Further signs of confidence in the French economy, as the government anounces record numbers of new business creations in 2009 - 54,000 of them during October alone.
M Hervé Novelli, secretary of state for small businesses and the promoter of the French auto-entrepreneur system, declared that he is delighted with the figures, as of the half-million new enterprises anticipated for 2009, some 231,000 have already chosen the new simplified auto-entrepreneur status - a self-employment regime under which tax and social security charges are payable only against actual income received, as opposed to estimated charges applicable in most other French business regimes.
According to APCE*, the new regime is popular with young people, particularly students, with 70,000 under 30 years of age declaring they are ready to launch their own enterprise. Another survey indicates that 85% of new enterprise creators are happy with their new status as auto-entrepreneurs.
The total number of new auto-entrepreneurs is expected to exceed 300,000 by the end of 2009, against earlier predictions by Noveilli's office of just 200,000 by December.
Source: Le Figaro, 16 November 2009. APCE* = Agence pour la Création de l'Emploi.