Applying for safeguard proceedings — protection BEFORE cessation of payments
Safeguard proceedings come BEFORE cessation of payments is established. They are for a business facing financial difficulties it is NOT ABLE TO OVERCOME, and they facilitate its reorganisation so as to allow the continuation of the business, the preservation of employment and the settlement of its debts. They are open to all sole trader businesses, micro-entrepreneurs included, whatever the activity — commercial, craft, professional or agricultural — as well as to companies. Only the head of the business may apply for them to be opened, by completing the application form for the opening of collective proceedings for a sole trader, filed in TWO copies. The opening judgment appoints the officers of the proceedings and opens an OBSERVATION PERIOD of at most 12 months, during which the entrepreneur REMAINS AT THE HEAD of the business. Three effects change everything on the creditors' side: a ban on paying pre-existing claims, a stay of individual proceedings and a halt to the running of interest.
Up to date for 2025 — verified on October 3, 2026Official procedure, no printed formGuide: about 45 min
Deadlines
- 18 months — the waiting period after an ad hoc mandate or conciliation
- The application must be accompanied by a sworn statement certifying the absence of any ad hoc mandate or conciliation in the 18 months preceding the date of the application.
- 15 days — publication of the opening judgment
- The registrar publishes notice of the opening judgment in the Bodacc and the same notice in a legal announcements medium of the place of the registered office. Those publications are made within 15 days of the date of the judgment.
- 12 months maximum — the observation period
- The observation period lasts 12 months at most: 6 months renewable once for a maximum of 6 months, at the request of the judicial administrator, the business in difficulty or the public prosecutor.
- 2 months — proof of claims
- Creditors must lodge their claims with the judicial agent within 2 months of publication of the opening judgment in the Bodacc.
Documents to prepare
- Application form for the opening of collective proceedings for a sole trader, in 2 copies, stating the procedure sought
- Statement of the difficulties and of the reasons why they cannot be overcome
- Annual accounts for the last financial year
- Kbis extract or certificate of registration with the national business register
- Cash position and forecast profit and loss account
- Number of employees
- Itemised statement of receivables and debts
- Statement of assets and liabilities in security interests and statement of off-balance-sheet commitments
- Summary inventory of assets, rights and obligations, distinguishing the PROFESSIONAL and PERSONAL estates, with any waivers of the protection of the personal estate
- Name and address of the works council representatives, where appointed
- Sworn statement of no ad hoc mandate or conciliation in the preceding 18 months
- For a professional activity: designation of the professional body or authority the business belongs to
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
- All sole trader businesses, including MICRO-ENTREPRENEURS, whatever the activity carried on: commercial, craft, professional or agricultural — the proceedings are also open to companies
- A business that can show difficulties it is not able to overcome, whether legal (ongoing litigation), economic (a fall in orders) or financial (an inability to settle invoices)
- ONLY the head of the business may apply for the opening of safeguard proceedings
- A business in a regulated professional sector — architect, doctor —, whose professional body or supervisory authority the court must hear
- CANNOT benefit: a business already in cessation of payments — and if the court finds it was in that state before the opening, it MUST convert the safeguard into judicial reorganisation or winding-up
- ALSO barred: anyone who has had an ad hoc mandate or a conciliation in the 18 months preceding the application — a sworn statement certifies their absence
Worked example
Example: a tradesman who no longer pays his suppliers but still pays his wages
A sole trader tradesman records a lasting fall in orders and can no longer settle certain supplier invoices. He is not yet in cessation of payments — his available assets still cover his due liabilities — but he cannot see how to overcome those difficulties: that is exactly the opening case for safeguard proceedings. He has had neither an ad hoc mandate nor a conciliation in the last eighteen months, and can therefore sign the required sworn statement. He alone may apply for the opening: he completes the application form for the opening of collective proceedings for a sole trader, states the procedure sought — safeguard rather than over-indebtedness —, and sets out the difficulties faced and the reasons why he is not able to overcome them. He attaches the annual accounts for the last financial year, the Kbis extract, his cash position, his forecast profit and loss account, the number of employees, the itemised statement of receivables and debts, the statement of assets and liabilities in security interests and off-balance-sheet commitments, and the summary inventory of his assets, rights and obligations — DISTINGUISHING those of the professional estate from those of the personal estate, and mentioning any waivers of the protection of the personal estate with the creditor's name and the amount of the commitment. His activity being a craft activity, he files everything in TWO copies with the commercial court — or the economic activities court if his district has come under one since 1 January 2025. The court hears him, finds the application well-founded and opens the proceedings. The judgment appoints a judicial agent and a supervising judge; there will be no compulsory judicial administrator, since that is required only from 20 employees AND €3 million of turnover excluding tax. A six-month observation period opens, renewable once. He remains at the head of his business and continues trading. Three effects follow immediately: he is FORBIDDEN to pay any claim predating the judgment, individual proceedings are stayed, and the running of interest and surcharges halts — except for loans of one year or more. One point he must anticipate: he must be able to pay his EMPLOYEES, because the wage guarantee scheme does not cover the wages of a business in safeguard proceedings.
How to fill it in, step by step
- Check the substantive condition: you must show difficulties you are not able to overcome — legal, economic or financial — WITHOUT being in cessation of payments.
- Check the waiting period: no ad hoc mandate and no conciliation in the 18 months preceding the date of the application, which you will certify by a sworn statement.
- Make sure the application comes from the HEAD OF THE BUSINESS: they alone may apply for the opening of safeguard proceedings.
- Complete the application form for the opening of collective proceedings for a sole trader, stating the procedure sought — safeguard or over-indebtedness — and setting out the difficulties faced and the reasons why you are not able to overcome them.
- Gather the documents: annual accounts for the last financial year; Kbis extract or certificate of registration with the national business register; cash position; forecast profit and loss account; number of employees; itemised statement of receivables and debts; statement of assets and liabilities in security interests and statement of off-balance-sheet commitments.
- Draw up the summary inventory of the business's assets, rights and obligations DISTINGUISHING those of the professional estate from those of the personal estate, and mention any waivers of the protection of the personal estate stating the creditor's name and the amount of the commitment.
- Add the name and address of the employee representatives of the works council where they have already been appointed and, for a professional activity, the designation of the professional body or authority the business belongs to.
- File or send the application in TWO copies with the commercial court or the economic activities court for a commercial or craft activity; with the civil court or the economic activities court for a professional activity. The competent court is that of the place where the activity is carried on.
- Prepare for the hearing: the court rules after hearing the sole trader and the works council representatives, and may instruct a judge to gather all information on the financial, economic and social situation of the business.
- Anticipate the separation of liabilities: where personal and professional debts are clearly distinct, the court opens a safeguard for the professional liabilities and refers the personal liabilities to the over-indebtedness commission — with YOUR agreement. Otherwise, the safeguard will deal with both.
- Prepare for the observation period: you remain at the head of the business and continue trading, but where a judicial administrator is appointed they supervise or assist you for all or some of the day-to-day management acts.
- Secure the payroll: you must be able to pay your employees, since the wage guarantee scheme does not cover the wages of a business in safeguard proceedings.
- Stop all payment of claims predating the opening judgment, and no longer change the composition of your professional estate where that would reduce its assets.
The form, line by line
- Procedure sought
- The form requires a choice: either safeguard proceedings or over-indebtedness proceedings. In all cases, the court decides which procedure to open according to the financial situation of the head of the business.
- 18-month sworn statement
- It certifies the absence of any ad hoc mandate or conciliation in the 18 months preceding the date of the application. Not to be confused with those of the ad hoc mandate (absence of cessation of payments) and of conciliation (absence of conciliation in the last 3 months).
- Summary inventory of assets
- It distinguishes the assets, rights and obligations of the PROFESSIONAL estate from those of the PERSONAL estate, and mentions waivers of the protection of the personal estate with the creditor's name and the amount of the commitment.
- Judicial agent
- Responsible for verifying the liabilities: they receive proofs of claim and draw up the list of claims lodged with their proposals for admission or rejection. It is the supervising judge who decides the fate of a claim. They are paid by the business.
- Judicial administrator
- Their appointment is COMPULSORY where the business has at least 20 employees AND turnover exceeding €3 million excluding tax. They supervise management or assist the head of the business, and draw up an economic and social review. They are paid by the business.
- Supervising judge
- A member of the court responsible for protecting the interests of each party and for the proper conduct of the proceedings. They authorise in particular acts of disposal and the granting of a security interest for a claim arising after the opening.
- Observation period
- 12 months at most: 6 months renewable once for 6 months, at the request of the judicial administrator, the business or the public prosecutor. It serves to draw up the economic and social review, to examine the prospects of recovery and to prepare a draft safeguard plan.
Good to know
- Safeguard is the only collective procedure opened BEFORE cessation of payments: the head of the business applies for it, they do not suffer it.
- The entrepreneur REMAINS AT THE HEAD of the business during the observation period and continues trading — that is the substantive difference from winding-up.
- If the court finds the business was ALREADY in cessation of payments before the opening, it must convert the safeguard into judicial reorganisation or winding-up.
- The 18-month waiting period covers the ad hoc mandate AND conciliation: having used either recently closes safeguard for a year and a half.
- The ban on paying pre-existing claims is absolute: from the opening, the business no longer pays its earlier claims, and creditors must lodge them with the judicial agent within 2 months of publication in the Bodacc.
- A guarantor cannot be pursued during the observation period; at the end of it, they may be pursued again where an instalment of the safeguard plan goes unpaid.
- The halt to the running of interest also benefits individual guarantors — but loans of one year or more are NOT covered by that halt.
- The wage guarantee scheme does NOT cover the wages of a business in safeguard proceedings: the entrepreneur must be able to pay their employees.
- From the opening, the entrepreneur may no longer change the composition of their professional estate where that would reduce its assets.
- Contracts in force at the opening — franchise, leasing — continue by decision of the judicial administrator.
- The same form serves all four collective procedures for a sole trader: safeguard, judicial reorganisation, winding-up and professional rehabilitation.
Common mistakes
- Waiting for cessation of payments to apply for a safeguard: it comes BEFORE, and becomes impossible afterwards.
- Applying for a safeguard having had an ad hoc mandate or a conciliation in the preceding 18 months: the required sworn statement rules it out.
- Confusing the three sworn statements of the route: absence of cessation of payments for the ad hoc mandate, absence of conciliation in the last 3 months for conciliation, absence of ad hoc mandate or conciliation in the last 18 months for safeguard.
- Having the application filed by a third party: only the head of the business may apply for the opening.
- Filing the application in a single copy: it is filed in 2 copies.
- Drawing up the inventory of assets without distinguishing professional and personal estates, or without mentioning the waivers of the protection of the personal estate.
- Going to the court of one's home address: it is the court of the PLACE WHERE THE ACTIVITY IS CARRIED ON that has jurisdiction.
- Continuing to pay a supplier for a claim predating the opening judgment: that is forbidden.
- Counting on the wage guarantee scheme for wages: it does not cover them in safeguard proceedings.
- Believing that the halt to the running of interest covers everything: loans of one year or more do not benefit from it.
- Changing the composition of the professional estate after the opening in a way that reduces its assets.
- Believing a judicial administrator will always be appointed: that is compulsory only from 20 employees AND €3 million of turnover excluding tax.
Frequently asked questions
When are safeguard proceedings opened?
They come before cessation of payments is established. The business must show difficulties it is not able to overcome, whether legal — ongoing litigation —, economic — a fall in orders — or financial — an inability to settle invoices —, and must not be in a state of cessation of payments.
Who may apply?
Only the head of the business. The proceedings are open to all sole trader businesses, including micro-entrepreneurs, whatever the activity carried on — commercial, craft, professional or agricultural — as well as to companies.
Which documents must accompany the application?
The annual accounts for the last financial year; the Kbis extract or certificate of registration with the national business register; the cash position; the forecast profit and loss account; the number of employees; the itemised statement of receivables and debts; the statement of assets and liabilities in security interests and the statement of off-balance-sheet commitments; the summary inventory of assets, rights and obligations distinguishing the professional and personal estates, with any waivers of the protection of the personal estate; the name and address of the works council representatives where appointed; and the sworn statement certifying the absence of any ad hoc mandate or conciliation in the preceding 18 months. For a professional activity, the designation of the professional body or authority must be added.
Does the head of the business stay in charge?
Yes. The opening judgment opens an observation period during which the entrepreneur remains at the head of the business and continues trading. However, where a judicial administrator is appointed, they supervise or assist them for all or some of the day-to-day management acts. That appointment is compulsory only where the business has at least 20 employees and turnover exceeding €3 million excluding tax.
How long does the observation period last?
12 months at most: 6 months renewable once for a maximum of 6 months, at the request of the judicial administrator, the business in difficulty or the public prosecutor. It serves to draw up an economic and social review, to examine the prospects of recovery and to prepare a draft safeguard plan.
What are the effects for creditors?
For claims predating the opening judgment: a ban on the business paying them — creditors must lodge them with the judicial agent within 2 months of publication in the Bodacc —, a stay of individual proceedings, the impossibility of pursuing a guarantor during the observation period, and a halt to the running of statutory, contractual and late-payment interest as well as surcharges. Loans of one year or more are not covered by the halt to the running of interest.
Are the proceedings confidential?
No. The opening judgment is entered in the national business register and in the trade and companies register where the debtor is a trader, and the registrar publishes a notice in the Bodacc as well as in a legal announcements medium of the place of the registered office, within 15 days of the date of the judgment.
What if the business was already in cessation of payments?
Where it appears that the business was already in cessation of payments before the opening of the safeguard proceedings, the court must convert the safeguard into judicial reorganisation or winding-up proceedings.
Go further
Related forms
- Opening a conciliation procedure — negotiating your debts with a conciliator
- Declaration of cessation of payments (cerfa 10530) — filing for bankruptcy within 45 days
- Requesting a tax remission or reduction — when paying has become impossible
- "Prevention" meeting with the court president — free, anonymous, within 24 hours
Official sources
- entreprendre.service-public.gouv.fr — Procédure de sauvegarde de l'entrepreneur individuel et du micro-entrepreneur, fiche F37849 verified 1 January 2025 (Entreprendre Service Public / Direction de l'information légale et administrative): opening before cessation of payments is established and purpose of reorganisation, continuation of the business, preservation of employment and settlement of debts; conditions relating to insurmountable legal, economic or financial difficulties and the absence of cessation of payments; availability to all sole trader businesses including micro-entrepreneurs, whatever the activity, and to companies; exclusive standing of the head of the business to apply; application form for the opening of collective proceedings, choice between safeguard and over-indebtedness, statement of difficulties, the court's final decision and the interaction with the over-indebtedness commission for personal liabilities; list of documents to attach, including the summary inventory distinguishing professional and personal estates with waivers, and the sworn statement of absence of ad hoc mandate or conciliation in the last 18 months; filing in 2 copies, jurisdiction of the court of the place of activity, economic activities courts of the twelve cities since 1 January 2025 and jurisdiction of the civil court for the regulated legal professions; hearing of the entrepreneur and the works council representatives, hearing of the professional body for regulated professions; entry of the judgment in the national business register and the trade and companies register, publication in the Bodacc and a legal announcements medium within 15 days; appointment of the judicial agent, the judicial administrator — compulsory from 20 employees and €3 million of turnover excluding tax — and the supervising judge, their missions and their remuneration by the business; observation period of 12 months at most, 6 months renewable once, its purpose and the compulsory conversion into reorganisation or winding-up where cessation of payments pre-existed; the head of the business's position during the observation, continuation of current contracts by decision of the administrator, absence of wage guarantee cover and prohibition on reducing the assets of the professional estate; effects on pre-existing claims — ban on payment, lodging with the agent within 2 months of publication in the Bodacc, stay of individual proceedings, treatment of guarantors and halt to the running of interest excluding loans of one year or more — September 12, 2026
- entreprendre.service-public.gouv.fr — Formulaire de demande d'ouverture d'une procédure collective pour l'entrepreneur individuel (EI), page R66074 read on 12 September 2026: purpose of the form — to apply for the opening of safeguard, judicial reorganisation, winding-up or professional rehabilitation proceedings, for a sole trader including a micro-entrepreneur; filing or sending to the commercial court where the activity is commercial or craft, to the civil court where it is professional or agricultural, the competent court being that of the place where the activity is carried on — September 12, 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.