ACRE for auto-entrepreneurs in France: who qualifies and how to apply

The ACRE (start-up relief on contributions) for an auto-entrepreneur (a self-employed person under France’s micro-business regime) is a reduction in your social-security contributions during your first months in business. There’s nothing automatic about it: you have to meet one of the conditions set by law, then apply for the ACRE to the URSSAF (the body that collects social-security contributions) within 60 days of starting your business. Here you’ll find what the relief changes in 2026, who qualifies, how to fill in the form and send it, and the other start-up aids that exist alongside it.

The rules and figures are those in force in 2026, checked on entreprendre.service-public.gouv.fr, autoentrepreneur.urssaf.fr, urssaf.fr and Légifrance on 30 September 2026.

What the ACRE is, and what it isn’t

The ACRE is the aid for creating or taking over a business (aide à la création ou à la reprise d’une entreprise). For an auto-entrepreneur, it takes the form of a reduced contribution rate applied to each turnover declaration, for a limited period.

It isn’t a sum of money paid into your account. The aid that pays out money is the ARCE (unemployment benefit paid as capital), reserved for jobseekers receiving benefits, which is covered further down.

ACRE or ACCRE? You’ll still see both. ACCRE is the scheme’s old name, from when it was reserved for unemployed people starting a business. The official name today is ACRE, with a single C.

What changed in 2026

The 2026 social security financing act and decree no. 2026-69 of 6 February 2026 changed the relief on three points:

• An application within 60 days for everyone: since 1 January 2026, all self-employed people must apply to the URSSAF for the ACRE no later than 60 days after starting their business.
• A new category of beneficiaries: since 1 January 2026, an auto-entrepreneur working in a France ruralités revitalisation zone (ZFRR or ZFRR+, a rural revitalisation zone) can also qualify.
• The reduction drops from 50% to 25% for businesses starting on or after 1 July 2026. Your reduced rate is now equal to 75% of the normal rate.

For other self-employed people, outside the micro-entreprise (France’s micro-business regime), the ACRE was granted automatically until 31 December 2025. It now requires an application for them too. For auto-entrepreneurs, the application was already mandatory.

How much the ACRE saves you

Here are the rates published by the URSSAF, depending on the date you start:

For professions under the CIPAV (the pension fund of certain liberal professions), the reduced rate is raised by a minimum, because the CSG-CRDS (social levies) and the supplementary pension aren’t exempted.

An example: an electrician who starts in September 2026 declares their services at 15.9% instead of 21.2%. On €3,000 received in the month, they pay €477 instead of €636.

The normal rates and the rest of the declaration are explained in the article on the URSSAF declaration.

How long the ACRE lasts

According to the URSSAF, for an auto-entrepreneur the reduced rate applies until the end of the third calendar quarter after the one in which you start. The actual length therefore depends on the day you begin:

If you can choose your start date, pick the first day of a calendar quarter: 1 January, 1 April, 1 July or 1 October. That’s Service-Public’s advice, and it’s the only way to get twelve full months of ACRE.

Once applied for, the ACRE counts as used for the whole period, even if you receive nothing. And you can’t benefit from it again for three years. If you’re setting up your business without really starting, think about the right time to apply.

Who qualifies for the ACRE

According to Service-Public, to get the ACRE as an auto-entrepreneur, at the time you create or take over the business you must be in at least one of these situations:

• you receive the ARE (unemployment benefit) or the professional security allowance (ASP);
• you’re a jobseeker without benefits, registered with France Travail (the public employment service, formerly Pôle emploi) for at least 6 months in the last 18 months;
• you receive the RSA (the minimum income) or the solidarity allowance (ASS);
• you’re aged between 18 and 25 inclusive;
• you’re under 30 and not entitled to the ARE because you haven’t worked enough, or you’re under 30 and have a recognised disability;
• you’re an employee of, or were made redundant by, a company in safeguard, receivership or judicial liquidation, and you’re taking over its business;
• you’ve signed a CAPE (a business support contract), while meeting one of the conditions above at the time of signing;
• you’re setting up your business in a priority urban neighbourhood (QPV);
• you’re setting up your business in a France ruralités revitalisation zone (ZFRR or ZFRR+);
• you receive the shared child-rearing benefit (PreParE).

Two conditions apply in every case:

• not having had the ACRE in the previous three years;
• if you’re restarting a business you had stopped, having waited one calendar year since it closed.

Simply being an employee, or setting up your micro-entreprise alongside a job, isn’t enough to get the ACRE. You have to fall into one of the categories on the list. The situation of an employee or jobseeker who becomes an auto-entrepreneur is explained in the article auto-entrepreneur, unemployment and employment.

How to apply for the ACRE

The application is made online, in three steps.

1. Get your proof of business creation

When you complete your declaration of starting a business on the guichet unique (the one-stop business formalities portal, run by INPI), download the justificatif de création d’activité (proof of business creation). It’s the key document of your application. If you haven’t set up your business yet, the steps are in the article on creating a micro-entreprise.

2. Fill in the ACRE application form

The formulaire de demande d’ACRE pour micro-entrepreneur (ACRE application form for micro-entrepreneurs) can be downloaded from the « Demander l’Acre » (Apply for the Acre) practical guide on autoentrepreneur.urssaf.fr, or from Service-Public’s ACRE page. Make sure you take the right version: there’s one for micro-entrepreneurs, one for other self-employed people and one for company directors treated as employees.

Attach the supporting documents that match your situation:

Files can be PDF, JPEG or TIFF, and must not exceed 2 MB each.

3. Send your application to the URSSAF

Send the form, the proof of business creation and your documents from the messagerie (messaging service) in your area on autoentrepreneur.urssaf.fr. The application must go no later than 60 days after the start date declared on the guichet unique.

Don’t wait for your certificate of affiliation to get started: the URSSAF states that the 60-day period runs regardless of this certificate, which arrives in four to ten weeks. If your online area still isn’t open as the deadline approaches, contact your URSSAF straight away to find out how to send your application in time.

After 60 days, the application is no longer admissible. The safest approach is to prepare your form and documents before you even complete the business creation, so you can send everything straight after.

The reply

The URSSAF decides within one month of receipt. Without a reply in that time, the ACRE is deemed granted. Keep proof that you sent it.

Other start-up aids

People often look up the ACRE at the same time as other start-up aids. Here are the ones that concern an auto-entrepreneur.

The ARCE: part of your unemployment benefit as capital

The aid for taking over or creating a business (ARCE) is paid by France Travail. It pays you 60% of your remaining ARE entitlement, as capital, in two instalments:

• half when the business starts;
• the other half six months after the first payment, if your business still exists and you don’t hold a full-time permanent contract (CDI).

A 3% contribution towards financing supplementary pensions is deducted from the capital.

To qualify, you must receive the ARE, have created or taken over your business after your employment contract ended, and have the ACRE. You apply to France Travail, with proof of creation under the ACRE, for example your justificatif d’immatriculation au RNE (proof of registration in the RNE, the national business register).

The ARCE doesn’t let you validate basic pension quarters (trimestres). Keeping the ARE, on the other hand, gives you credited periods that count towards your pension. It’s something to weigh up before choosing.

Keeping part of the ARE

This is the other option for a jobseeker receiving benefits: instead of the capital, you keep receiving part of your benefit every month, on top of your auto-entrepreneur income, up to the limit of your entitlement. You stay registered with France Travail. How the calculation works is explained in the article auto-entrepreneur, unemployment and employment.

The ASS kept during the first year

If you receive the solidarity allowance and you get the ACRE, you keep receiving your allowance during your first twelve months in business, according to Bpifrance Création.

Regional support (formerly Nacre)

Each region offers its own start-up support scheme: help putting the project together and financing it, and follow-up after the start. It replaced the national Nacre scheme. Conditions vary from one region to another; Bpifrance Création keeps the list of schemes by region.

The CAPE

The business support contract lets you test your project with ongoing help from a support organisation, a company or an association, for one year, renewable twice. It isn’t an employment contract, but it offers social protection close to that of employees. If it’s signed while you meet one of the ACRE conditions, it keeps your access to the relief.

What the ACRE changes for your pension

Your pension rights are calculated on the contributions you actually pay. With a reduced rate, the share that goes to your pension is smaller, and the same turnover may validate fewer quarters during the ACRE period. That’s no reason to go without it, but it’s good to know. How quarters are calculated is explained in the article on the auto-entrepreneur’s pension.

Summary

• The ACRE reduces your contributions by 25% for a start on or after 1 July 2026, and by 50% for a start up to 30 June 2026.
• It lasts until the end of the third calendar quarter after the one in which you start.
• You have to fall into one of the categories set by law, and not have had it in the last three years.
• The application goes through the messaging service on autoentrepreneur.urssaf.fr, with the form and your supporting documents, no later than 60 days after you start.
• The ARCE, keeping the ARE and regional support complement the ACRE depending on your situation.

A good start often comes down to little things: a well-chosen date, an application sent in time, and you begin with a bit more breathing room.
💜💙 Your BravoLisa Team

This article is for general information purposes only and does not constitute professional tax, legal, or accounting advice. Every situation is different — consult a qualified professional (tax adviser, accountant, or lawyer) for advice specific to your circumstances. BravoLisa does not accept liability for decisions made based on this information.

Last updated: September 2026. Rates and thresholds can change: always check with the URSSAF, impots.gouv or the relevant authority.

Sources (11)

Verified on 30 September 2026

1. Entreprendre Service Public — Aide à la création ou à la reprise d'une entreprise (Acre)
2. Autoentrepreneur.urssaf.fr — Demander l'Acre
3. Autoentrepreneur.urssaf.fr — L'essentiel du statut (Acre et Arce)
4. Autoentrepreneur.urssaf.fr — Acre : ce qui change au 1er janvier 2026
5. Urssaf.fr — Acre : nouvelles règles et démarches à partir du 1er janvier 2026
6. Légifrance — Décret n° 2026-69 du 6 février 2026 (taux d'exonération Acre et taux des micro-entrepreneurs)
7. Bpifrance Création — Acre : aide aux créateurs et repreneurs d'entreprise (ex Accre)
8. Entreprendre Service Public — Aide à la reprise ou à la création d'entreprise (Arce)
9. Entreprendre Service Public — Quelles sont les aides des régions à la création-reprise d'entreprise (ex-Nacre) ?
10. Entreprendre Service Public — Contrat d'appui au projet d'entreprise (Cape)
11. Bpifrance Création — Les aides pour les demandeurs d'emploi et bénéficiaires de minima sociaux