Business insurance in France: what is mandatory, what is wise

France has no single « business insurance » obligation — it has a patchwork of sector rules, a few universal ones, and a strong market standard. Here is the map, whether you freelance as a micro-entrepreneur or run a company with staff.

What the law actually requires

Three obligations are universal or near-universal. Any vehicle used by the business must carry third-party liability, like any French vehicle. Any employer must offer employees a co-financed complementary health plan (mutuelle d’entreprise, at least 50 % employer-funded) and, for most white-collar staff, prévoyance cover. And regulated professions must carry professional liability — RC professionnelle — by law: health professionals, lawyers and accountants, real-estate and insurance intermediaries, travel agents, transport operators, among others. The most famous French specificity is the construction sector’s garantie décennale: anyone building or structurally altering property in France must carry ten-year liability insurance before the works start — a proof of décennale is what serious clients ask any builder for. French details on our pages RC pro and assurance décennale.

What every business buys anyway

Outside regulated sectors, RC professionnelle is contractually unavoidable rather than legally so: clients, marketplaces and landlords demand the attestation. It covers damage caused to third parties in the course of your activity — the consultant’s bad advice, the caterer’s food poisoning, the plumber’s flooded kitchen. The broader package is the multirisque professionnelle: premises, equipment and stock, business interruption (perte d’exploitation), legal defence — see the French page multirisque professionnelle. Cyber insurance is the fastest-growing add-on for anything with customer data or online sales (cyber-assurance).

Typical 2026 costs

Indicative ranges for small structures: RC pro from roughly €10–100 per month for consultants and freelancers depending on turnover and sector; multirisque professionnelle for a shop or small office typically €25–200 per month; décennale is the heavy line for building trades, commonly €60–400 per month depending on trade and history. Micro-entrepreneurs pay at the bottom of these ranges; anything involving construction, food, health or children costs more.

Practical notes for foreign entrepreneurs

Policies follow the registered French activity: insurers underwrite your APE/NAF code and the activities you describe — work outside the declared scope is simply not covered, a trap for multi-skilled freelancers. EU professionals passporting services into France should check whether their home-country policy explicitly covers French operations and French law; many do not, and clients will ask for a French-style attestation. For the wider picture of the French system — liability culture, claims, the mandatory/voluntary split — start with our liability insurance guide and the overview of insurance in France.

More expat guides: Tenant insurance in France: the policy your landlord will demand · Buying and insuring a car in France: the expat’s checklist · Motorhome and caravan insurance in France: the touring owner’s guide · Classic car insurance in France: collector status, agreed value · all guides.