In France there are more and more independent workers, the share of self-employed is growing

There are more and more independent workers in France. Their numbers continued to rise in 2022, with the share of self-employed entrepreneurs steadily increasing, Ourssaf points out in a study published on Friday. There were 4.3 million self-employed workers in the country at the end of 2022, up 5.9% from last year. However, according to Oursaf, this number is growing more slowly than between 2018 and 2021 (with corresponding increases of 7.9% and 8.6%).

The growth in the number of independent workers is “largely due to the growth of self-employed entrepreneurs,” whose development, however, is fading: +9.3% in 2022, after +15.3% in 2021 and +17.5% in 2020. self-employed status now accounts for 56.2% of all self-employed people,” Urssaf highlights in its study, noting that the share of women is still lower than that of men (almost 42% versus 58%).

Nearly seven in 10 self-employed people reported job turnover in 2022. The number of so-called “classic” self-employed workers increased by 1.5% for the second year in a row, “following a period of almost continuous decline since the inception of self-employed status.

Increased revenue in 2021

Their incomes increased in 2021, Ourssaf notes, averaging €45,581 per year (+8.3% when taking into account the effect of inflation compared to 2020). In 2022, the average income of self-employed individuals reached €7,449 per year (an increase of 8.9% compared to 2021, which saw an increase of 14.3% following the recovery from the health crisis).

As the Urssaf website reminds, self-employed people must declare their turnover every month or every quarter, even if it is zero. If its value is positive, the self-employed person pays social insurance contributions and contributions, as well as enterprise property tax, the amount of which varies depending on the turnover and location of the company. Thus, the income of a sole trader corresponds to his turnover, from which his contributions paid to Urssaf and professional expenses are deducted.