Micro BNC regime: how it works, thresholds and tax calculation in 2026

You're running a liberal profession in France and tax rules feel opaque? The micro BNC regime is often the first option people consider. It's lightweight on paperwork and accessible from day one. But knowing what it actually involves, where it falls short, and when other options make more sense is what this guide covers.

Micro BNC regime: simplified tax regime for liberal professions (BNC) with annual revenue below 77,700 € in 2026. Tax applies to 66% of declared revenue after a standard 34% flat-rate deduction for professional expenses. Minimal accounting requirements.

Key takeaways:

• The micro BNC threshold for 2026 is 77,700 € in annual revenue (excl. VAT), unchanged since 2023.
• The flat-rate deduction is 34%, compared to 50% for service-based BIC activities.
• Social contributions are calculated on gross revenue, not on profit.

What is the micro BNC regime, exactly?

The micro BNC regime is the simplified tax framework for liberal professions classed under Bénéfices Non Commerciaux (non-commercial profits). It applies to professionals whose annual revenue stays under 77,700 €. The principle is straightforward: the tax authority applies a standard 34% deduction to gross revenue, representing assumed professional expenses, without requiring itemised receipts. Only the resulting 66% is subject to income tax. Accounting obligations are minimal, limited to keeping a chronological income log. This regime covers independent consultants, trainers, healthcare professionals, lawyers, and a wide range of advisory roles. It's typically the default starting point for newly self-employed liberals, before considering a switch to the full accounting regime or alternatives like wage portage.

In practice, you don't need a balance sheet or a profit-and-loss account. A simple income register, kept in order, is sufficient. You declare your annual revenue on form 2042-C-PRO each spring. The tax authority handles the rest. That's a meaningful contrast with the regime reel (declaration controlee), where every expense must be documented on form 2035.

If your actual expenses exceed 34% of your revenue, the full accounting regime can work out cheaper on tax. It's a numbers question, not a status preference.

Who qualifies for the micro BNC regime?

The micro BNC regime is open to any individual running a liberal profession under the BNC category, provided annual revenue stays below 77,700 € (excl. VAT). This includes unregulated liberal professions (IT consultants, coaches, trainers, copywriters, freelance developers) and regulated ones (doctors, nurses, lawyers, architects) who haven't opted into the full accounting regime. The scheme is incompatible with commercial or craft activities, which fall under micro BIC. A single person can run both a BNC activity and a BIC activity, but each is tracked and taxed separately under its own revenue ceiling.

That said, the picture is more nuanced. Some regulated professionals can't use the auto-entrepreneur status at all. Others, such as GPs or physiotherapists, have a separate pension fund outside the SSI (Securite Sociale des Independants). This doesn't change their fiscal eligibility for micro BNC, but it does change who handles their social contributions.

For unregulated liberal professions, one clarification worth making: choosing the auto-entrepreneur status and choosing micro BNC are, in practice, the same thing. The auto-entrepreneur who runs a liberal activity automatically falls under micro BNC for tax purposes, with SSI affiliation for social cover. See our full guide to choosing your professional status.

What's the micro BNC threshold in 2026 and how is tax calculated?

The micro BNC threshold for 2026 is 77,700 € in annual revenue (excl. VAT). This ceiling is reviewed every three years in line with the income tax scale. It stood at 72,600 € before 2023. According to URSSAF, more than 2.3 million micro-entrepreneurs were active in France in Q1 2025, a significant portion of them working under BNC.

Exceeding this threshold for two consecutive calendar years automatically triggers a switch to the full accounting regime (declaration controlee) from January 1st of the following year. One year over the limit changes nothing.

The tax calculation runs in three steps:

1. You declare your gross annual revenue on form 2042-C-PRO.
2. A 34% flat-rate deduction is applied automatically (minimum 305 €).
3. The remaining 66% is added to your other income and taxed at the progressive income tax rate.

Example: a consultant billing 55,000 € will declare 55,000 x 0.66 = 36,300 € as taxable professional income. At a 30% marginal tax rate, that's roughly 10,890 € in income tax on that portion.

The liberatory withholding option (versement liberatoire) lets you pay a flat 2.2% on gross revenue with your social contributions, avoiding an end-of-year tax bill. It's available if your household reference income two years prior falls below the applicable threshold. For eligibility details, check service-public.fr.

Social contributions are calculated on gross revenue (before the 34% deduction), at roughly 21.1% for unregulated liberal professionals affiliated with SSI.

Micro BNC vs micro BIC: what's the difference?

Both regimes work on the same principle: a flat-rate deduction on revenue, with no itemised expense tracking. The difference lies in the type of activity and the deduction rate.

Micro BIC covers commercial and craft activities. The deduction is 50% for service-based activities and 71% for goods sales. Micro BNC, for liberal professions, applies only a 34% deduction. The gap isn't trivial: on 60,000 € revenue, taxable income is 39,600 € under BNC versus 30,000 € under BIC services. The annual tax difference can reach several thousand euros.

Why the lower deduction for BNC? The idea is that liberal professionals have fewer material expenses (no stock, no production equipment). That holds true for some, not for an IT consultant spending heavily on training, software subscriptions, and client travel. Yet all bear the same 34%. That's where the full accounting regime or wage portage can make a real difference. See our comparison: wage portage vs micro-enterprise.

Micro BNC or wage portage: which makes more sense?

The question comes up naturally as the business grows. Micro BNC has real constraints: a revenue ceiling of 77,700 €, no deduction of actual expenses, no unemployment cover if you stop working, and pension rights that are often weaker than the standard salaried regime.

Wage portage addresses all of these. You keep your commercial independence while holding employed status: payslip, standard pension contributions, access to unemployment insurance (ARE), company health cover. According to PRISM'Emploi 2024 data, the wage portage sector represented more than 90,000 full-time equivalents in France, with steady annual growth since 2020.

Financially, the two models are fairly close for revenue around 50,000 to 65,000 €. In wage portage, net take-home typically ranges between 48% and 55% of billed revenue after management fees (between 5% and 10% depending on the provider). In micro BNC, net after tax and social contributions varies with your marginal tax rate. The real gap is in social protection and administrative simplicity. For freelancers looking to grow with peace of mind, wage portage is worth a serious look. Also helpful: our guide on URSSAF for freelancers.

Frequently asked questions about the micro BNC regime

Key points to remember

• 2026 threshold: 77,700 € in annual revenue (excl. VAT) to stay on micro BNC.
• Flat-rate deduction: 34%, with no itemised expense tracking required.
• Social contributions: calculated on gross revenue, around 21.1% for SSI-affiliated liberals.
• Liberatory withholding: 2.2% on revenue, available under income conditions.
• Limits: revenue ceiling, no unemployment insurance, lighter social cover than salaried employment.

If you're looking to simplify things and get proper social cover, wage portage with Weepo is worth a serious look.

Further reading

• Wage portage vs micro-enterprise: which one to choose?
• Professional status: which status should you choose?
• URSSAF for freelancers and the self-employed: complete guide