FAQ for professionals

If an artist is paid by an association of which he or she is the president, then he or she risks being classified as a de facto manager and thus having his or her employment contract challenged by France Travail. However, an artist receiving intermittent work benefits may serve as president of an association that does not pay him or her a salary. Being president of an association is not a job, so there is no issue.

No. Intermittent work is not a status. It is a specific unemployment insurance program tailored to the unique employment conditions of performing artists and technicians who work under customary fixed-term contracts for one or more employers and whose work history includes both periods of employment and periods of unemployment. These artists and technicians have employee status, which allows them to qualify for the intermittent unemployment insurance program if they meet the requirements. Nor is it a profession: one can be a dancer, choreographer, lighting engineer, production manager… but not an “intermittent”!

Yes. It is possible to combine the intermittent worker status with another activity under the micro-entrepreneur status. However, working as a performing artist is not permitted under the micro-entrepreneur status. An artist receiving unemployment benefits under the intermittent worker status may therefore certainly pursue an activity as a micro-entrepreneur at the same time (such as teaching, etc.).

Yes, in theory, it is possible to do both, provided you are actively and continuously seeking employment.
France Travail has an Employment Search Monitoring Service (CRE). It monitors and verifies that job seekers are actively and continuously looking for work. However, intermittent workers are not subject to this monitoring; Pôle Emploi simply asks them if they are looking for work.

In practice: if a beneficiary of intermittent work status declares that they are engaged in entrepreneurial activity in the performing arts, it is possible to request a “proxy assessment” from France Travail to verify whether or not the person has influence over the company’s management.

All work performed must be reported to France Travail. During the update, you must create a line labeled “general activity” (or, for example, “teaching activity under the general social security system”). You must specify the number of hours, the time period, and the compensation received. This report must be submitted monthly for each activity, in the month in which the work was performed. If the contract and/or pay stubs are submitted after the fact—particularly in the case of temporary university staff—France Travail may wait (up to the anniversary date at the latest). Payment of benefits will not be finalized until the artist or technician submits the supporting documentation (pay stub, France Travail certificate).
 

As a micro-entrepreneur, you must choose to report your revenue monthly rather than quarterly. You must report your revenue to France Travail at the time the invoice is paid, not on the date the service was provided. The supporting document to provide is the URSSAF certificate. The amount of monthly revenue to be reported takes into account the deduction for business expenses.

There are three types of deductions depending on the business activity:

• Services and independent professions—such as dance instruction—(BNC): 34%;
• Commercial and craft services (BIC): 50%; Sales of goods (BIC): 71%.

To determine the number of non-compensable days, there are two scenarios:

• Either the claimant specifies the number of hours worked (as shown on the invoice), which will serve as the basis for calculating the number of non-compensable days,
• Or, if the number of hours cannot be determined, France Travail will divide the adjusted revenue by the hourly minimum wage (SMIC) to obtain a theoretical number of hours, which will serve as the basis for calculating the number of non-compensable days.

Reminder: Number of non-compensable days = (number of hours worked during the month × 1.3) / 10

For maternity leave: If the maternity leave period is compensated by Social Security or by Audiens, each day will be counted as 5 hours by France Travail.
Periods of sick leave:

• If they interrupt an employment contract, they are counted as 5 hours per day;
• If they occur outside of any employment contract and are compensated by Social Security, they are “neutralized”: they extend the reference period by the number of days corresponding to the duration of the sick leave, without changing the number of hours required. Note: This does not result in a postponement of the anniversary date. Thus, the reference period can only be extended at the beginning of the period. However, since a sick leave certificate cannot be used twice to establish entitlement, this extension of the reference period often has no practical effect for the intermittent worker (except for the first establishment of entitlement or following a period without benefits);
• For long-term medical conditions (ALD) covered by Social Security and occurring outside the scope of the employment contract, these are considered equivalent to actual work at a rate of 5 hours per day, provided that the beneficiary can demonstrate at least one instance of eligibility under Annex 8 or 10.

No. Copyright income does not need to be reported to France Travail and is not included in the calculation of benefits.
 

No. France Travail may wait to receive supporting documents for a reported job (up to the anniversary date at the latest). However, if the job seeker fails to report a job that affects the amount of unemployment benefits, the overpayment is automatically recovered the following month. The amount will be refunded once France Travail receives the supporting document.

Yes. Having multiple employers is not a mandatory requirement for qualifying for intermittent work benefits. During the reference period, if an artist or technician works all their hours for the same employer, France Travail will take these into account when assessing their eligibility, but this will trigger an investigation.

When an artist or technician submits their Monthly Status Report (DSM or “update”), France Travail takes into account the number of hours worked during the month as a freelance worker and under the general social security system to calculate the number of days not eligible for benefits:

• For artists (Appendix 10): Number of non-compensable days = [number of hours worked during the month (intermittent work + general social security system) × 1.3] / 10
• For technicians and administrative staff (Appendix 8): Number of non-compensable days = [number of hours worked during the month (intermittent work + general social security system) × 1.4] / 10

The nature of the last employment contract preceding the granting of entitlement is important. For the first time entitlement is granted, the last employment contract must fall under the intermittent employment scheme for France Travail to grant entitlement under that scheme. In the case of a renewal of benefits:

• If, on the anniversary date, the last employment contract falls under the intermittent work scheme—even if the conditions of the general scheme are met—then benefits will automatically be granted under the intermittent work scheme.
• If, on the anniversary date, the most recent employment contract falls under the general system and the conditions of the general system are met, then benefits will automatically be granted under the general system. The artist or technician may then apply to Pôle Emploi to switch back to the intermittent work system.

No. There is no limit on the number of hours worked under the general scheme by a worker covered by the intermittent status scheme. This figure of 70 hours simply corresponds to the maximum number of hours of artistic teaching taken into account by France Travail over the reference period to help artists reach the 507-hour threshold.
 

In the event of a dispute, you may file an appeal with the France Travail mediator. You may only refer the matter to the mediator after filing two complaints with France Travail and receiving two denials. The mediator issues a customized decision that is binding on France Travail.

The conditions for combining these benefits are assessed on a case-by-case basis. The regulations do not set a limit on the number of hours. The key requirement is to work the 507 “performing arts” hours required for the intermittent workers’ scheme, even if the number of hours under the general social security system is higher. France Travail sets a cap on the combination of income from employment and unemployment benefits at 118% of the social security ceiling. Therefore, the amount of income earned from this employment will be taken into account when determining the amount of unemployment benefits paid.

Resigning—even from a position under the general social security system (teaching, food service, etc.)—prevents you from becoming eligible for unemployment benefits under any system. Furthermore, resigning resets all your eligibility counts (both under the general system and the intermittent work system), and you will need to work the required number of hours again to become eligible for unemployment benefits following your resignation.