Posting of British workers to France: what consequences does Brexit have for your employees?

The UK's exit from the EU, or "Brexit", has been in effect since 1 January 2021. The "transitional period" provided for in the Agreement on the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the EU and the European Atomic Energy Community of 17 October 2019 ended on 31 December 2020.

If you are a British employer who has posted (or wishes to post) one or more of your employees to French national territory, you may be wondering how the changes affect the administrative situation of your seconded employees after 1 January 2021. 

Let’s take a look at the position of a British employee posted in France with regard to labour and immigration law as of 1 January 2021. 

Continued application of the French labour law to seconded British employees

Brexit does not impact the position of your British employees posted to France with regard to labour law, because French regulations (and their reforms) relating to secondment apply to all workers posted to France, regardless of their nationality. Consequently, any employers posting employees must, except in special cases, make a declaration prior to the posting and appoint a representative in France.

It should be noted that in terms of secondment, the Act of 20 February 2019 came into force on 30 July 2020 and transposes into French law the European Directive on the posting of workers (EU) 2018/957, which reduces the maximum duration of a posting in France. In effect, the duration a foreign employee may be seconded to France is limited to 12 months, and may not exceed 18 months (12 months which can be extended once for 6 months). 

Changes to immigration law applicable to seconded UK workers

A British employee whose assignment began before 31 December 2020

As the United Kingdom is no longer a member state of the European Union, the administrative position of British employees under French immigration law is severely impacted. 

Indeed, article 5 of decree n° 202-1417 (link in French) of 19 November 2020 provides that seconded personnel whose assignment began before 31 December 2020 must have, as of 1 October 2021, a valid passport as well as a residence permit with the wording "Accord de retrait" (Withdrawal agreement), the duration of which will depend on the situation:

• If the posted employee has resided in France for a period of at least 5 years without being absent from French territory for a period exceeding 5 consecutive years, their residence permit will be valid for 10 years;
• If the posted employee has resided in France for less than 5 years, their residence permit will be valid for 1 to 5 years, depending on their situation.

It should be noted that the request for a residence permit must be submitted online before 1 July2021 via the dedicated portal. If your employee already has an optional residence permit (marked "Citizen of the European Union"), they will also have to request a change for a residence permit marked "Withdrawal agreement" before 1 July 2021 via the same portal. This residence permit will be issued/changed free of charge.

In addition, article 30 of the Withdrawal Agreement (link in French) exempts any British employee from needing to obtain a work permit for the duration of their secondment period in France, their residence permit with the wording "Withdrawal agreement" being equivalent to a work permit.

This article also provides for the maintenance of rights acquired under previous periods as well as the continuity of social benefits for employees until the end of their assignment, provided that their situation remains unchanged and that their assignment has not been interrupted. 

It should be noted that family members of British employees posted to France will benefit from the same regulations.

Any British employee whose assignment begins after 1 January 2021

In all cases, British nationals (and thus seconded employees) arriving in France after 1 January 2021 are exempt from the obligation to obtain a short-stay visa when their stay/assignment lasts less than or equal to 90 days (over a course of 180 days).

For any British employee whose assignment begins on 1 January 2021 and lasts longer than 90 days, the ordinary regulations under the law will apply. In fact, obtaining a work permit before arriving in France is necessary and, depending on the case, may be obtained in the following forms: 

• A long-stay visa equivalent to a residence permit;
• A residence permit;
• Document separate from the residence document (temporary residence document with the wording "autorise son titulaire à travailler" (authorises its holder to work), provisional work permit (APT).

So Posting Worker is an online service that allows you to manage your secondments from many European Union countries and to store your documents directly in your personal online space through a platform specially designed for worker secondment.

For all complex questions relating to immigration rights, our partners can assist you in taking all the necessary steps, so 

do not hesitate to contact us for more information