Business and activity taxes · France and Switzerland : separate country-labelled rules
Permanent establishment: map cross-border activity
A corporate permanent establishment concerns where business profits may be taxed, rather than an individual's residence alone. For France and Switzerland, domestic law and the applicable treaty must be examined separately. Premises, contract authority and construction activity are different factual branches. The activity map prepares those facts without substituting a personal day-count test or treating domestic and treaty construction thresholds as identical.
- Official texts cited
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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
Which fixed place or agent is involved?
Treaty article 5 has distinct fixed-place and agent conditions. An address or subsidiary alone does not establish a permanent establishment.
Read the referencesYour question concerns “Permanent establishment: map cross-border activity”. I can help organise the facts and records. Which document have you received or prepared, and is this a French or Swiss matter?
3 free questions at signup. Avoid names and sensitive information.
Which enterprise carries on which cross-border activity?
Identify company, operation and presence. This concerns business profits, not personal residence or a generic183-day test.
CGI art.2090.672.934.91 : Art. 50.672.934.91 : Art. 7642.11 : Art. 51 Rattachement économique642.11 : Art. 52 Étendue de l’assujettissement
Which official provision helps explain this situation?
I. – Sous réserve des dispositions de la présente section, les bénéfices passibles de l'impôt sur les sociétés sont déterminés d'après les règles fixées par les articles 34 à 45,53 A à 57,108 à 117,237 ter A et 302 septies A bis et en tenant compte uniquement des bénéfices réalisés dans les entreprises exploitées en France, de ceux mentionnés aux a, e, e bis et e ter du I de l'article 164 B ainsi que de ceux dont l'imposition est attribuée à la France par une convention internationale relative aux doubles impositions.
In plain English: LIFD 51 domestic construction wording is at least twelve months; treaty5 is more than twelve. Do not collapse these tests.
Which fixed place or agent is involved?
Treaty article 5 has distinct fixed-place and agent conditions. An address or subsidiary alone does not establish a permanent establishment.
What construction duration is documented?
The France-Switzerland treaty uses more than twelve months for the covered construction or installation project. Record the actual project chronology.
Which profits are attributable to the establishment?
Treaty7 concerns attributable profits within its framework. It does not allocate the group's entire turnover automatically.
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.
Fictional example · Your preparation
Point to complete: Profits and treaty. Treaty7 concerns attributable profits within its framework. It does not allocate the group's entire turnover automatically.
- Enterprise and local activity
- Record available
- Place or agent
- Record available
- Duration and chronology
- Record available
- Profits and treaty
- Needs checking
- Records indicated
- 3 / 4
- Which profits are attributable to the establishment?
This worksheet organises records; it does not establish admissibility, entitlement or a procedural outcome.
Why distinguish Swiss domestic and treaty wording?
LIFD 51 domestic construction wording is at least twelve months; treaty5 is more than twelve. Do not collapse these tests.
CGI art.2090.672.934.91 : Art. 50.672.934.91 : Art. 7642.11 : Art. 51 Rattachement économique642.11 : Art. 52 Étendue de l’assujettissement
Which documents answer which questions?
| Record or information | Issue to check |
|---|---|
| Enterprise and local activity | Identify company, operation and presence. This concerns business profits, not personal residence or a generic183-day test. |
| Place or agent | Treaty article 5 has distinct fixed-place and agent conditions. An address or subsidiary alone does not establish a permanent establishment. |
| Duration and chronology | The France-Switzerland treaty uses more than twelve months for the covered construction or installation project. Record the actual project chronology. |
| Profits and treaty | Treaty7 concerns attributable profits within its framework. It does not allocate the group's entire turnover automatically. |
CGI art.2090.672.934.91 : Art. 50.672.934.91 : Art. 7642.11 : Art. 51 Rattachement économique642.11 : Art. 52 Étendue de l’assujettissement
Does domestic legislation alone decide the result?
French CGI 209 and Swiss LIFD 51-52 must be read with applicable treaty limits and facts. Neither a domestic label nor ownership alone settles treaty allocation.
CGI art.2090.672.934.91 : Art. 50.672.934.91 : Art. 7642.11 : Art. 51 Rattachement économique642.11 : Art. 52 Étendue de l’assujettissement
Does owning a subsidiary automatically create a PE?
No. Actual activities, powers and treaty conditions remain necessary. Corporate control and a PE are different concepts.
What does the presence map deliver?
It organises location, duration, operations and profits. It determines no tax nexus and calculates no tax liability.
What other questions arise in this file?
Which fixed place or agent is involved?
Treaty article 5 has distinct fixed-place and agent conditions. An address or subsidiary alone does not establish a permanent establishment.
CGI art.2090.672.934.91 : Art. 50.672.934.91 : Art. 7642.11 : Art. 51 Rattachement économique642.11 : Art. 52 Étendue de l’assujettissement
Which profits are attributable to the establishment?
Treaty7 concerns attributable profits within its framework. It does not allocate the group's entire turnover automatically.
CGI art.2090.672.934.91 : Art. 50.672.934.91 : Art. 7642.11 : Art. 51 Rattachement économique642.11 : Art. 52 Étendue de l’assujettissement
Why distinguish Swiss domestic and treaty wording?
LIFD 51 domestic construction wording is at least twelve months; treaty5 is more than twelve. Do not collapse these tests.
CGI art.2090.672.934.91 : Art. 50.672.934.91 : Art. 7642.11 : Art. 51 Rattachement économique642.11 : Art. 52 Étendue de l’assujettissement
Does owning a subsidiary automatically create a PE?
No. Actual activities, powers and treaty conditions remain necessary. Corporate control and a PE are different concepts.
CGI art.2090.672.934.91 : Art. 50.672.934.91 : Art. 7642.11 : Art. 51 Rattachement économique642.11 : Art. 52 Étendue de l’assujettissement
Which official references should you consult?
- CGI art.209Légifrance
- 0.672.934.91 : Art. 5Fedlex
- 0.672.934.91 : Art. 7Fedlex
- 642.11 : Art. 51 Rattachement économiqueFedlex
- 642.11 : Art. 52 Étendue de l’assujettissementFedlex
Texts cited last checked: 1 November 2026