Artist-author social contributions
Social contributions for French artist-authors have been collected by the Urssaf since 1 January 2019, and since 1 April 2026 the Urssaf also decides affiliation: the AGESSA and the Maison des artistes no longer perform those roles. The overall rate borne by the artist is about 16.20% in 2026, and the publisher or distributor adds 1.10%. Key point: being deducted at source NEVER removes the annual filing duty.
Up to date for 2026 — verified on September 6, 2026Official procedure, no printed formGuide: about 20 min
Deadlines
- Annual return of artistic income
- On the Urssaf portal for artist-authors. The campaign covering 2025 income ran from 27 April to 19 June 2026. Electronic filing has been compulsory since 1 January 2026, with a waiver where the person is unable to use it.
- Four instalments for income taxed as BNC
- 15 January, 15 April, 15 July and 15 October. Provisional contributions are computed on the actual income of the year before last; at the start of the activity, on a flat basis.
- Adjustment until 30 September
- Effective from the next instalment where the request is sent at least fifteen days beforehand.
- Distributors: four quarterly returns
- 15 April, 15 July, 15 October and 15 January, plus an annual named return by 31 January at the latest. A nil return is compulsory even where there is nothing to report.
Documents to prepare
- Amount of the year's artistic income, by type
- Withholding certificates given by distributors
- SIRET number and withholding waiver, where applicable
- Access to the Urssaf portal for artist-authors
No form is attached to this procedure: the link leads to the official page that describes it.
What this page gives you
The guide above and the link to the official site. ActioFin does not produce any document for this page: whatever you fill in or file is done on the official medium.
Who this applies to
- Authors of literary and dramatic, musical and choreographic, audiovisual and cinematographic, graphic and plastic, and photographic works, as well as software.
- Five cumulative conditions: being a natural person, receiving pay directly linked to the artistic activity or its extension, creating a work of the mind, not being an employee for that activity, and being tax resident in France.
- Publishers, producers, galleries and collecting societies who pay royalties or buy works: they have their own filing duties and their own contribution.
- Affiliation is triggered either by declaring the activity at the single business window, or automatically on the first payment of royalties by a third party.
Worked example
Example: Inès reports €10,000 under three different regimes
Inès receives €10,000 from her artistic activity. Under micro-BNC, the 34% allowance applies first, then the 15% uplift: the contribution base is €7,590. Under the actual-profit BNC regime, the 15% uplift applies to the PROFIT: a €10,000 profit gives a base of €11,500. Under salaries, the base is the gross amount, €10,000. Confusing « receipts » with « profit » between the two BNC regimes produces a gap of more than 50% on the contribution.
How to fill it in, step by step
- Establish your tax regime: only royalties paid by third parties may be reported as salaries. Sales of works, grants, prizes, self-publishing and ancillary income must go under BNC.
- Check whether you are deducted at source: under the salaries regime, the distributor withholds the contributions. Under BNC with a SIRET number, you are exempt from withholding and pay yourself at the four instalment dates.
- If exempt, send your waiver to every distributor: failing that, they MUST withhold. In the first year, the registration notice serves as the waiver.
- File your artistic income with the Urssaf every year, even if everything was withheld: the return is pre-filled and must be checked, corrected and validated.
- Keep the withholding certificates given by your distributors: they are the supporting evidence as soon as you correct a pre-filled return.
The form, line by line
- Base by regime
- Micro-BNC: receipts less 34%, then a 15% uplift. Actual-profit BNC: profit uplifted by 15%. Salaries: gross amount excluding tax.
- 2026 rates borne by the artist
- Uncapped old-age 0.40%, fully borne by the State, hence 0%. Capped old-age 6.90% less 0.75 point of State support, hence 6.15% up to the annual social security ceiling. CSG 9.20%, CRDS 0.50%, vocational training 0.35%. About 16.20% in all.
- CSG-CRDS base
- Under salaries, it applies to 98.25% of income. Under BNC, it applies to 100% of the base uplifted by 15% — there is NO 98.25% abatement in that case.
- Distributor's contribution
- 1% of the gross pay, plus 0.10% for vocational training, due IN ADDITION to the pay and borne by the distributor.
Good to know
- The official rate table contains NO health insurance line: cover is financed through the CSG. Any page showing a « health rate » for an artist-author is wrong.
- Ancillary income — classes, workshops, talks unrelated to the work — falls within the scheme only up to a ceiling expressed as 1,200 times the hourly minimum wage at 1 January, and requires main income in the current year or one of the two preceding ones. It can only be reported under BNC.
- The collection mandate changed hands in three steps: collection to the Urssaf on 1 January 2019, affiliation on 1 April 2026, social action on 1 June 2026. The approved association is now named the national council for artist-authors' social protection.
- An artist-author taxed abroad is not withheld from, but the distributor must still report them and pay its 1.10% contribution.
Common mistakes
- Assuming withholding removes the filing duty: the annual return remains compulsory, and failing to file triggers an assessment based on the last two withheld years, uplifted by 25%.
- Applying the 15% uplift to receipts under micro-BNC: it applies AFTER the 34% allowance.
- Carrying the 98.25% CSG abatement over to the BNC regime: it exists only under the salaries regime.
- As a distributor, reporting nothing where the artist is exempt from withholding: both withheld and non-withheld artists must be reported, and a nil return is compulsory.
- Looking for a CERFA number: none exists for the artist-authors' social return.
Frequently asked questions
Does the AGESSA still exist?
It no longer performs the roles the public attributes to it. Collection moved to the Urssaf on 1 January 2019, affiliation on 1 April 2026, and social action on 1 June 2026. Searching for « AGESSA contributions » today means searching for a body that has collected nothing for seven years.
Am I withheld from or not?
It depends on the tax nature of the income, not on your status. Royalties paid by a third party and reported as salaries: compulsory withholding by the distributor. Income under BNC with a SIRET number: exemption from withholding, to be sent by you to every distributor, and you pay at the four quarterly instalments.
Does withholding remove the filing duty?
No, and this is the most misunderstood point. Withholding pays the contributions; it does not replace the annual return, which is pre-filled from the distributors' quarterly returns and must be checked, corrected and validated. It is that return which secures your social entitlements.
What is the overall contribution rate?
About 16.20% borne by the artist in 2026: capped old-age 6.15% after State support, CSG 9.20%, CRDS 0.50%, vocational training 0.35%. Uncapped old-age is fully borne by the State. The distributor adds 1% plus 0.10%.
Is there a CERFA form?
No. The return is filed on the Urssaf portal for artist-authors, compulsorily online since 1 January 2026, with a waiver where the person is unable to use it.
Go further
Compute the related amounts
Understand this form: the related course
Related forms
Official sources
- urssaf.fr — Contribution rates, artist-author (updated 1 January 2026): uncapped old-age 0.40% fully borne by the State, capped old-age 6.90% less 0.75 point hence 6.15%, CSG 9.20%, CRDS 0.50%, vocational training 0.35%; bases by regime; distributor contribution of 1% and 0.10% — September 6, 2026
- urssaf.fr — Artist-author, filing and payment arrangements (updated 29 May 2026): pre-filled annual return to be checked and validated, assessment based on the last two withheld years uplifted by 25%, quarterly instalments, adjustment — September 6, 2026
- urssaf.fr — Starting your activity as an artist-author (updated 22 April 2026): five cumulative conditions, how affiliation is triggered, mechanics of withholding and of the waiver — September 6, 2026
- urssaf.fr — Distributor of works, filing and payment arrangements (updated 12 December 2025): quarterly and annual named returns, compulsory nil return, duty to report both withheld and non-withheld artists — September 6, 2026
- entreprendre.service-public.gouv.fr — Artist-author, affiliation and social scheme (sheet F23749, verified 1 June 2026): progressive transfer of the artist-authors' social security roles to the Urssaf, worked bases by regime, compulsory electronic filing since 1 January 2026 — September 6, 2026
- Légifrance — Social Security Code, article L382-1 (in force since 1 April 2026): scope of works covered, compulsory affiliation to the general scheme, affiliation decided by the body designated under article L213-1 — September 6, 2026
- Légifrance — Social Security Code, article L382-2 (in force since 1 June 2026): the approved association sets the social action guidelines and takes the name of national council for artist-authors' social protection — September 6, 2026
- Légifrance — Social Security Code, article L382-4: distributor's contribution and withholding of the artist-author's contributions — September 6, 2026
- impots.gouv.fr — Royalties (page updated 8 April 2026): taxation as salaries where royalties are entirely reported by third parties, with the option to waive that regime and report under BNC — September 6, 2026
Guide and document provided for information purposes only; they do not constitute personalised legal or tax advice. Check the recipient organisation's requirements and consult a professional if needed.