Subsection 1: General provisions applicable to companies established in France

Articles in this section · 16

Article R123-10

French Commercial codeIn force

Updated 6 Nov 2023

In the case of an application for authorisation mentioned in 2° of I of article R. 123-1:

1° Where the file contains all the documents required for the issue of the authorisation(s) required, in accordance with article R. 123-3, the electronic acknowledgement of receipt referred to in article R. 123-7 indicates the deadline(s) laid down by the legislative or regulatory texts in force for the issue of the authorisation(s) required to carry out the activity that is the subject of the application as well as the deadlines and appeal procedures applicable to decisions taken on applications for authorisation;

2° Where the application is incomplete, subject to the provisions of 3° below, the electronic acknowledgement of receipt referred to in article R. 123-7 will indicate the additions that must be sent to the single body referred to in article R. 123-1 by the applicant within fifteen working days of receipt of the acknowledgement of receipt;

3° When a document attesting to the completion of the formality of creation provided for in 1° of I of Article R. 123-1 is required for the issue of the authorisation(s) required or for the issue of documents that are themselves required for the issue of the authorisation(s) required, the authorisation application file is the subject of an electronic acknowledgement of receipt, referred to in Article R. 123-7, transmitted by the single body, certifying receipt of the documents submitted by the applicant, the date of submission and indicating the nature of the additional documents required.

The single body sends, within the timeframe specified in article R. 123-7, an electronic acknowledgement of receipt of the documents submitted by the applicant. Under the conditions set out in 1°, the single body will send a second electronic acknowledgement of receipt to the registrant when it receives directly from the competent authority the document certifying completion of the formality set out in 1° of I of Article R. 123-1.

If the applicant has to take personal steps to complete his application for authorisation, the single body informs him that he has a period of fifteen working days, renewable once if necessary, from receipt of the acknowledgement of receipt certifying completion of the formality provided for in 1° of I of article R. 123-1 to submit to the single body the documents resulting from these steps. When these documents have been submitted, the registrant receives an acknowledgement of receipt of the transmission of the requests to the administrative authorities under the conditions provided for in 1°.

Mariela Petrova

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Common Questions

Working with a corporate lawyer in France — Q&A

Any time a strategic decision changes how the company is owned, governed or contractually bound — incorporation, fundraising, M&A, restructuring, shareholder agreements, or major commercial contracts. Earlier engagement always costs less than later remediation.

A notary (notaire) is a public officer who authenticates specific deeds (mainly real-estate transfers and certain family-law acts). A corporate lawyer (avocat) advises on strategy, negotiates and drafts company documents, and represents you in disputes. The two roles complement rather than overlap.

Yes — most of our clients are foreign suppliers, investors or holding entities. We bridge the gap between French law and your home jurisdiction's expectations and deliver everything bilingually.

The SAS (Société par Actions Simplifiée) is the default choice for most international structures: flexible governance, single shareholder allowed, no minimum capital, and works cleanly with foreign holding entities. We assess SARL, SA, SCI on the merits when the situation calls for it.

Yes — communications with a French avocat are protected by the secret professionnel (Article 66-5 of the Law of 31 December 1971). This protection is broader than the common-law attorney-client privilege and applies to written and oral exchanges.

We work on fixed fees for clearly scoped engagements (incorporation, contract drafting, audits) and on monthly retainers for ongoing advisory. Hourly billing is the exception, not the default. You always know the cost before work starts.

Typical timeline is 2–3 weeks from KYC kick-off to RCS registration, assuming standard documentation. Holding-company structures, foreign-shareholder identification or in-kind contributions can extend this — we flag the gating items at the first meeting.

Absolutely. We routinely coordinate with your in-house counsel, expert-comptable or notaire — pragmatic collaboration is the norm, not the exception. We send them everything they need to do their part without duplicating work.

Mariela Petrova

Mariela Petrova

Avocate au Barreau de Paris

Toque #C2396

15+ Years In Corporate Practice

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Communications protected by professional secrecy — secret professionnel de l'avocat, Article 66-5 of the Law of 31 December 1971.

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