Your micro-BNC declarations in 4 steps: the memo to make sure you don't forget anything!

How do you know which micro-BNC declaration applies to you?

If you work as a self-employed professional, you come under the French non-commercial profits (BNC) system. As long as your sales do not exceed a certain annual threshold, you can benefit from the simplified micro-BNC regime.

As with all accounting and tax declarations, there are specific rules that apply depending on your activity and situation. Let's find out which ones, when to declare under the micro-BNC scheme, and go through each step to simplify your task!

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The micro-BNC regime: reminder of obligations

As a self-employed professional, you must declare your income. This income is subject to income tax (impôt sur le revenu) on the profits generated by your business.

☝️ How do you know if you're eligible for the micro-BNC scheme?

To begin with, let's review the basics of the micro-BNC scheme:

• You are a self-employed professional.
• You are automatically eligible for this scheme from your first two years of practice, and thereafter if your income does not exceed a certain threshold.
• Your taxable profit corresponds to your sales, from which are deducted your expenses through the application of a 34% standard deduction.
• You can keep simplified accounts, with the only accounting requirement being a revenue journal to keep your accounts up to date.

[Tuto] How to declare your micro-BNC income?

For the micro-BNC scheme, declaratory obligations are simplified. Here are the various declarations to be made, and how to complete them in practice.

Step 1: Find out the micro-BNC eligibility criteria

What is the 2020 micro-BNC threshold? It depends on when you file your declaration.

To be eligible for the micro-BNC scheme, you must meet the following conditions:

• if you declare your 2019 income in 2020, your annual sales (excluding VAT) must be less than €70,000.
• if you declare your 2020 income in 2021, your sales (excluding VAT) must not exceed €72 ,500.

☝️ To qualify for this scheme, your income must not exceed the above thresholds for two consecutive calendar years. In other words, your income must remain below these thresholds in both N-1 and N-2.

If your income exceeds the threshold, you will be subject to the controlled declaration system for year N. This takes effect on January 1 of the year following the two years in which the threshold is exceeded.

Step 2: filing your tax returns

Remember that the taxable amount depends on the sales actually received in a given year. You therefore need to know the exact amount of your annual income.

Types of income to be reported under the micro-BNC system

• fees,
• income replacements (such as maternity or paternity leave, etc.),
• benefits in kind,
• daily allowances,
• subsidies obtained in the course of your business.

Documents to use for your tax returns

• the 2042 micro-BNC tax return , which corresponds to the overall tax return for all members of the tax household;
• the 2042-C-PRO supplementary tax return, used to declare income, tax reductions and tax credits.

How do I fill in the 2042 C Pro for micro-BNC?

1. Download the 2042 C-PRO supplementary tax return form from the Service Public website.
2. Go to the section entitled "Revenus non commerciaux professionnels", under the category " Régime déclaratif spécial ou micro-BNC", under "Revenus imposables".
3. Enter your total income in box "5HQ". Indicate the gross taxable amount, i.e. excluding VAT, without calculating or deducting the 34% allowance. Any capital gains or losses may be added to this amount.

Step 3: Choose your tax payment method

As a microentrepreneur under the micro-BNC scheme, you can choose to pay income tax using the " versement libératoire" system.

If you choose this option, declare your income in box "5TE" in the section illustrated below:

☝️ In this case, the income tax deducted corresponds to 2.2% of your sales, on a monthly or quarterly basis.

You report all the income you receive, and the tax authorities calculate the 34% standard deduction.

Step 4: Completing the URSSAF declaration

As a micro-BNC professional, you pay social charges at a flat rate applied to your profit.

• If you are a self-employed professional covered by the general social security system, you must complete the declaration sociale des indépendants (DSI) on the net-entreprises.fr website;
• If you are a registered medical practitioner or auxiliary, you must send your URSSAF a specific income tax declaration (DSPamC);
  
• If you are a micro-BNC entrepreneur, you are automatically covered by the simplified micro-social regime . You must declare and pay your social security contributions on the autoentrepreneur.urssaf.fr website on a monthly or quarterly basis, even if you have not received any income during the period.

When to declare micro-BNC income?

You must declare your micro-BNC income in the second quarter of each year, between April and June.

How can online declarations be made easier?

To help you meet your tax, social security and accounting obligations, we've developed software specifically designed to manage your BNC formalities with ease. The aim is to save time by automating numerous tasks and eliminating the need for manual input.

• Indy, a solution dedicated to self-employed professionals (healthcare, legal, consultancy, etc.) working under the BNC system. In particular, it automatically generates and electronically transmits your micro-business declarations : sales declarations to URSSAF, VAT, etc.
  
• Gest4U, a tool designed for microentrepreneurs, self-employed professionals and freelancers, enables them to generate their declarations directly from the application, in just a few clicks.

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Micro-BNC: how do I switch to the controlled declaration?

In practical terms, it's possible to switch from the simplified micro-BNC system to the controlled declaration system. The procedure is as follows:

1. Simply file the 2035 declaration by May of year N for income earned in year N-1, or send a request on plain paper to the tax authorities.
2. Once subscribed, this option is tacitly renewable every year.
3. To revert to micro-BNC, your Service des Impôts des Entreprises (SIE) must be notified of the new option before February 1 of the current year.

As we have seen, the formalities and declarations for micro-BNC are highly simplified, which is one of the main advantages of this system.

However, it is sometimes more advantageous to opt for the controlled declaration system , even if your income remains below the above-mentioned turnover thresholds. This is the case when your deductible expenses exceed the 34% flat-rate allowance.

It's up to you to choose the most profitable option for your business!