SAS vs SASU vs SARL vs EURL: 2026 complete comparison

This guide is written for expats and foreign founders by a French CPA, an English-speaking accountant in Paris, with practical focus on accounting in France, French corporate tax, business setup in France and French payroll.

Choosing between SAS, SASU, SARL and EURL is the single most structuring trade-off you'll make as a founder in France. It determines your social charges, personal taxation, asset protection, fundraising capability and governance flexibility for the next 5-10 years.

This guide, written by Samuel HAYOT, an English-speaking French CPA in Paris 8th, gives you the honest, numbers-driven comparison you need before deciding.

Already know what you want? Jump to: Setting up a SASU step by step | Setting up a micro-entreprise

2.1 Director's social regime — the n°1 driver#

SAS / SASU — President treated as salaried

• Affiliated to the general social security scheme
• Employer + employee charges: ~75-85% of net salary (gross-loaded equivalent)
• No unemployment cover — no ARE entitlement after mandate ends, unless you also hold a separate employment contract
• Mandatory monthly payslip when a salary is paid
• Sickness, maternity, retirement coverage aligned with white-collar employees

SARL majority manager / EURL — TNS (self-employed)

• Affiliated to Sécurité Sociale des Indépendants (SSI)
• Charges: ~40-45% of net income
• Flat-rate provisional charges first year, true-up in N+1
• TNS charges on dividends: portion of dividends paid to a majority gérant exceeding 10% of share capital + issue premiums + average current account balances is subject to TNS social charges
• Lower social coverage (notably daily allowances)

2.2 Taxation#

Default:

• SAS / SASU / SARL: corporate income tax (IS)
  • Reduced 15% rate on the first €42,500 profit (conditions: fully paid-up capital, turnover < €10M, ≥ 75% held by individuals)
  • Standard 25% rate above
• EURL with natural-person sole shareholder = manager: default IR transparency (BIC or BNC), irrevocable IS election available

Dividends after IS:

2.3 Governance#

SAS / SASU — Near-total freedom

Article L.227-1 of the Code de commerce: "The simplified joint-stock company is set up by one or more persons whose losses are limited to their contribution." Everything else is statutory: management organs, voting rules, transfer clauses, exclusion, drag-along, tag-along, anti-dilution, ratchet.

SARL / EURL — Strict legal frame

Articles L.223-1 to L.223-43 impose mandatory voting majorities (manager appointment > 50%, ordinary decisions > 50%, statutory amendments ≥ 2/3 of shares), codify gérant powers, require shareholder approval for third-party transfers, and limit dividend distribution to validated distributable profit.

Practical consequence: the moment a project involves an investor, BSPCE, a sophisticated shareholders' agreement, fundraising or evolving governance — SAS is the obligatory choice. SARL fits poorly with such projects.

2.4 Title transfers#

Concrete impact: selling an SME for €500,000 costs €500 in SAS vs €14,310 in SARL in registration duties alone.

2.5 Fundraising and capital instruments#

SAS/SASU: preferred shares, BSPCE for eligible startups, BSA, OBSA, ratchet, anti-dilution, tag-along, drag-along — anything is possible.

SARL/EURL: uniform shares, no BSPCE, institutional fundraising practically impossible. Funds and business angels almost always require conversion to SAS before entry.

2.6 Personal asset protection#

Identical across the 4 forms: liability limited to contributions. Protection can break in case of personal guarantees signed with banks, mismanagement (article L.651-2 of the Code de commerce), or undeclared tax/social debts in bad faith.

Profile 1: Solo freelance / consultant, < €100k turnover#

Profile 2: Co-founder duo (startup, agency, SaaS)#

Profile 3: Artisan / shopkeeper, family activity#

Profile 4: Liberal profession (consultant, coach, expert)#

Profile 5: Patrimonial holding#

Case 1 — IT freelancer, €80k turnover, no operating costs#

EURL or micro win on pure tax efficiency; SASU still wins if ARE is on the table.

Case 2 — SaaS co-founders, €500k raise at H+12 months#

SAS is mandatory: the only vehicle compatible with the round, BSPCE for first hires, shareholders' agreement, drag-along, founder vesting.

Case 3 — Bakery artisan, spouse in the lab#

SARL: collaborating-spouse status (social cover without salary), simple management, family IR election available.

Annual delta TNS vs salaried: ~€6,000-7,500.

To weigh against:

• Stronger SASU social cover
• ARE preservation under SASU without salary
• Generally better resale valuation for SAS

1. Picking SASU "by default" without simulating EURL — missed optimisation for non-ARE profiles.
2. Choosing SARL as a couple without proper marital clauses — succession and divorce risks.
3. €1 share capital — fragility signal to banks and DGFiP.
4. Generic SARL bylaws — impossibility to break 50/50 deadlocks.
5. Underestimating SARL → SAS conversion — feasible but costly (€2,500–€5,000), sometimes requires statutory auditor.

Our Paris 8th firm offers a status-choice audit:

Request your free audit — answer within 24 hours.

• Légifrance — Code de commerce, Book II
• Service-public.fr — Choosing the legal form
• Bpifrance — Legal structures
• URSSAF — Social regimes

Still hesitating? Contact Hayot Expertise for a personalised, numbers-driven 5-year audit of your situation.

See also: Setting up a SASU step by step | Setting up a micro-entreprise | How much does a French CPA cost