Home-work trips
Employers are required to cover 50% of the cost of public transport subscriptions and public bicycle rental services used by their employees for commuting. This participation is exempt from income tax but also from social security contributions and CSG-CRDS. From 2022 to 2024, the exemption limit for this participation was increased from 50% to 75% of the subscription cost. This measure is renewed for the year 2025.
Tip exemption
From 2022 to 2024, tips given to employees were exempt from taxes and social security contributions. This preferential regime is extended for one year. Thus, tips voluntarily given to employees in contact with customers, either directly or through the employer, benefit until December 31, 2025 from an exemption from income tax, all social security contributions and contributions of legal or conventional origin (Social Security contributions, AGS(1), CSG-CRDS, etc.) as well as, notably, the FNAL(2) contribution, the mobility payment, contribution to vocational training and apprenticeship tax. However, this advantage is reserved for employees who receive for the month in question and not including tips, a remuneration not exceeding 1.6 times the minimum wage (€2,882.88 gross).
Occasional workers
Agricultural employers who hire occasional workers (seasonal fixed-term contracts, harvest contracts, customary fixed-term contracts, etc.) to carry out tasks related to the animal or plant production cycle, forestry work or activities that are a direct extension of the act of production (processing, packaging and marketing) may benefit from a specific exemption from the employer’s social security contributions normally due on their remuneration. This exemption, which was to be abolished from 2026, is finally made permanent. Furthermore, agricultural equipment cooperatives and fruit and vegetable packaging cooperatives can now benefit from it.
Reduction of employers’ social security contributions
Employers benefit from reduced rates of health insurance contributions (7% instead of 13%) and family allowance contributions (3.45% instead of 5.25%) on employees’ salaries that do not exceed certain ceilings. These ceilings are decreasing this year. Thus, in 2025, the reduced rate of the health insurance contribution concerns salaries of up to 2.25 times the minimum wage (compared to 2.5 times the minimum wage in 2024) and that of the family allowance contribution applies to salaries not exceeding 3.3 times the minimum wage (compared to 3.5 times the minimum wage in 2024).
(1) Régime de Garantie des Salaires (AGS) = Wage Garantee Scheme. (2) Contribution au Fonds National d’aide au Logement (FNAL) = The national housing aid fund.
Copyright Les Echos Publishing – 2025
