When creating a company that consists of more than one member in France, you will need to fill in a form known as M0 in order to register it in the Commercial Court.
In case you’re a single-member company, the equivalent file is the so called P0.
Concerning the M0 file, the first thing to consider is the legal form of your company as you’ll need to choose between two different models:
CERFA 11680*04 for a limited liability company (SARL in France) or liberal professions (SELARL)
CERFA 13959*04 for companies with shareholders (SAS, SA, etc. in France).
The two models are similar and only differ in the number of sections for each of them (19 in the first case and 23 in the second).
WHEN SHOULD YOU FILL IN THE M0 FORM?
Once you have carried out a market study, made a business plan, wrote the statuses of your company, and have a domicile to determine the registered address of the enterprise, it’s during the registry phase that you need to fill the M0 form according to the legal form. Without it being dully completed, the company cannot be registered.
This form can be easily found online and free to download in several government sites. Independently of your legal form, it’s important to note that it’s the director or general manager of the company who has to fill in the document.
WHAT IS EACH SECTION FOR?
A M0 form has five sections that comprehend different pieces of information about the enterprise to be created:
The first section should contain the information related to the company, including its legal form, registered address, and a brief description of the main activity of the company.
The second section involves the physical establishment of the company, if any, also specifying if it’s different from the registered address. In addition, you will need to include more information about the company activity such as the starting date, the origin of the activity and its funds, and the amount of employees in case of having some.
The third section contains first and foremost the details about the people in charge of the company, namely the directors, delegates, and legal representatives or the director and their espouse, depending on the form.
The fourth section states the tax regime of the company. In France, there are three options to declare your incomes, namely:
IS (Impôt sur les Societés)
BNC for non-commercial activities
BIC for commercial and industrial activities
The fifth section is for further information about the company such as the postal address if it differs and the signature of the director.
WHERE TO DELIVER THE FORM?
Once the form is completed, it has to be registered, together with other documents necessary for the creation of the company, in the “Centre de Formalité des Entreprises”. This can be done by going personally to the court or online. The document, as stated above, has to be signed by the director of the company or a person that has the power to act as such.