What is your CSE budget really worth?
Estimate the AEP operating budget, ASC activities budget, 10% transfer caps and URSSAF gift cap of your French Works Council in seconds.
Quick answer
How do you calculate the budgets of a French works council (CSE)?
The operating budget (budget de fonctionnement, or AEP) is set by law: 0.20% of gross payroll in companies with 50 to 1,999 employees and 0.22% from 2,000 employees (French Labour Code, article L2315-61). The social and cultural activities budget (ASC) has no statutory rate: it is set by company agreement and, failing one, its ratio to payroll cannot fall from one year to the next. Example: with €8,000,000 of gross payroll and a 1.2% ASC rate, the CSE receives €16,000 of AEP and €96,000 of ASC.
- Operating budget (AEP)
- 0.20% or 0.22% of gross payroll
- ASC budget
- Company agreement, ratchet otherwise
- Transfer between budgets
- Max 10% of the annual surplus
Reviewed by Samuel Hayot, chartered accountant (Ordre des experts-comptables), last updated
The two CSE budgets and their common base
In French companies with at least 50 employees, the social and economic committee (comité social et économique, CSE), the elected employee body that replaced the former works council, receives two separate subsidies from the employer. The operating subsidy, often called the AEP budget (attributions économiques et professionnelles), funds the committee itself: training of elected members, the share of expert reports it pays, accounting fees, software and documentation. The social and cultural activities contribution (ASC) funds benefits for employees: holiday vouchers, event tickets, gifts, leisure, sports and cultural activities.
Both subsidies use the same base. Since the 2018 reform, gross payroll (masse salariale brute) is defined by statute (articles L2315-61 and L2312-83): all earnings and pay subject to social security contributions under article L242-1 of the Social Security Code, excluding payments made on termination of a permanent contract (CDI). In practice you start from the contribution base declared in the monthly payroll filing (DSN), no longer from ledger account 641 used by older case law.
The two budgets are ring-fenced: the operating budget cannot fund social activities and vice versa, except through a regulated transfer of part of the annual surplus, voted by the committee and capped at 10% of that surplus.
CSE budget formulas
- Gross payroll (MSB)
- MSB = pay subject to contributions (art. L242-1 CSS) − CDI termination payments
- AEP budget, 50 to 1,999 employees
- AEP = MSB × 0.20%
- AEP budget, 2,000+ employees
- AEP = MSB × 0.22%
- ASC budget
- ASC = MSB × agreed rate (failing an agreement: prior-year ASC rate)
- AEP to ASC transfer
- Maximum = 10% × annual AEP surplus
- ASC to AEP or charities transfer
- Maximum = 10% × annual ASC surplus
- Annual resources (accounting thresholds)
- Resources = AEP + ASC resources (excl. property sale proceeds) − amounts passed to the central CSE
The transfer is computed on the surplus found at year-end, not on the budget received. If the employer pays expert fees because the operating budget is insufficient (article L2315-80), the CSE cannot transfer any AEP surplus to ASC for the following three years.
Calculate and check a CSE budget in 5 steps
The rate is the easy part; the base is where errors occur. This is how we check the subsidies paid to a committee.
- 1
Rebuild the year’s gross payroll
Ask the employer for the calendar-year social security contribution base (DSN totals or annual payroll journal). It includes salaries, bonuses, overtime, benefits in kind and end-of-fixed-term payments, but not profit-sharing schemes (intéressement, participation), which are not subject to contributions.
- 2
Remove permanent-contract termination payments
Dismissal, mutual termination (rupture conventionnelle) and retirement payments are excluded, including any part subject to contributions. The paid-leave compensation paid on departure stays in the base.
- 3
Apply the AEP rate based on headcount
0.20% from 50 to 1,999 employees, 0.22% from 2,000. Check how the company measures headcount, since crossing 2,000 raises the budget by 10% at a stroke.
- 4
Apply the ASC rate from the agreement or the prior year
Read the company agreement or established practice. Without an agreement, compute the prior-year ratio of ASC to payroll: it is the floor for the current year (article L2312-81). A falling rate without an agreement should be challenged.
- 5
Reconcile payments received and set the accounting regime
Compare amounts due with amounts actually received on each bank account, then add up the year’s resources to determine the accounting obligations: ultra-simplified, simplified, or full accounts with a statutory auditor.
Worked example: a company with 250 employees
Take a company below 2,000 employees with €8,000,000 of gross payroll and an agreement setting the ASC contribution at 1.2%: these are the simulator default values. At year-end the CSE records a €4,000 surplus on the AEP budget and a €12,000 surplus on the ASC budget.
| Item | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Operating budget (AEP) | 8,000,000 × 0.20% | €16,000 |
| ASC budget | 8,000,000 × 1.2% | €96,000 |
| Annual resources | 16,000 + 96,000 | €112,000 |
| Accounting regime | €112,000 ≤ €153,000 | Ultra-simplified |
| Maximum AEP to ASC transfer | 4,000 × 10% | €400 |
| Maximum ASC to AEP transfer | 12,000 × 10% | €1,200 |
| If headcount reached 2,000 | 8,000,000 × 0.22% | €17,600 (+€1,600) |
Reading: with €112,000 of resources, the CSE may keep a chronological receipts and expenses book plus an annual summary statement. Transfers between budgets remain marginal (€400 one way, €1,200 the other): they adjust a year-end surplus, they do not reallocate the budget. If the payroll used by the employer left out €500,000 of bonuses subject to contributions, the CSE would lose €1,000 of AEP and €6,000 of ASC for the year.
CSE accounting obligations by level of resources
These thresholds come from articles L2315-64, L2315-65 and L2315-73 of the Labour Code, which refer to Commercial Code thresholds (articles D612-5 and R612-1).
| CSE situation | Accounting obligations | Statutory auditor (commissaire aux comptes) |
|---|---|---|
| Annual resources ≤ €153,000 | Chronological receipts and expenses book + simplified annual summary (assets, commitments) | No |
| Resources > €153,000 and at most 1 of 3 criteria exceeded | Annual accounts in simplified form; receivables and payables recorded at year-end only | No |
| At least 2 of 3 criteria exceeded: 50 CSE employees, €3.1M resources, €1.55M balance sheet total | Full annual accounts (balance sheet, income statement, notes) | Yes: one principal and one alternate, separate from the company’s auditors |
The auditor threshold does not depend on resources alone: a CSE with €3.5M of resources but a balance sheet below €1.55M and fewer than 50 employees is not caught. The simulator computes the resources criterion and asks how many of the two other criteria are exceeded; its resources only include AEP and ASC contributions, so add any other income of the CSE.
Best practices to secure the CSE budget
- Ask the employer every year for the payroll figure used (DSN base) and reconcile it with the social report or the company’s economic and social database (BDESE).
- Keep two separate bank accounts, one for AEP and one for ASC: the simplest way to prove the budgets are ring-fenced.
- Vote any surplus transfer by a formal resolution in a meeting, then record it in the annual accounts and the activity and management report, as the Labour Code requires.
- Compute the transfer on the surplus actually found at year-end, never on the forecast budget.
- Track total resources during the year to anticipate crossing €153,000 and the change of accounting regime.
- Put the ASC rate in a written company agreement: it is the enforceable reference if the ratchet is disputed.
- Check URSSAF exemption limits before distributing gifts or vouchers (5% of the monthly social security ceiling, about €200 in 2026, per employee per calendar year, assessed event by event beyond that).
Common mistakes on CSE budgets
Using ledger account 641 without adjustments
Account 641 may include items outside the base (CDI termination payments) and miss items subject to contributions booked elsewhere (benefits in kind). Since 2018 the reference is the social security contribution base.
Applying 10% to the whole budget
The 10% cap applies to the annual surplus, not to the subsidy received. On a €16,000 AEP budget with a €4,000 surplus, the maximum transfer is €400, not €1,600.
Mixing the two budgets in day-to-day spending
Paying an employee trip from the AEP, or the CSE accountant’s fees from the ASC, is an irregular use of funds. The treasurer must be able to justify how each expense is allocated.
Letting the ASC rate fall without an agreement
Without a company agreement, the ratio of the ASC contribution to payroll cannot be lower than the prior year. A flat lump sum while payroll grows lowers that ratio.
Leaving transfers and other income out of resources
Resources used for the accounting thresholds include the subsidies and other ASC income (employee contributions to activities, for instance), less amounts passed to the central CSE or an inter-company committee. Counting only the two subsidies can understate the applicable regime.
Frequently asked questions about CSE budgets
How is the CSE operating budget calculated?
Multiply the year’s gross payroll by 0.20% if the company has 50 to 1,999 employees, or by 0.22% from 2,000 employees (Labour Code, article L2315-61). For €5,000,000 of gross payroll, the operating budget is €10,000.
Which payroll figure is used for the CSE budget?
The statutory gross payroll: all earnings and pay subject to social security contributions, less permanent-contract termination payments (dismissal, mutual termination, retirement). Bonuses, overtime, benefits in kind and end-of-fixed-term payments are included; profit-sharing (intéressement, participation), not subject to contributions, is excluded.
Is there a legal minimum for the social and cultural activities budget?
No, the law sets no minimum rate. The amount is fixed by company agreement. Failing an agreement, the ratio of the ASC contribution to gross payroll cannot be lower than in the previous year (article L2312-81): the so-called ratchet rule.
Can the operating budget be transferred to social activities?
Yes, but only part of the annual surplus, capped at 10% of that surplus, by a CSE resolution (article R2315-31-1). With a €6,000 AEP surplus, at most €600 can move to the ASC budget. The transfer is barred for three years if the employer paid expert fees because the budget was insufficient.
What can the CSE do with an ASC surplus?
The CSE can transfer up to 10% of the annual ASC surplus to the operating budget or to public-interest charities fighting exclusion or supporting social reintegration (article R2312-51). The resolution names the recipients; the rest of the surplus is carried forward to the next year.
What are the accounting obligations of a CSE?
They depend on annual resources. Up to €153,000: a receipts and expenses book and a simplified summary. Above: annual accounts, in simplified form as long as the CSE exceeds no more than 1 of 3 criteria (50 employees, €3.1M resources, €1.55M balance sheet). Above 2 criteria: full accounts and a statutory auditor.
When must a CSE appoint a statutory auditor?
When, at year-end, it exceeds at least 2 of 3 criteria: 50 employees, €3.1M of annual resources and a €1.55M balance sheet total (article L2315-73). It then appoints a principal and an alternate auditor, separate from the company’s, paid from the operating budget.
Does a CSE in a company with fewer than 50 employees have a budget?
No statutory budget. The operating subsidy and the ASC contribution only apply to companies with at least 50 employees. Below that, the employer may fund social benefits voluntarily, but the Labour Code imposes no rate.
What if the employer understated the payroll?
The CSE can request the detailed calculation, then claim the missing subsidy for years not yet time-barred, first amicably and then before the civil court (tribunal judiciaire). Example: €300,000 of omitted bonuses represent €600 of AEP at 0.20% and €3,600 of ASC at 1.2% per year.
Are gifts from the CSE exempt from social contributions?
Yes, under an URSSAF tolerance, when total gifts and vouchers do not exceed 5% of the monthly social security ceiling per employee per calendar year, about €200 in 2026 (monthly ceiling of €4,005). Beyond that, the exemption is assessed event by event, with conditions on how vouchers are used.
Official sources
Understanding the two CSE budgets
Since 50 employees, a French CSE has two distinct budgets: the operating budget (AEP), equal to 0.20% of gross payroll (0.22% from 2,000 employees, L2315-61), and the social and cultural activities budget (ASC), set by company agreement (L2312-81). The two budgets are kept in separate accounts; only 10% of the annual surplus of one may be transferred to the other, by a deliberation of the CSE.
Key 2026 thresholds
- AEP: 0.20% of gross payroll (0.22% above 2,000 employees)
- ASC: negotiated, with a ratchet floor at the previous year percentage (L2312-81)
- AEP ↔ ASC transfer: at most 10% of the annual surplus (R2315-31-1 and L2312-84)
- URSSAF gift cap: €200 per beneficiary in 2026 (5% of PMSS)
- Statutory auditor (CAC) when 2 of 3 criteria are exceeded: 50 CSE employees, €3.1M of resources, €1.55M balance sheet (L2315-73)
Why use this calculator?
A precise CSE budget projection helps your committee:
- Anticipate the threshold crossing that triggers the statutory auditor (CAC) obligation.
- Plan the 10% AEP/ASC transfer in advance, with proper deliberation.
- Size the URSSAF gift envelope to remain fully exempt.
- Defend the ratchet floor on ASC during the next negotiation with the employer.
A specialist CSE chartered accountant by your side
Hayot Expertise works with establishment, company-level and central works councils across mainland France. We handle the full bookkeeping cycle from A to Z, with no postings handed back to the treasurer.