Remote Working Legislation, Laws & Regulations in France

Yes. Since 2012, work from home is regulated by the Labour Code (Articles 1222-9 et seq.).  

Furthermore, we also refer to case law and to national interprofessional agreements from 2005 and 2020 (so-called ANI agreements) to resolve practical questions. The collective bargaining agreement applicable to  companies may also provide for specific provisions. 

Work from home is flexible. It can be implemented by a company-level agreement concluded with trade unions or by a policy unilaterally issued by the employer and subject to the opinion of the works council if it exists. 

In the absence of a company agreement or policy, it is also possible to conclude an individual agreement with the concerned employee. This agreement can be formalised by any means.

However, in any case, it is highly recommended to set terms and conditions in writing to clearly define the parties' obligations. This is confirmed by the ANI agreement of 2020, which specifies that this represents a vehicle to establish the proof of the agreement of the parties and to inform the employee of the conditions of implementation of the WFH (modalities of report and liaison with the company, workload, work equipment, insurance, expenses, etc).

In principle, work from home must be done on a voluntary basis. Therefore, the employer cannot terminate the employment contract if the employee refuses to work from home. 

However, in case of exceptional circumstances, such as a pandemic, work from home can be imposed as a necessary measure for the continuity of business and the protection of employees' health and safety (Article L. 1222-11 of the Labour Code). 

The return to the office is neither obvious nor easy. It will depend on the term of the agreement concluded with the employee and/or the term of the charter what grounds the WFH. If the WFH was only implemented based on a charter, the return to the office will be easier and would certainly lead to a change or a cancelation of the charter. If the WFH was only based on a common and written agreement, it is debatable to know if the employee’s prior consent would be needed. 

No. Work from home is based on a principle of double voluntariness (except in the exceptional circumstances mentioned above) so that no party can impose work from home on the other.

However, WFH has become a right since 2017. As a result, when an employee asks to work from home, the employer's refusal must be justified by objective grounds (Article L. 1222-9 of the Labour Code): technical impossibility, disorganisation of business, etc. 

Work equipment may be the property of the employee or be made available by the company. 

However, when work from home is imposed by the employer, it must provide the employee with the necessary tools.

In its Q/A issued during Covid-19 lockdown, the Government provided that:

1. The employer is only responsible for the costs incurred by the employee while he/she works from home if the company agreement or the policy provides for this obligation. 
2. The employee's usual catering rights are maintained (e.g. the lunch meal).

However, in our opinion, this position might be challenged because according to the 2005 national agreement and case law the employer must reimburse the employee with any and all expenses incurred during WFH (Supreme Court, 25 February 1998, n°95-44.096).

This is confirmed by the ANI agreement of 2020, which states that: "The principle that expenses incurred by an employee for the performance of his employment contract must be borne by the employer applies to all work situations. As such, it is the responsibility of the company to cover the expenses incurred by the employee for the needs of his professional activity and in the interest of the company, after validation by the employer”.

In any case, the expenses can be reimbursed upon presentation of receipts or as a lump-sum to the employee, within a limit of EUR 11 per month for an employee working from home once a week and then up to EUR 55 per month (and in case of a fixed allowance per day: EUR 2.70 per day of remote work, up to EUR 59.40 per month).When the payment of the lump-sum allowance is provided for a national interprofessional agreement, an industry-wide agreement, or a group agreement, the daily amount of the lump-sum allowance is set at EUR 3.30, up to a maximum of EUR 72.60 per month; and when the allowance is set on a monthly basis, EUR 13.20 for one day of remote work during the month

Recently, the French Supreme Court has ruled regarding meal vouchers, that an employer may not deny this benefit to employees solely because they work remotely (Supreme Court, Labor Division, 8 October 2025, No. 24-12.373)

Case law considers that the employee must benefit from an "occupancy allowance" when the company does not have premises where the employee can work and therefore the employee is de facto obliged to work from home (Supreme Court, 8 November 2017, No.16-18.499). 

This WFH allowance should be limited to this specific situation. When WFH is optional and voluntary (as it is in most cases), this extra indemnity is not due. (Only reimbursement of expenses is due).

However, this analysis could be called into question by recent case law, which holds that the use of an employee’s home for work purposes constitutes an intrusion into their private life, such that they may be entitled to compensation for this reason if no actual workspace is made available to them or if it has been agreed that the work will be performed remotely (Supreme Court, Labor Division, March 19, 2025, No. 22-17.315). Consequently, it could be considered that any employee who performs their work remotely is entitled to compensation for the use of their home, regardless of whether or not business premises are made available to them.

The employer is also subject to a duty of care regarding the employee's  health and safety while working from home. 

In this context, the employer must ensure that the employee's home workspace and equipment are appropriate to safely perform all duties. However, the employer’s obligation to take measures to ensure the safety of employees does not entitle the employer to require an employee to allow a visit to their home, as the employee has the right to refuse access (Supreme Court, Labor Division, 13 November 2025, No. 24-14.322).

Furthermore, the employer must prevent employee isolation, control workloads and ensure a balance between the worker's private and professional lives (Articles 6 and 9 of the 2005 ANI). 

To do so, the Labour Code notably provides for the obligations (i) to meet at least once a year to discuss the workload and working conditions and (ii) to set down the times of day when the employee can be contacted (Article L. 1222-10). 

The employee working from home has the same rights as an employee working in the company's premises, notably in terms of collective rights.

The employer must give remote workers priority in filling or returning to a position that does not involve remote work  and that matches their qualifications and skills; and conduct an annual review focusing on their working conditions and workload (Article L. 1222-10 of the Labor Code).

Yes, the employee must be covered by insurance for their professional activity, as well as for the material and equipment made available by the company.

Yes, an accident that occurs at the location where the employee is working remotely while performing their job duties is presumed to be a work-related accident (Article L. 1222-9 of the Labour Code).

This presumption may be rebutted if the employer provides evidence that the accident occurred outside of working hours or at a time when the employee was not at the remote work location.

No.

N/A

To date, France has not established a general “digital nomad visa” program designed to allow foreign nationals to come to France to work remotely for a foreign employer without any other basis for residence. However, we remain vigilant and continue to closely monitor developments in this area.

Under French law, remote work is defined as "any form of work organisation in which work that could also have been performed on the employer's premises is carried out by an employee away from these premises on a voluntary basis, using information and communication technologies" (Article L1222-9 of the Labour Code).

Remote work is regulated by the Labour Code (Articles 1222-9 et seq.).  Furthermore, we also refer to case-law and the national interprofessional  (ANI) agreements from 2005 and 2020 to resolve practical questions. The collective bargaining agreement applicable to   companies may also provide for specific provisions.

However, remote work abroad as such is neither defined nor covered by French law.

International law determines the labour law provisions that apply to French employees doing remote work abroad for their French employer. In general, there are two possibilities:

1. A choice of (labour) law: if the employer and employee chose French law, French law will continue to apply during remote work abroad with the proviso that the law chosen by the parties may be set aside by the judge in favour of legal provisions of public order of the law, which would apply in the absence of choice.
2. No choice of (labour) law: in the absence of a law chosen by the parties, the law of the country in which the employee habitually carries out the work in performance of the employment agreement applies, subject to the application of mandatory laws in force in the country where the employee is working remotely. Since remote work abroad is of a temporary nature, French law may remain applicable during remote work abroad. However, in case the employee wishes to work abroad on a more structural basis, it should be confirmed whether the applicable (labour) law may change.

The general rule is that employees are subject to social security in the working state (principle of territoriality and single applicable legislation).  This means that an employee is subject to the social security laws of the working state (unless specific conditions for situations of secondment to a working state are satisfied).

However, in case of remote work abroad, specific rules apply:

1. Outside the EU, the applicable social security system will be determined by the social security treaties concluded with the countries. In the absence of a bilateral agreement, the employee is covered by the social security system of the place where they work.
2. Within the EU: it should be noted that France has signed the European framework agreement, which came into force on 1 July 2023, stipulating that cross-border remote workers can remain on the social security scheme of the state in which their company is located, as long as they spend less than 50% of their working time working remotely in their state of residence and provided that the Member State in which the company where their work is located is also a signatory to the agreement.

For other workers, the duration of remote work will determine the applicable social security system. If remote work is permanent, the employee must be affiliated with the social security scheme of the state in which he is working, on the basis of the territory principle. If remote work is occasional, EU regulations are not specific, but it is generally considered that the employee remains affiliated with the state in which in he was previously affiliated, as is the case for secondment.

From a French domestic point of view, an employee who is resident in France remains taxable in France even if he spends part of his time working abroad. Domestic French law provides for tax incentives for workers sent on missions abroad by their employer. The tax treaties signed by France provide rules for workers performing part of their work abroad. Depending on the circumstances (e.g. location of the employer, numbers of days spent abroad), taxation may be made either to France or the destination country.

The main point to be considered is that French tax residence is determined by four criteria. The criteria are the location of the family home (and if no family home is determined, the place of primary residence), the place where the main professional activity is exercised, and the centre of economic interests. The executives of a French company may, in certain circumstances, be deemed French residents. The scope of these criteria is broad, but France has signed numerous tax treaties and most of them follow OECD tie-breaker rules. In short, working abroad a couple of weeks or months per year would hardly lead to a change in the worker’s tax residence.

A national interprofessional agreement (ANI) was adopted on November 26, 2020. It is essentially non-binding and does not provide for any new obligations for companies. It contains provisions on regular work from home and in case of exceptional circumstances.

Among other points, it should be noted that the ANI considers new issues not previously addressed by the 2005 ANI and the Labour Code, such as adapting managerial practices to work from home, upskilling managers, maintaining social links, preventing isolation, taking into account particular situations such as family carers or employees in fragile situations, etc.

In addition, one chapter is entirely devoted to the implementation of work from home in exceptional situations such as a pandemic, with anticipation measures for the continuity of activity, the possible consultation of the Works Council afterwards, the information of employees, the material organization.