As mentioned in our post of 24th May, there have recently been changes to the French Social Security legislation and the Decree will come into effect on 1st July 2017.  The changes apply to both French resident seafarers and those seafarers working on a yacht that spends a “significant time” in French waters.  This will affect seafarers who are not already registered and paying contributions in another EU member state or jurisdiction that has a reciprocal agreement with France.

A legal challenge has been lodged seeking to freeze or postpone the implementation of the Decree so it is possible that, should the challenge be successful, no immediate action will need to follow.  That said, the outcome is not guaranteed to be known prior to 1st July and we are therefore assessing and reviewing the situation on an ongoing basis and reviewing options for our clients.

As at today’s date, the details that we are aware of, and what we believe will be used by ENIM (the French Seafarer Social Security body) to assess whether the new Decree applies, are either of the following:

1. The yacht (whether private or commercial) spends a “significant time” in French waters.  “Significant time” is deemed to be more than 181 days in a calendar year.

2. The seafarer is a “French Resident”.  The definition of a “French Resident” is assessed by the following criteria.  If the answer to any of the following is “yes”, then the seafarer is deemed as a “French Resident” for the purposes of the Decree:

  • The seafarer has his/her home in France. “Home” is deemed the place where his or her family usually resides.   If a seafarer works abroad (i.e. a non-French based or flagged yacht), then the law permits France to tax an individual if the seafarer’s family (spouse and children) reside in France
  • The seafarer has his “principal place of abode” in France. “Principal place of abode” is defined as where the seafarer spends most of his time, even if in a hotel, whilst his family live abroad.  In general, if a seafarer will spend more than 181 days in France by the end of 2017 (or 90 days with effect from 1st July 2017), he or she will be deemed to have their “principal place of abode” in France.
  • The seafarer engages in a “business activity” in France. “Business activity” is deemed to be a remunerative activity (whether salaried or not), unless the activity is simply accessory.
  • The seafarer has the “center of his economic interest” in France. This is deemed where the seafarer manages his or her investment activity or where he or she has the headquarters for his personal business activities, (i.e. if France is the main country in which he or she earns the majority of income).

As far as we are aware, the ENIM have not yet published the exact percentage of social security charges to be levied for employers and employees, however, they have begun to set out the process that will apply to yacht crew, these being:

  • The employer will need to provide crew details, including salary of those seafarers who are residents of France.
  • Contributions will not be based on actual contractual salary; moreover ENIM will evaluate the data submitted by the Employer and will confirm what they deem to be an appropriate salary for the rank/seafarer’s experience, and on which the contributions will be based.    This amount will then be multiplied by six and this will be the security deposit to be paid by the Employer.  This process will be repeated every six months, with crew leavers and joiners being taken into consideration.
  • Statements from employers need to be submitted to ENIM by 25th of each month.

If the seafarer is indeed a French Resident, or the yacht on which the seafarer works spends a “significant time” in French waters, providing the seafarer can evidence that he or she lives in, or are resident in, another EU member state, or jurisdiction that has a reciprocal agreement with France, they can opt to make social security contributions in that jurisdiction prior to 1st July.  If, however, the seafarer does not start making contributions in that jurisdiction by 1st July, they will have no alternative than to register with ENIM and make the contributions in France.

Copyright © Döhle Yachts 2026