The exhibit listExhibit list · First hire
Hiring a first employee in France: the declarations, the contract, the registers and documents to prepare, with their dates
Before a first employee arrives in France, the employer sends the pre-hiring declaration (DPAE), at the earliest 8 days ahead (Labour Code, articles L1221-10 and R1221-4), identifies the collective agreement, assesses risks in the single document and sets up the health cover. On hiring, the employee goes into the single staff register; a written fixed-term contract is handed over within 2 working days, the key information by day 7.
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Give the planned contract, the start date, the working hours and the company’s activity.
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Which documents to prepare, and by which date?
Give the contract, the hiring date, the weekly hours, any night work or an employee under 18, and what is already ready: the exhibit list sets out the hiring documents, flags the missing ones and dates each deadline. The example: a 20-hour-a-week fixed-term contract starting on Monday 5 October 2026, collective agreement and risk document already ready.
Fictional example · the first-hire file
DPAE to send from 27 September 2026, and before the job starts on 5 October 2026; a written contract is compulsory.
- DPAE, at the earliest on
- 27 September 2026
- Staff register
- On 5 October 2026
- CDD handed to the employee by
- 7 October 2026
- Key information by
- 12 October 2026
- Other information by
- 5 November 2026
- Information and prevention visit by
- 5 January 2027
| No. | Exhibit | What it proves | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Collective agreement identified | The one for the company’s main activity (article L2261-2) | In the file |
| 02 | Pre-hiring declaration (DPAE) | The hiring declared, joining the occupational health service | To obtain |
| 03 | Single risk-assessment document | The risks of each work unit (article R4121-1) | In the file |
| 04 | Company health cover | The collective cover, at least half paid by the employer | To obtain |
| 05 | Written employment contract | The reason for the CDD or the part-time hours | To obtain |
| 06 | Single staff register | The employee entered at the time of hiring | To obtain |
| 07 | Written information on the working relationship | Job, place, pay, working time, trial period | To obtain |
Indicative result: the collective agreement may require other written documents, and a reference working time below 35 hours changes what counts as part-time.
What must the employment contract contain?
A fixed-term contract and any part-time contract are written; a full-time permanent contract need not be, but the written information is still due.
- Document 1
The fixed-term contract (CDD)
Written, with a precise statement of its reason, or it is deemed permanent; the end date, the job, the name of the collective agreement, the trial period and the pay (article L1242-12).
- Document 2
The part-time contract
Written: qualification, pay, weekly or monthly hours and how they are spread, cases of change and the limits of extra hours (article L3123-6).
- Document 3
The written information
Identity of the parties, workplace, job, hiring date, end of a CDD, trial period, then training, leave, pay and working time (article R1221-34).
- Document 4
The payslip
With every payment of wages; it can be electronic, unless the employee objects (article L3243-2).
Which calendar for the first hire?
Some formalities come before the arrival; the others run from the hiring date.
| Formality | When | Text |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-hiring declaration (DPAE) | At the earliest 8 days before, and before the job starts | Articles L1221-10 and R1221-4 |
| Collective agreement | Before drafting the contract | Article L2261-2 |
| Single risk-assessment document | From the first employee | Article R4121-1 |
| Collective health cover | From hiring, at least half paid by the employer | Social Security Code, article L911-7 |
| Single staff register | At the time of hiring | Article L1221-13 |
| Written CDD | Handed over at the latest 2 working days after hiring | Article L1242-13 |
| Written information | By day 7, the rest within the month | Article R1221-35 |
| Information and prevention visit | Within 3 months, before the job for night workers or minors | Articles R4624-10 and R4624-18 |
The pre-hiring declaration also applies to join the occupational health service and asks for the information and prevention visit (article R1221-2).
Sources: C. trav. L1221-10 · C. trav. R1221-4 · C. trav. R4121-1 · CSS L911-7 · C. trav. L2261-2 · C. trav. L1221-13 · C. trav. L1242-13 · C. trav. R1221-35 · C. trav. R4624-10 · C. trav. R1221-2
When should you send the pre-hiring declaration?
Before the job starts: hiring can only take place after the employer’s named declaration to the social security bodies (French Labour Code, article L1221-10), sent at the earliest within the 8 days before the expected hiring date (article R1221-4).
The same declaration registers the employer, affiliates it to unemployment insurance, applies to join the occupational health service and asks for the information and prevention visit (article R1221-2).
Sources: C. trav. L1221-10 · C. trav. R1221-4 · C. trav. R1221-2
Which registers and documents from the first employee?
The single staff register, where employees’ names are entered in order of hiring, at the time of hiring and indelibly (article L1221-13). The single document that lists the risks of each work unit (article R4121-1).
And a collective health cover, at least half of which the employer pays for (Social Security Code, article L911-7).
Sources: C. trav. L1221-13 · C. trav. R4121-1 · CSS L911-7
Must the contract be written?
Yes for a fixed-term contract, drawn up in writing with a precise statement of its reason, or it is deemed permanent (article L1242-12), and handed to the employee at the latest within 2 working days of hiring (article L1242-13). Yes also for part-time work (article L3123-6).
For a full-time permanent contract, writing is not required by law, unless a collective agreement says otherwise (fiche F15635), but the key information must be given by day 7, the rest within the month (article R1221-35).
Sources: C. trav. L1242-12 · C. trav. L1242-13 · C. trav. L3123-6 · C. trav. R1221-35 · Service-public F15635
What does article L1221-13 of the French Labour Code say?
The text of the single staff register, to open from the first hire.
Un registre unique du personnel est tenu dans tout établissement où sont employés des salariés.
Les noms et prénoms de tous les salariés sont inscrits dans l’ordre des embauches. Ces mentions sont portées sur le registre au moment de l’embauche et de façon indélébile.
In English, briefly (our summary, not an official translation): A single staff register is kept in every establishment where employees work. The names of all employees are entered in the order in which they were hired, at the time of hiring and indelibly. Our note: the rest of the article adds trainees and civic-service volunteers in a separate part, and refers to further entries set by regulation.
What do employers hiring for the first time in France ask?
Can the DPAE be sent more than 8 days before hiring?
No: it is sent at the earliest within the 8 days before the expected hiring date (Labour Code, article R1221-4).
Which collective agreement applies?
The one covering the employer’s main activity (article L2261-2), checked on the actual activity rather than the APE code alone (fiche F36056).
When is the medical visit on hiring?
The information and prevention visit takes place within 3 months of starting the job, and before it for a night worker or an employee under 18 (articles R4624-10 and R4624-18).
Can the payslip be electronic?
Yes, unless the employee objects, with guarantees of integrity, availability and confidentiality (article L3243-2).
Which texts are the formalities of a first hire based on?
- Labour Code, article L1221-10 (pre-hiring declaration)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article R1221-4 (8 days before at the earliest)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article R1221-2 (what the DPAE covers)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article L1221-13 (single staff register)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article R4121-1 (single risk document)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article L1242-13 (CDD within 2 days)Légifrance
- Social Security Code, article L911-7 (health cover)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article L2261-2 (applicable collective agreement)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article L3243-2 (payslip)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article R1221-35 (written information deadlines)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article R4624-10 (visit within 3 months)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article L1242-12 (contents of a CDD)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article L3123-6 (part-time contract)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article R1221-34 (written information)Légifrance
- Labour Code, article R4624-18 (night worker, minor)Légifrance
- Hiring procedure and formalities (fiche F23107, in French)Service-public.fr · checked on 1 June 2026
- Finding the collective agreement for a first employee (fiche F36056, in French)Service-public.fr
- Must an employment contract be written? (fiche F15635, in French)Service-public.fr · checked on 11 May 2026
Texts cited last checked: 27 September 2026