Company secretarial obligations in France: who handles them

French companies have annual accounts, registers and filing duties, but no mandatory company-secretary role to coordinate them. The founder must decide who owns each obligation.

A French company needs a calendar of the obligations applying to its legal form. These can include preparing and approving accounts, filing them, keeping decision and ownership records, and declaring changes. The requirements are not identical for every company. Agree who prepares, approves and files each item; A foreign founder’s personal tax and wealth position in France covers the separate consequences for you as owner.

In short

The director of a French company, which has no mandatory company secretary, must ensure that its obligations are addressed; an engagement letter can allocate tasks to an accountant or lawyer, but it does not automatically remove the director’s legal duties.
Accounts are approved and, where filing is required, filed as separate steps, with the deadline and any permitted confidentiality request checked; decision and ownership records follow the legal form, and beneficial-owner information is kept current.
Each change of director, registered office, capital, corporate name or purpose is a separate formality with its own timetable, filed through the single gateway and published where publication is required; banks, clients and suppliers rely on the public record, and a discrepancy can stop transactions.
For a French company, a missed filing can lead to an order to comply and financial consequences, and missing records can delay financing or a sale, because an investor needs evidence of ownership and decisions.

What has to happen every year

Establish the accounts and approval process required for the company, and record the decisions.
Check whether accounts must be filed, the deadline and any permitted confidentiality request. Approval and filing are separate steps.
Maintain the decision and ownership records required for the legal form. A share-transfer register is not a universal requirement for every type of company.
Keep beneficial-owner information current and file reportable changes when they occur.

Whenever something changes

A change of director, of registered office, of capital, of corporate name or of purpose is a formality in its own right, filed through the single gateway and published where publication is required. Each one has its own timetable and changes the public record on which banks, clients and suppliers rely, so a Kbis that no longer matches reality can stop a transaction.

Consequences of missed company obligations

A missed filing can lead to an order to comply and financial consequences. Missing records can also delay financing or a sale because an investor needs evidence of ownership and decisions. If records are incomplete, ask the company’s advisers how to regularise the position using genuine documents. Do not backdate a decision to disguise the omission.

Allocating responsibility for each obligation

The accountant will often prepare the accounts and often the approval documentation; a lawyer handles articles, share transfers and the less routine formalities; and the director signs, decides and remains responsible. That distribution works when it has been agreed explicitly, in writing, with each item allocated to someone by name. It fails silently when the founder assumes the accountant is doing everything and the accountant assumes the founder handles corporate matters. A founder should list each recurring obligation and record who is responsible for completing it.

Use the company’s legal form and circumstances to establish the precise obligations and deadlines with its advisers. This page helps organise that work. Valley International does not prepare statutory accounts or file company formalities on a client’s behalf.

Frequently asked questions

Who is responsible for compliance if there is no company secretary?

The director must ensure that the company’s obligations are addressed. An engagement letter can allocate tasks to an accountant or lawyer, but it does not automatically remove the director’s legal duties. Keep a calendar naming the person who prepares each item and the person who confirms completion.

My accountant prepares the accounts. Is that enough?

Check the engagement letter. Preparing accounts, arranging approval and filing them can be separate services. The company may also need decision records and updates to ownership information. Confirm what is included and allocate the remaining work.

What happens if I have never filed my accounts?

First establish which filings were required and which are missing. Ask the accountant or lawyer to organise any necessary regularisation and assess the consequences. A missing filing can lead to an order to comply, penalties and delays when the company seeks funding or a sale.

Do the statutory registers really matter for a small company?

Yes, where required for its legal form. They provide evidence of decisions and ownership, including during a sale or dispute. Keep them current and obtain advice on genuine gaps; the difficulty of regularising old records is a reason to maintain them, not proof that a correction is impossible.

How is this different from the United Kingdom, Hong Kong or Singapore?

The formal company-secretary role and appointment requirements differ between those jurisdictions and between company types. Do not assume that a French accountant’s engagement includes the same services. Compare the task list and agree who handles each obligation.

ÉTHIQUE ET PATRIMOINE, a French simplified joint-stock company (SAS), registered office at 41 rue Saint-Ferdinand, 75017 Paris, France, Paris Trade Register no. 803 414 796, VAT no. FR 40 803 414 796, registered with ORIAS under number no. 24001817 (www.orias.fr) — Financial investment adviser (CIF) no. 18002418, member of ANACOFI-CIF, a professional association approved by the Autorité des marchés financiers, and Anacofi-Courtage for its brokerage activity. Presence: Paris, Montpellier, London, Singapore, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Shanghai and Dubai.

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Written by Stéphane Molère, President of Éthique et Patrimoine — page last reviewed on 2026-09-15 — reference date for the rules: 2026-09-07.