gestion and stage management course

[Cathouse]

My husband enquired about setting up as self employed carpenter in 34 with the chambre de metiers. We have been told that we have to complete a 7 day management course prior to registering, and that it is compulsary. Has anybody out there done the course to shed some light ?, also I will be doing the course as a french friend of ours has made enquiries and it is beneficial for us to set up as a family business,the only problem is that my french is not very good.
I just need to know what the course entails and how hard it will be for me to complete it, some french friends have offered to accompany me for some of the days.
Apparently we cant register until we have completed the course or does anybody know of a way out of doing it?

[Val_2]

Although we did ours years ago, it hasn't changed that much I believe. Firstly you do a five day (working week) all day course with other people in the same boat at the CdeM. It will all be in French and you will be expected to join in and introduce yourselves etc and write things down as references. Basically it is to initiate you in the business side of running your own business in France and how the social charges will affect you, TVA matters,accountancy, health cover, accident and death insurance, unemployment, employing a worker and so on and on. They will also put you in touch with a gestion which will do your accounts for you and be warned to expect to pay about 450 per quarter plus joining fee of about the same and quarterly charges for other paperwork but you won't manage without them. As soon as you have complete the full week's course you will be given an attestation to say so and then all the relevent social charge people will start to descend on you for payments and paperwork to be sorted out and this goes on for about three months. Be warned that working self employed in France is expensive,horribly so if you take on an employee or more and you must be guided by your accountant as to whether you can afford it or not. Remember the 35 hour week if you take someone on,for yourself you can do what you like, and that for every hour over the 35 you pay a great deal again to every single charge. This stage by the way used to cost about 1000FF so it is probably a bit more expensive now. You may also need to present them with your Carte de Sjour which is necessary when running a business in France still.

[Val_2]

Sorry meant to say that you will not be allowed to set up in France unless you have completed this stage as you will then receive your Siret and TVA registration numbers as well as entry into the CPAM which is usually a body different from retired people and is for independent workers in France but with the same benefits,they also do mutuelle insurance as well. To set up without all this is working on the black and is illegal.
Good luck anyway and I am sure you will find it is easier than you think, although I would not take anyone with me because you learn far more than having to rely on someone translating all the time and besides you are going to have to deal daily with french people in all sorts of situations that you will have come up.

[Suzyq]

It can be useful as well if you haven't set up a business before as they explain about the regimes, insurance etc..
You can get a dispensation like we did from having to attend. We had to provide evidence that we had run the same sort of business in Uk; we produced a letter from our UK accountant, our last company accounts, our last copy of our VAT return and a couple of invoices from our suppliers and invoices copies we had sent to customers.
When satisfied the Chambre des Metiers sent us a letter telling us we had a dispensation and they then issued us a Siret etc.
Suze