Set up a training organisation in France
Your company is based abroad and wants to deliver vocational training in France? We map the whole journey: legal framework, activity declaration, Qualiopi and funding. France's vocational training market is one of the largest in Europe, worth over €32 billion a year, and it is entirely open to foreign players — provided they follow the national rules.
How does a foreign company set up in France?
The French training market is open to foreign players, provided they meet the national rules: activity declaration, quality obligations and, to access public funding, Qualiopi certification. Understanding these obligations upfront — rather than discovering them mid-project — is where experienced guidance saves months of delay and avoidable cost.
Two main routes exist. The first is to create a French entity — a subsidiary (SAS, SARL) or a registered stable establishment — that carries the training activity and makes invoicing public funders, signing OPCO contracts and opening a French bank account straightforward. The second route, applicable under conditions, is to declare a training activity from abroad directly with the DREETS (the regional directorate for economy, employment, labour and solidarity). This is possible but operationally complex: it requires a French point of contact, limits access to certain funding streams and complicates CPF referencing.
In both cases you must file an activity declaration (NDA — Numéro de Déclaration d'Activité) within three months of signing your first training agreement, as required by French law. Once declared, you submit an annual BPF (bilan pédagogique et financier — educational and financial report) to the DREETS. To access any public or pooled funding, you must then pursue Qualiopi certification. At QF Qualité Formation, Romain Rissoan and our team guide international clients through every one of these steps, combining legal know-how with direct experience of running a certified training organisation in France.
From entry to your first funded course
Legal set-up
We help you choose the right structure for your project — subsidiary (SAS or SARL) or registered stable establishment — weighing corporate, tax and social-law implications. We coordinate with a French accountant and legal counsel to ensure your articles of association, head-office address, SIRET number and internal employment contracts are in order before the first training agreement is signed.
Activity declaration
The NDA (Numéro de Déclaration d'Activité) must be filed with the DREETS within three months of your first training agreement. We prepare the full application — programme descriptions, trainer CVs, legal documents — and follow up with the authority to secure your number promptly. We also set up the annual BPF reporting process so the obligation never catches you off-guard.
Qualiopi
We build a quality management system aligned with all 7 criteria and 32 indicators of the National Quality Framework (RNQ), compile the required evidence indicator by indicator, and run a full mock audit before the COFRAC-accredited certification body visits. Our target: first-attempt certification. The certificate is valid 3 years, with a surveillance audit between months 14 and 22.
Funding access
Once Qualiopi is obtained, we support your referencing on EDOF (the CPF portal managed by Caisse des Dépôts) to sell CPF-eligible courses via Mon Compte Formation, and we help you negotiate framework agreements with OPCOs (sectoral training operators) and France Travail to diversify your public funding streams.
Your investor journey
Your questions about setting up
Can a foreign company set up a training organisation in France?
Yes, fully. A foreign company can either incorporate a French subsidiary (SAS, SARL) or register a stable establishment, then file an activity declaration (NDA) with the DREETS within three months of its first training agreement. Under certain conditions it is also possible to declare a training activity from the home country, though this route offers more limited access to public funding. In both cases Qualiopi certification is required to bill CPF, OPCOs, France Travail or any other public funder. We guide international clients through each administrative and regulatory step from day one.
How long does it take?
The typical timeline is 3 to 5 months from project kick-off to first funded course: approximately 2–4 weeks to incorporate the French entity, 2–4 weeks to obtain the activity declaration number, then 2–3 months to build the quality system and pass the Qualiopi audit. The clock on the NDA only starts when the first training agreement is signed, so structuring the sequence correctly can compress the overall calendar. We plan this timeline with every client at the outset to match their commercial launch date.
Is a French legal entity mandatory?
Not strictly, but it is strongly advisable. A French subsidiary or establishment with its own SIRET number simplifies the activity declaration, enables direct invoicing to French public funders (OPCOs, France Travail, Regions), makes CPF/EDOF referencing far smoother and reduces the administrative burden on the foreign parent company. Operating without a French entity is legally possible but creates friction at nearly every step of the commercial and regulatory journey. We help you assess the cost-benefit of each structure relative to your projected French revenue and training volumes.
Let’s secure your entry into France
A first call — in English or French — to scope your set-up and its timeline.