Chartered accountant for work integration social enterprises and the IAE framework (EI, ETTI, ACI, AI): accounting for the per-post subsidy, DREETS approval, PASS IAE, ESUS accreditation. Paris-based firm.
An accountant for a work integration enterprise masters one decisive feature: the per-post subsidy paid by the State is an operating subsidy to be recorded in account 74, never as turnover. Our firm secures this allocation, the approval with the DREETS, the tracking of full-time-equivalent headcount and, where relevant, the ESUS accreditation.
A structure of work integration through economic activity (IAE) is not a business like any other, and it is not an ordinary association either. It carries out a genuine market activity, on a real market, while pursuing a social objective: enabling people far from employment to rebuild a working life. This hybrid model translates into a particular economy, where a large share of income comes not from clients but from a flat-rate public subsidy.
In the files we support, the most frequent points of friction all stem from this duality. If the subsidy and the turnover are mixed, the indicators lose their meaning: you think you are reading a high margin rate when it is in fact aid. If the tracking of full-time equivalents (FTE) is not kept finely, the expected amount of the per-post subsidy and the amount actually received end up diverging. And if the approval is not tracked over time, the entire funding becomes fragile.
The Labour Code (articles L5132-1 and following) distinguishes four families of structures, referred to as work integration structures through economic activity, or SIAE:
| Structure | Activity model | Audience and support |
|---|---|---|
| Work integration enterprise (EI) | Ordinary-law company on a competitive market | Workers on a pathway, socio-professional support |
| Temporary work integration agency (ETTI) | Dedicated temping, placement on temporary assignments | Support during assignments |
| Workshop and integration site (ACI) | Production useful to the territory, often run by an association or local authority | Reinforced support |
| Intermediary association (AI) | Placement with individuals, associations, local authorities | Support of the workers |
What these four structures have in common is approval. It is the State, through the DREETS (regional directorate for the economy, employment, work and solidarity) or the DDETS at departmental level, that validates the integration project and signs the agreement. This agreement opens entitlement to financial aid. Without it, no per-post subsidy: the renewal calendar and the management dialogue with the administration are therefore among the deadlines we track just like a tax deadline.
A worker's eligibility for the integration pathway no longer rests on an approval granted file by file. It is now evidenced by the PASS IAE, attached to the person. The structure can validate this eligibility itself through a socio-professional assessment, or rely on an authorised prescriber, including France Travail. The old wording of an approval of workers to be requested systematically should therefore be dropped: this vocabulary is outdated and can mislead as to the real obligations.
Each post occupied by a worker on a pathway corresponds to a per-post subsidy, paid by the State and calculated per full-time equivalent. The 2026 base amounts, in metropolitan France, are set by the order of 13 April 2026 (effective 1 January 2026):
| Structure | Per-post subsidy base 2026 (per FTE) |
|---|---|
| Work integration enterprise (EI) | 13 461 € |
| Temporary work integration agency (ETTI) | 4 837 € |
| Intermediary association (AI) | 1 638 € |
| Workshop and integration site (ACI) | 24 203 € |
For the ACI, this amount includes 1,248 euros for socio-professional support and technical supervision. To this base is added a modulated share, capped at 10% of the base, which depends on the structure's results. Rigorous tracking of approved FTEs is therefore the key to controlled cash flow.
This is the point that sets an accountant experienced in IAE apart from a generalist firm. The per-post subsidy is an operating subsidy: it is recorded in account 74 (account 741 under the ANC 2022-06 regulation), not in account 70 for turnover.
This rule is not a bookkeeping nicety. It has three concrete consequences:
The solidarity enterprise of social utility (ESUS) accreditation, provided for by article L3332-17-1 of the Labour Code arising from the social economy act no. 2014-856 of 31 July 2014, is reserved for social economy enterprises with significant social impact, with rules framing the pay gap. Integration structures benefit from a favourable regime but must still apply for the accreditation.
Its duration is 5 years, reduced to 2 years where the enterprise is under 3 years old at the date of application. Its benefit is financial: it opens access to solidarity savings and to the IR-PME income-tax reduction for people subscribing to the capital. For a developing structure, it is a genuine lever to raise equity, provided that the statutes and governance are consistent.
A work integration enterprise approved as an EI carries out a recycling activity and employs the equivalent of eight FTEs on a pathway. At the first year-end after we took over the file, we find that the per-post subsidy had been recorded as turnover by the previous provider. The consequence: a high apparent margin rate, falsely reassuring, and a complicated management dialogue with the DREETS for want of readable accounts.
We reallocate the aid to account 74, restate the real turnover, and align the FTE tracking between payroll and accounting. The picture becomes honest: a low-margin market activity, structurally supplemented by the approved subsidy. On this basis, cash-flow steering and funding discussions finally rest on accurate figures. This example is representative of IAE files and identifies no recognisable client.
Defining line. A work integration enterprise (an approved SIAE, with a per-post subsidy and workers on a pathway) is neither an ordinary 1901 law association nor a SCOP. The ordinary association falls within a framework we handle on our dedicated page for associations and foundations; the cooperative owned by its employees falls within our page for cooperatives and SCOPs. Confusing these regimes leads to costly accounting, payroll and tax mistakes.
Our firm, led by Samuel Hayot, chartered accountant and statutory auditor registered with the Order of Chartered Accountants of Île-de-France and the CNCC, supports social and solidarity economy structures with one simple requirement: accounts that tell the truth about the model. For an integration structure, this means the correct allocation of the per-post subsidy, FTE tracking consistent with payroll, a written VAT analysis and the anticipation of ESUS accreditation when it makes sense.
We work on bookkeeping and accounts review, payroll for workers on a pathway, the taxation of the structure and, where thresholds require it, statutory audit and audit engagements. If you are launching an integration project or taking over an existing structure, let us talk about your situation: a conversation quickly identifies the points to secure.
Page updated on 19 June 2026. The amounts and rules cited come from public sources (Légifrance, DARES, France Travail, ANC). This page is for information; a decision specific to your structure requires a review of your situation, your documents and the law in force.
Work integration through economic activity rests on a hybrid model: a genuine market activity, partly funded by a flat-rate public subsidy (the per-post subsidy), serving a social objective. This dual nature explains most of the accounting and tax difficulties we encounter in these files. The structure produces and invoices like an ordinary business, yet a significant share of its income comes from operating subsidies to isolate in account 74. Steering therefore requires reasoning on two distinct lines: real turnover on one side, approved aid on the other. To this are added an annual or multi-year approval framework with the DREETS or the DDETS, the tracking of full-time-equivalent headcount that drives the amount of aid, and often an ESUS accreditation to access solidarity savings.
We record the per-post subsidy in account 74 (account 741 under the ANC 2022-06 regulation) and never in account 70. Turnover then reflects market activity alone. This is the condition for the margin rate, turnover per employee and productivity to remain meaningful, and for presenting readable accounts to both the DREETS and your bank.
The per-post subsidy is calculated per approved full-time equivalent, with a modulated share capped at 10% of the base. We set up FTE tracking that is consistent across payroll, the management dialogue with the DREETS or DDETS and the accounts, so that the expected and recorded amounts match at year-end.
We classify each flow: the per-post subsidy, a flat-rate balancing subsidy, is in principle outside the scope of VAT, to be distinguished from a taxable price supplement. For a structure that also invoices services to clients, this analysis governs the right to deduct and the calculation of any taxation ratio: we document it in writing.
If you target solidarity savings and the IR-PME income-tax reduction for your subscribers, ESUS accreditation (article L3332-17-1) requires compliant statutes, pay-gap rules and a formal application. We check eligibility, prepare the file and anticipate renewal, which lasts 5 years (2 years for an enterprise under 3 years old).
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Samuel Hayot is a French chartered accountant and statutory auditor registered with the Paris professional bodies.
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2026 base amounts of the IAE per-post subsidy by type of work-integration structure, agreement conditions, role of the PASS IAE and correct posting to account 74.
Which type of SIAE to choose, association or commercial company, how to obtain conventionnement with the State and structure a mixed market-plus-subsidy economic model.
Who can obtain France's ESUS accreditation, what tax benefits (enhanced IR-PME, solidarity savings), how to file with the DREETS and what changes from 2027.
The per-post subsidy paid by the State is an operating subsidy: it is recorded in account 74 (account 741 under the ANC 2022-06 regulation), never in account 70 for turnover. This distinction is central: mixing the subsidy with turnover distorts the gross margin rate and every activity indicator of the structure.
IAE structures fall under articles L5132-1 and following of the Labour Code: the work integration enterprise (EI), the temporary work integration agency (ETTI), the workshop and integration site (ACI) and the intermediary association (AI). Each combines an economic activity with socio-professional support, but the aid scheme and the amount of the per-post subsidy differ.
A worker's eligibility for the integration pathway is no longer evidenced by an approval granted case by case. It is now evidenced by the PASS IAE, attached to the person. The structure can validate eligibility itself through a socio-professional assessment or rely on an authorised prescriber, including France Travail.
A flat-rate balancing subsidy such as the per-post subsidy is in principle outside the scope of VAT, because it is not the consideration for a service. It must however be distinguished from a taxable price supplement directly linked to a transaction. This classification is checked case by case, particularly when the structure also invoices services to clients.
Approval is granted by the State, through the regional DREETS or the departmental DDETS. This administration validates the integration project and signs the agreement that opens entitlement to financial aid. Without a current agreement, the structure has no access to the per-post subsidy: tracking the renewal calendar is one of the points we secure.
Yes. The solidarity enterprise of social utility (ESUS) accreditation (article L3332-17-1 of the Labour Code, social economy act of 31 July 2014) is open to social economy enterprises with strong social impact; integration structures benefit from a favourable regime but must still apply. The accreditation lasts 5 years (2 years if the enterprise is under 3 years old) and opens access to solidarity savings and the IR-PME income-tax reduction for subscribers.
A work integration enterprise is an IAE structure approved by the State, employing workers on an integration pathway and receiving a per-post subsidy. An ordinary 1901 law association has neither this approval nor this aid; a SCOP is a cooperative owned by its employees. The accounting, payroll and tax obligations differ greatly from one case to the next.
Chartered Accountant, registered with the Institute of Chartered Accountants.
Regulated French accounting and audit firm based in Paris 8, built to support companies across France with a digital and decision-oriented approach.
Official and operational sources cited for this page.