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Public employment and ethics · France and Switzerland : separate country-labelled rules

5 checks before a public employee takes outside work

A public employee's outside activity needs the applicable status, proposed work, remuneration and possible conflicts with official duties. French authorisation and ethics rules differ from Swiss federal secondary-activity requirements. The activity map prepares the request without treating self-employment registration or unpaid status as automatic permission, assuming every outside activity is forbidden or extending federal Swiss rules to all public employers.

  • Public-employment regime
  • Outside activity and time
  • Links with public duties
  • Notice or authorisation
Go to the toolSee the texts cited
  • Official texts cited
  • Sources checked on
  • Drafted with AI assistance, our method

By the AlphaDeep legal editorial team

General legal information with official references and dated checks. It is not personalised advice: for a decision that commits you, have your situation checked by a qualified professional.

Julie by AlphaDeep

Illustrative conversation
Example question

Which activity, payment and time are proposed?

Julie Illustration

Describe service, time, beneficiaries and consideration. Calling it voluntary does not settle every conflict.

Read the references

Your question concerns “5 checks before a public employee takes outside work”. I can help organise the facts and records. Which document have you received or prepared, and is this a French or Swiss matter?

French law

3 free questions at signup. Avoid names and sensitive information.

Answer

Which public-employment status and employer apply?

Identify branch, duties and regime. Combining public and private activity is not merely adding weekly hours.

Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-1Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-7Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-8172.220.1 : Art. 23 Activité accessoire172.220.111.3 : Art. 91 Activité accessoire172.220.1 : Art. 2 Champ d’application172.220.111.3 : Art. 1 Objet et champ d’application

Answer

Which activity, payment and time are proposed?

Describe service, time, beneficiaries and consideration. Calling it voluntary does not settle every conflict.

Tool

Which records are still missing from your file?

Indicate which records you have. The result identifies gaps and prepares a complete question for Julie, without requiring an account.

julie://tool/bordereauNothing leaves your browser

Answers stay on this page until you explicitly continue to Julie. Avoid names and sensitive information.

Fictional example · Your preparation

Point to complete: Notice or authorisation. L123-1/7 have restrictions and authorised accessory-activity branches. Notification does not replace every required permission.

Public-employment regime
Record available
Outside activity and time
Record available
Links with public duties
Record available
Notice or authorisation
Needs checking
Records indicated
3 / 4
  1. Which French procedure matches the activity?

This worksheet organises records; it does not establish admissibility, entitlement or a procedural outcome.

In order

Which preparation steps come first?

Editorial preparation order, not a popularity or success-probability ranking. Check employer regime and activity before conflicts and a documented request.

Answer

How does it connect to public duties?

Match clients, tasks and interests. Work outside office hours does not automatically remove incompatibility.

Comparison

Which documents answer which questions?

Which documents answer which questions?
Record or informationIssue to check
Public-employment regimeIdentify branch, duties and regime. Combining public and private activity is not merely adding weekly hours.
Outside activity and timeDescribe service, time, beneficiaries and consideration. Calling it voluntary does not settle every conflict.
Links with public dutiesMatch clients, tasks and interests. Work outside office hours does not automatically remove incompatibility.
Notice or authorisationL123-1/7 have restrictions and authorised accessory-activity branches. Notification does not replace every required permission.

Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-1Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-7Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-8172.220.1 : Art. 23 Activité accessoire172.220.111.3 : Art. 91 Activité accessoire172.220.1 : Art. 2 Champ d’application172.220.111.3 : Art. 1 Objet et champ d’application

Answer

Which French procedure matches the activity?

L123-1/7 have restrictions and authorised accessory-activity branches. Notification does not replace every required permission.

Answer

What Swiss notification distinction matters?

Federal OPers 91 concerns paid activities and public offices, and unpaid activities where conflicts cannot be excluded. This is not every canton's rule.

Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-1Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-7Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-8172.220.1 : Art. 23 Activité accessoire172.220.111.3 : Art. 91 Activité accessoire172.220.1 : Art. 2 Champ d’application172.220.111.3 : Art. 1 Objet et champ d’application

The law

Which official provision helps explain this situation?

L'agent public peut être autorisé par l'autorité hiérarchique dont il relève à exercer une activité à titre accessoire, lucrative ou non, auprès d'une personne ou d'un organisme public ou privé.

Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-7In force since 1 March 2022Read on Légifrance

In plain English: Federal OPers 91 concerns paid activities and public offices, and unpaid activities where conflicts cannot be excluded. This is not every canton's rule.

Answer

Does notice automatically authorise the Swiss activity?

No. Permission is separate where performance or service-interest conflicts arise, with special rules and possible refusal. France's business-creation route is also distinct.

Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-1Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-7Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-8172.220.1 : Art. 23 Activité accessoire172.220.111.3 : Art. 91 Activité accessoire172.220.1 : Art. 2 Champ d’application172.220.111.3 : Art. 1 Objet et champ d’application

Answer

Which records should accompany the request?

Bring description, hours, payment and connections. A generic reassurance does not describe actual work.

Answer

What does the outside-activity grid deliver?

It organises regime, activity, conflicts and procedure. It issues no permission and guarantees no conflict-free status.

Frequent questions

What other questions arise in this file?

Which activity, payment and time are proposed?

Describe service, time, beneficiaries and consideration. Calling it voluntary does not settle every conflict.

Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-1Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-7Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-8172.220.1 : Art. 23 Activité accessoire172.220.111.3 : Art. 91 Activité accessoire172.220.1 : Art. 2 Champ d’application172.220.111.3 : Art. 1 Objet et champ d’application

Which French procedure matches the activity?

L123-1/7 have restrictions and authorised accessory-activity branches. Notification does not replace every required permission.

Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-1Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-7Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-8172.220.1 : Art. 23 Activité accessoire172.220.111.3 : Art. 91 Activité accessoire172.220.1 : Art. 2 Champ d’application172.220.111.3 : Art. 1 Objet et champ d’application

What Swiss notification distinction matters?

Federal OPers 91 concerns paid activities and public offices, and unpaid activities where conflicts cannot be excluded. This is not every canton's rule.

Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-1Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-7Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-8172.220.1 : Art. 23 Activité accessoire172.220.111.3 : Art. 91 Activité accessoire172.220.1 : Art. 2 Champ d’application172.220.111.3 : Art. 1 Objet et champ d’application

Which records should accompany the request?

Bring description, hours, payment and connections. A generic reassurance does not describe actual work.

Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-1Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-7Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-8172.220.1 : Art. 23 Activité accessoire172.220.111.3 : Art. 91 Activité accessoire172.220.1 : Art. 2 Champ d’application172.220.111.3 : Art. 1 Objet et champ d’application

Sources

Which official references should you consult?

  1. Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-1Légifrance
  2. Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-7Légifrance
  3. Code général de la fonction publique art.L123-8Légifrance
  4. 172.220.1 : Art. 23 Activité accessoireFedlex
  5. 172.220.111.3 : Art. 91 Activité accessoireFedlex
  6. 172.220.1 : Art. 2 Champ d’applicationFedlex
  7. 172.220.111.3 : Art. 1 Objet et champ d’applicationFedlex

Texts cited last checked: 1 November 2026

Next steps

Which neighbouring situations should remain separate?