitations.

Advantages	Drawbacks	Good to know
You can return to your company if your project fails (same job or a similar one with at least equivalent pay).	No pay during the leave, and no access to unemployment benefits or the ARCE lump sum during that period.	This scheme mainly suits people with savings or another source of income to fund their project.
Full time dedicated to your business creation, which increases the project's chances of success.	A duty of loyalty toward your employer applies: you cannot start a competing activity while your employment contract is suspended.	If your project is in the same sector as your employer, check the risks tied to the duty of loyalty beforehand.
Leave can last up to one year (renewable once), giving you a comfortable window to grow your activity.	The request can be refused or postponed by the employer in certain situations provided for by law.	It is best to plan your request ahead of time in case of a possible postponement or refusal.

Wage portage: an alternative to the leave?

While business creation leave lets you focus fully on your project, it also means giving up your salary temporarily. Wage portage, by contrast, is an appealing solution for testing an independent activity gradually. You build up your client base, validate your project's viability and gain experience, all while keeping the benefits of employee status. Once your activity is stable enough, you can then consider starting your own business under better conditions.

Good to know: at Weepo, you get personalized support to grow your activity through wage portage. You also benefit from an employee's social protection while keeping the autonomy of an independent consultant.

Key takeaways

1. Business creation leave is available under certain conditions, can last up to two years, and lets you return to your job or an equivalent position afterward.
2. The leave request must be sent to the employer at least two months in advance and must specify the project's main characteristics.
3. The employer has 30 days to respond and can accept, postpone or refuse the request in the cases provided for by law.
4. Business creation leave suspends pay and seniority accrual, while keeping the employee's social protection for a limited period.
5. Wage portage lets you test an entrepreneurial project gradually while keeping the benefits of employee status.

If you would like to start a business but do not know where to begin, take a look at our guide on testing your business idea.

Frequently asked questions

Is business creation leave compatible with running a micro-entreprise?

Yes. You can use your leave to set up a micro-entreprise, provided you respect your duty of loyalty toward your employer for as long as your employment contract remains in force.

Can you end your business creation leave before the planned date?

In principle, no. Unless your employer agrees otherwise, you must wait until the leave ends to return to your company.