How to set up your company in France?

More entrepreneurs are choosing Quebec as their starting point and launching their businesses. This province of Canada enjoys a good geographical location (between North America and Europe), and many organizations offer help and support to those who wish to start a business.

Entrepreneurship is strongly encouraged, and the approaches are often simpler than in France. However, be careful, simple does not mean just snapping your fingers! You will still need to be rigorous, organized, and determined to review your idea and make it thrive.

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We therefore suggest laying the foundations for starting a business in Quebec and providing you with some useful tips.

Before starting your project, begin by checking several key points:

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You are fluent in French and English.
You are authorized to work in Canada.
You have the right to practice the trade or profession in question.
You have a credit history (if possible).
You have learned the business culture codes specific to Quebecers.

There are 3 immigration programs for business people Visas:

The Entrepreneur Program (create or acquire a business)
The Investor Program (contribute to the economic development of Quebec by investing)
Program for self-employed workers (create your own job by working for yourself)

It is important to start by making this choice because it will lay the first foundations of your future business. The legal structure is defined based on your goals, your needs, and of course, your project Legal structure choice.

To help you choose, a tool called Entrepreneurial Compass is available.

I suggest that you consider the three most commonly used legal forms.

The sole proprietorship

The entrepreneur is fully responsible for their business as together they form one and the same person. The business is therefore considered a natural person. It must carry the same name as the self-employed worker; otherwise, it must be registered with the Business Registrar or a Quebec Revenue office ($34).

Advantages: simple and low-cost legal structure.
Disadvantages: personal finances that the entrepreneur has engaged (they are solely responsible for profits and losses).

To learn more, check out our article “Self-employed Workers in Quebec.”

The corporation

The purpose of a corporation or “company” is to operate a business with a view to making profits that will then be distributed among the shareholders to whom it belongs or reinvested in the company.

It is considered a legal entity because it is completely separate from its managers and owners. It therefore has its own rights and obligations.

Advantages: limited liability of shareholders as it is a legal entity (for example, in case of debt, it is normally liable), lower tax rates, operating financing, and development facilities.
Disadvantages: higher costs for creation and operation, more complicated operation, no entitlement to personal tax credits.

To learn more about incorporating in Quebec, click here.

General partnership (G.P.)

The G.P. is situated between the sole proprietorship and the corporation. It is actually several people (at least two) who decide to join forces (in writing or verbally) to conduct a common activity.

Advantage: simple and low-cost operation compared to a corporation, offers certain tax advantages, shared resources among partners.
Disadvantages: obligation to establish a “partnership agreement,” obligation to register with the business registry, liability of partners for the company’s obligations and potential debts.

When choosing your legal structure, you must consider several factors:

The size you plan for your business (the corporation is often better suited for a large business),
Whether you have business partners or not (alone: sole proprietorship or corporation, two or more entrepreneurs: general partnership or corporation)
The financial resources you have (sole proprietorship and partnership are less costly than the corporation).

It is important to know exactly what each legal form offers in order to choose the one that best suits your project.

Once the company is created (according to the creation process specific to each business), you will need to register it with the Business Registrar. You will then receive a Quebec business number (NEQ) that you will need to communicate to the provincial government authorities (taxes, etc.) during your process.

To complete this article, you can read the various profiles and career paths of entrepreneurs; you will find other useful information:

Photographer Portrait-Entrepreneur-ALEX
Entrepreneur-Aurélie-Founder-of-Madein
Entrepreneur Portrait Camille
Portrait-EIC-Beranger-Manager
Portrait-EIC-Olivier-Hairdresser
Portrait-EIC-Roman-Manager-Company
Portrait-EIC-Sonia-Architect