Employer training obligations in France: what the Labour Code says

Updated 29 September 2026

CompaniesRegulation

training obligationemployerL6321-1career review interviewtraining contributionpenalties

Every employer in France must adapt its employees to their jobs and maintain their ability to hold a job (article L6321-1 of the French Labour Code). Whatever its size, it must also provide safety training and hold career review interviews. Further obligations apply from 50 employees (works council consultation, a top-up of the personal training account in case of failure) and from 300 employees (GEPP negotiation). Finally, the employer pays a training contribution of 0.55% or 1% of payroll, depending on headcount.

The duty to adapt employees and maintain employability

Article L6321-1 sets two obligations. The employer adapts employees to their job. It maintains their ability to hold a job, in particular as jobs, technologies and organizations change. The corresponding training is provided for, where applicable, in the skills development plan (plan de développement des compétences), which may take into account the conclusions of career review interviews.

This obligation applies from the first employee. It does not depend on a request from the employee: the Cour de cassation (French supreme court) holds that it is the employer's responsibility to take the initiative (Cass. soc., 18 June 2014, no. 13-14.916).

Training that is a condition for carrying out an activity or a function, under an international convention or a legal or regulatory text, counts as actual working time. Pay is maintained (article L6321-2).

Safety training

Article L4141-2 requires practical and appropriate safety training for:

newly hired workers;
workers who change job or technique;
temporary workers, subject to the exceptions set out in the text;
at the request of the occupational physician, workers returning after a sick leave of at least 21 days.

This training is repeated periodically, under rules set by regulation or by collective agreement.

Career review interviews

Since law no. 2025-989 of 24 October 2025, the professional interview (entretien professionnel) has become the career review interview (entretien de parcours professionnel, article L6315-1). It takes place within the first year after hiring, then every four years. It covers in particular skills, training needs, career wishes and the personal training account (CPF, compte personnel de formation). It does not assess the employee's work.

Every eight years, a full review checks that the employee had their interviews. It assesses whether they received at least one training course, gained certification elements, or progressed in pay or career. A written record is given to the employee. From 1 October 2026, the new rule also applies to existing collective agreements that set a different frequency.

The works council and GEPP negotiation

From 50 employees, the works council (CSE, comité social et économique) is consulted:

on the company's strategic orientations, which include forward planning of jobs and skills, training orientations and the skills development plan (article L2312-24);
every year on social policy, which covers in particular the multi-year training programme, planned training actions, retraining periods and apprenticeship (article L2312-26).

From 300 employees, the employer opens a negotiation on the management of jobs and career paths (GEPP, gestion des emplois et des parcours professionnels) at least every four years (article L2242-2). The threshold also applies to groups of at least 300 employees, and to EU-scale groups with an establishment or company of at least 150 employees in France.

Contributions: what percentage of payroll?

The single contribution for vocational training and work-study (contribution unique à la formation professionnelle et à l'alternance) combines the apprenticeship tax and the training contribution (article L6131-2). They are declared through the monthly social security return (DSN) and collected by Urssaf.

Training contribution. 0.55% of pay for employers with fewer than 11 employees (article L6331-1), 1% from 11 employees (article L6331-3). According to Urssaf, the 1% rate applies to companies that crossed the 11-employee threshold more than five years ago.
CPF-CDD contribution. 1% of the pay of employees on fixed-term contracts (CDD), with exceptions (article L6331-6).
Apprenticeship tax. For liable employers, 0.59% for the main share and 0.09% for the balance, outside Alsace-Moselle.

These contributions do not set a training budget. The tax obligation to fund the training plan, formerly 0.9% of payroll, ended on 1 January 2015 with the law of 5 March 2014. The obligation to train remains.

Obligations by headcount

Obligation	Under 11	11 to 49	50 to 299	300 or more
Adapting employees and employability (L6321-1)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Safety training (L4141-2)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Career review interview and 8-year review (L6315-1)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
CPF top-up in case of failure over 8 years (L6323-13)	No	No	Yes	Yes
Works council consultation on training (L2312-24, L2312-26)	No	No	Yes	Yes
GEPP negotiation at least every 4 years (L2242-2)	No	No	No	Yes
Training contribution	0.55%	1%	1%	1%
CPF-CDD contribution (L6331-6)	1%	1%	1%	1%

Penalties and case law

Interviews and training. In companies with at least 50 employees, if the employee did not receive, over eight years, the required interviews and at least one training course other than mandatory training, the employer tops up their CPF, through the Caisse des dépôts, by an amount set by decree (articles L6323-13 and R6323-3). If an inspection finds the payment was not made, the company receives a formal notice, then pays the Treasury the amount increased by 100%.
Safety. An employer who breaches the safety training rules through personal fault faces a fine of 10,000 euros, applied as many times as there are employees concerned (article L4741-1).
Adaptation. The breach carries no fine. The employee can, however, obtain damages. The Cour de cassation thus dismissed the appeal of an employer ordered to pay damages for giving an employee no training in thirty years of service (Cass. soc., 30 November 2016, no. 15-15.162).

Frequently asked questions

What does the French Labour Code say about the employer's training obligation? The employer adapts employees to their jobs and maintains their ability to hold a job (article L6321-1). Safety training and career review interviews come on top.

What percentage of payroll must go to training? No minimum budget is required. The employer pays a contribution of 0.55% (under 11 employees) or 1% (11 employees or more), plus 1% on fixed-term contract pay.

Does a small company have training obligations? Yes. Adapting employees, safety training and career review interviews apply from the first employee.

What is the penalty if the employer does not train? From 50 employees, a CPF top-up, of an amount set by decree, in case of failure over eight years. In every company, damages if the employee shows a breach of the duty to adapt.

Does the employee have to ask for training? No. Maintaining employees' ability to hold a job is the employer's initiative.

Key takeaways

Adapting employees, safety training and interviews apply to every employer.
Career review interview within the first year, then every four years; full review every eight years.
From 50 employees: works council consultation and a CPF top-up in case of failure.
From 300 employees: GEPP negotiation at least every four years.
A contribution of 0.55% or 1% of payroll, plus 1% on fixed-term contracts; no minimum budget.

Sources

Check your obligations and funding with the training diagnostic: 10 minutes, an action plan based on the French Labour Code. To structure skills management beyond the obligations, see GEPP in companies.

Further reading: Career review interview in France: obligations and the link with GEPP · GEPP negotiation: legal obligations, scope and frequency · How to prove that my company meets its training obligations

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