Create your espace professionnel on impots.gouv.fr: the simplified-mode tutorial

When a company is registered in France, obtaining the SIREN number marks the official birth of the business. The fiscal relationship with the French tax authority (the Direction Générale des Finances Publiques, or DGFiP) begins at the same moment. The espace professionnel (the company's tax account on impots.gouv.fr) is the single access point for all tax declarations and payments: VAT (TVA), corporate income tax (IS, impôt sur les sociétés), the local business levy (CFE, cotisation foncière des entreprises), and the secure messaging channel with the SIE (Service des Impôts des Entreprises, the company's assigned corporate tax office). Without an active account, you cannot file, cannot pay, and cannot receive official correspondence through the secure channel.

The most common mistake in new company files is not technical: it is timing. Founders wait until the first tax deadline arrives, then discover that activation is not a matter of days. The activation code is sent by post: the DGFiP states that it is issued within a period of up to 60 days, and activation must take place within those same 60 days, counted from the day the creation request is made. The result: late filing, potential penalties, unnecessary stress. This tutorial gives you the exact simplified-mode procedure, the binding deadlines, the blockers that make a request fail, and what the account actually covers. Start the process as soon as you receive your SIREN.

The activation process runs in three phases, each with a strict time constraint.

Phase 1: online registration (10 to 15 minutes)

Go to impots.gouv.fr and click on "Votre espace professionnel" (Your professional space), then "Créer votre espace en ligne" (Create your space online). You will need:

• your SIREN number (9 digits), issued by INSEE after registration via the guichet unique (the unified business registration portal), or your IDSP (the provisional file identifier issued by the managing tax office while the entity is not yet identified in the SIRENE register);
• the company's email address: it receives the activation link, and the DGFiP then uses it to contact the company on any matter;
• the account holder's login email address, which may be the same one if the legal representative creates the account;
• the legal representative's personal details (name, date of birth) as registered;
• the registered office address exactly as it appears in the business register.

Consistency is critical. Any mismatch can block automatic validation and require a manual intervention with the SIE. Before you start, cross-check your address against the Annuaire Entreprises directory, including any abbreviations used for the street type.

Phase 2: email link validation (deadline: 72 hours)

Immediately after submission, an email containing a validation link is sent to the address provided. This link expires after 72 hours. If you do not click it within that window, the request is cancelled and the process must be restarted from scratch. Check your spam folder if the email does not arrive within a few minutes.

Phase 3: activation code sent by post (deadline: 60 days)

Once the email link is validated, the tax authority sends a letter to the company. It contains a one-time activation code and confirms the email address recorded for the company. The DGFiP states that this code is sent within a period of up to 60 days, and activation must be completed within those same 60 days, counted from the day of the creation request: postal delivery therefore eats into the time you have. The code is entered from the home page of your espace professionnel, by clicking "Activer mon espace/mes services", without attempting to log in first. Past the 60 days the code expires and a fresh creation request must be filed from scratch. Until activation is complete, the account remains pending and tax services cannot be accessed.

Entering the code also requires you to record the company's bank details and then to print, sign and send your bank the SEPA business-to-business (B2B) direct debit mandate. Make sure the bank has registered the Unique Mandate Reference (RUM) before any first payment: without it, a first payment of VAT, corporate tax, payroll tax, CVAE or withholding tax is rejected. Neither CFE nor property taxes require this mandate. Realistically, plan for several weeks, not a few business days.

When creating the account, the platform asks you to choose between two modes.

Simplified mode (mode simplifié) is designed for a company managing its own tax obligations. It covers the needs of the vast majority of founders: SASU, SARL, SAS, SCI, liberal professions, and solo entrepreneurs. The interface is straightforward, and the legal representative or their accountant can navigate it without specific training. This is the right choice for a standard company creation in the large majority of cases.

Expert mode (mode expert) is required in two situations: when another espace professionnel is already the titular administrator of one or more standard services for that SIREN (a substitution procedure is then needed), and when service management has to be shared between several users. It is also compulsory for local authorities. The route differs: the account is created with the SIREN of the requesting organisation (the accounting firm, for instance), the creation code is emailed instantly and the account must be activated within 48 hours, failing which the whole procedure restarts; services are then subscribed one by one, SIREN by SIREN, with a code sent by post and valid for 60 days.

The number of SIREN numbers is not the deciding factor: an account created in simplified mode can also cover several companies, through subscription, substitution or delegation, with a recommended ceiling of 100 SIREN per account. There is in fact no "mode switch" setting inside the account: the mode is only a creation route. For a standard company creation, simplified mode is the route recommended by the DGFiP, and the account is then extended through the subscription, substitution or delegation procedures.

Plan for several weeks. The validation email is near-instant, but the activation code travels by post: the DGFiP states that it is sent within a period of up to 60 days, and activation must happen within those same 60 days, counted from the day of the request. Postal delivery therefore consumes part of the window you have. The practical consequence: launch the creation as soon as the SIREN is issued, without waiting for the business bank account to be opened. Filling in the form takes fifteen minutes; the letter is what sets the date on which the account becomes usable.

In simplified mode there is no "Adhérer à des services" section to work through: creating the account automatically subscribes the company to every service offered, secure messaging included. Subscribing service by service is the second stage of expert mode, not yours. One exception applies in simplified mode: an additional subscription is still required for the "Remboursement de TVA UE", "Guichet de TVA UE" and "Franchise en base de TVA UE" procedures, as well as for DAC6, the insurance premium tax (TSCA), the tourist tax and the taxes on polluting activities, on consumption interest and on the market value of properties. The list below explains what the services you obtain from day one are for.

TVA (VAT declarations CA3 or CA12 and online payment): covered from the outset in simplified mode, with no subscription step, where your company is subject to VAT, which applies to most commercial entities. Filing frequency (monthly or quarterly) depends on your regime. If you operate under the VAT exemption threshold (franchise en base de TVA), activation is not immediately required, but enabling it in advance avoids a last-minute scramble if you exceed the threshold.

IS, corporate income tax (instalments on form 2571, balance on 2572, tax credit refunds on 2573): these three filings are made from the espace professionnel by any entity subject to corporate income tax (SASU, SARL, SAS by default). One caveat on the annual return, form 2065: it can only be filed from the account (EFI mode) by IS companies under the simplified tax regime. Under the standard real regime it can only be transmitted through EDI-TDFC, that is via an EDI partner or your accountant. Two exemptions from instalments are worth knowing: the first financial year of activity, and a reference corporate tax below EUR 3,000.

CFE/CVAE (local business levy, notice and online payment): due from all professionals exercising an independent business activity in France. The decisive point: CFE notices are not sent by post. To find out the amount due, the business must log into its espace professionnel, and the CFE has to be paid by electronic means. In the creation year, a specific initial return (form 1447-C) must also be filed before 31 December. Failure to file this return on time is a recurring issue for companies that have not set up their account early enough.

Messagerie sécurisée (secure messaging): nothing to activate in simplified mode, as it is part of the automatic bundle. The real point of vigilance lies elsewhere: choose the company's email address carefully, because that is the address the DGFiP will use to contact the company on any matter, and it is confirmed in the activation letter. Secure messaging is the official channel with your SIE: information requests, audit notifications, formal notices. Failing to monitor this inbox is one of the most common operational gaps in new company files.

Compte fiscal (tax account, payment and credit tracking): provides full history of payments, credits, and balances. Essential for verifying that payments have been correctly applied and for anticipating VAT credit refunds.

In multi-founder companies, who manages the tax account is rarely decided at incorporation. The result: nobody monitors the secure inbox, the activation letter is set aside, the 60-day deadline passes, the code expires and the whole request has to be filed again.

The method rule: the legal representative creates the account himself in simplified mode, which makes him the titular administrator of every service for the company. The DGFiP then organises access around four roles per service: titular administrator, deputy administrator, delegating actor and actor. The director can appoint his accountant as deputy administrator instantly, for the services covered by the engagement letter, with no activation code and no letter, provided the accountant has his own espace professionnel; the accountant then assigns his staff as delegates. Only one deputy administrator can be appointed per service, and this set-up has a decisive advantage: changing accountant then requires no substitution procedure. The reverse route, where the accountant subscribes to the services from his own expert-mode account, is less comfortable: the activation code is posted to the company, which must then forward it. In every case, personal credentials are never shared.

For a creation or activation problem, the right contact is not the SIE, which handles substantive tax matters, but the téléprocédures user helpdesk: 0809 400 210 (free service plus call charges), Monday to Friday from 8.00 am to 7.30 pm, or the online form under "Contact et prise de rendez-vous > Professionnel > Une assistance aux téléprocédures". For CFE direct debit enrolment, the number is 0809 401 401, Monday to Friday from 8.30 am to 7.00 pm. Here are the most frequent scenarios.

The other blockers are quicker to clear:

• SIREN not recognised: the form also accepts the IDSP, the provisional file identifier issued by the managing tax office while the entity is not yet identified in the SIRENE register. That is the route to use while the SIREN cannot be used.
• Address mismatch: even a minor discrepancy, such as "Rue" against "R.", causes failure. Cross-check via the Annuaire Entreprises before retrying.
• Expired email link: the 72-hour window is firm. Restart the creation process from impots.gouv.fr; the new request replaces the previous one.
• Forgotten password: use the online recovery function on impots.gouv.fr.

Your SIE remains the right contact for substantive tax questions, and its details are available in the services directory on impots.gouv.fr, searchable by registered address or postcode.

Once your espace professionnel is active and services are enabled, run a structured verification before your first filing deadline. The five minutes this takes can prevent a serious problem later.

The table below maps each check to the risk it prevents.

A practical calendar for a company created in mid-year, say in June, looks like this:

Updated 13 August 2026. This article is for information purposes only and does not replace personalised professional advice. For your specific situation, consult a registered expert-comptable.