The Old Hack

It's time I started to work for a living.  Being self-employed (apart from a lack of income) never seemed to be too much of an issue in Britain.  You worked as a sole trader or you formed a limited company.  Either way, it was quite possible to combine two or more enterprises to earn a living without falling foul of any legislation.

Here in France, things are somewhat more complicated.  Basically it is necessary to register with one or another body your intended occupation.  Now that may be very simple.  If you're a plumber you simply register as a plumber.  If you sell newspapers you register as a newspaper seller.  So far, so good.

I am considering registering as a translator.  I speak French fluently and am competent to translate web sites (which I have done from the UK) and undertake other casual work from various sources.

I have also had a tentative offer of work from an estate agency, who are looking for someone with good French to negotiate with local property agents, owners and local government officials.

That wouldn't be a problem in the UK, but here I would have to register with two quite different occupations - which is not always easy.

The English publication 'Connexions' runs a story this month about a photo journalist who set up business in France.  He found that he could register as a journalist or as a photographer.  But the concept of a photo-journalist was alien to the French system.  He eventually got round the problem by forming a (French) limited company, but was held up by five months in the ensuing bureaucracy.

Another British resident wants to set up a tea shop, selling her own home made cakes.  A fine idea, but she must register as a trader (in order to sell tea and cakes) and also as an artisan because she will be baking the cakes that she sells!

The Sarkosy presidency seems to be more alive to the contribution that immigrants, such as we Brits, can make to the French economy than previous administrations, and is actively seeking views and ideas from expat communities within France (not just the Brits) in order to ease restrictions on business and make it easier to be entrepreneurial.

In the meantime, France is losing out to people working "sur le black" and not declaring their earnings.  At first I thought these people were simply evading taxation, but in all honesty I can understand why the frustration of having to jump through so many hoops to achieve something which should be easy could force the most honest citizen to accept work "sur le black" rather than lose a lucrative opportunity.

Earning a living is an essential part of integration into French society.  The sooner it is made easier, the better.