Bank change for low-pay sole traders in France

The requirement is set to be withdrawn for workers whose income is less than €5,000 a year as part of a new law going through Parliament (the loi PACTE).

If it is passed, such workers would no longer have to open a separate bank account within 12 months of starting up.

For those earning more than €5,000, the requirement would remain but this does not have to be a business account.

Those accounts generally attract higher fees – and are often automatically suggested by banks. A unique personal account will suffice.

The obligation for micro-entrepreneurs to have a separate account for business income was introduced in 2015.

More than 600,000 businesses have launched since 2017 under the micro-entrepreneur umbrella, which is often described as France’s simplest business set-up.