Do you want to work with a French freelancer?

Freelancing is gaining popularity worldwide, especially in Europe, where the market is estimated at 300 billion euros (2018). Companies have access to highly-qualified talents, and self-employed workers are free to work remotely. Professionals in all fields are needed on a daily basis by small and big companies for all sectors and everyone seems to be enjoying the adventure.

Many reasons can explain why a company would choose a freelancer. Freelancing is not only a great way for people to boost their careers while taking advantages like time management and finance control (as the 2.7 million French freelancers well know).  There are also several benefits for the contractors, such as:

• High-quality. As they depend on the client’s satisfaction, each time a project is delivered, freelancers provide a high-quality work in every task they are dealing with.
• Experts estimate some 30% annual savings from hiring freelancers.
• Shorter delivery time on top of working during holidays.
• Independents stay more updated about new technologies and innovations in their field as they need to keep themselves competitive.
• Special expertise. Often, they have deeper knowledge in a specific field, something hard to find in an in-house team.

For sure, you are aware of these and many other advantages this kind of work enables. Nevertheless, the umbrella company concept, the way French freelance works is much more valuable. Indeed, France is one of the most advanced countries in terms legislation for this type of work and modern-efficient ways of implementing it.

France is one of the 10 most important economies in the world by GDP and ranks 31st out of the 190 listed on the Doing Business ranking, which classifies nations according to their ease of doing business. With such a strong economy, it comes to no surprise that the country has a quite well-regulated system ensuring independent workers and contractors’ strong conditions for a satisfying relationship.

Of course, a business leader still has to weigh some considerations before hiring a freelancer, especially in terms of the legal status. There are some risks of working with an external consultant, such as sudden commercial relation termination or even the illicit worker supply. From the beginning, the CEO will want to have confidence in a secure relationship with an independent worker and to start a project under the best possible conditions.

But these concerns do not hold with an umbrella company system. Unlike a true freelancer, working for an umbrella company means that the external consultant is actually an employee, meaning this person works under their responsibility.

ABC Portage, a founding member of the PEPS (Professional Trade Union of Portage Salary), complies with all legal obligations and ensures that the company receives what was promised according to the previously discussed conditions. Applying best practices, ABC Portage lays the foundation for a win-win relationship with a smooth handover bringing the service to a good close.

How does it work?

Umbrella companies, acknowledged by the French government in 2008, are the link between companies and professionals ensuring an effective cooperation and the right conditions for both.

For the company, this system helps to quickly and easily find the skilled expert to provide the needed service. Besides, it guarantees legal compliance and transparency while offering key advantages such as easy management and cost control.

Besides avoiding legal issues, the company saves time and effort by hiring the professional in the conventional way and only focuses on three steps –consultant selection, negotiation and contract fulfilment.

Consultant remain their own manager, meaning they work as real freelancers with all the implied benefits – they may look for their clients, decide of their working hours and set their work rates. However, umbrella employees do not have to deal with paperwork as entrepreneurs do, since this is the umbrella company’s job. This way, they can fully engage in their work and not worry about managing all administrative aspects, such as handling taxes.

Umbrella consultants, though acting as self-employed workers, have all the rights and benefits of an employee while avoiding the huge amount of money required to start a business. Another advantage for consultants is that they can claim for work expenses to the umbrella company.

The role of ABC Portage

We are in charge of the logistic process, from presenting the project up to signing the contracts. Companies who hire external services can rest assured on an efficient and 100% secure process.

As one of the main umbrella companies in France, with an impeccable trajectory started in 2004 and ISO 9001 awarded certification, ABC Portage has served more than 6000 companies of all sizes and sectors in finding the ideal consultants for their projects.

The client company simply pays the consultant’s fee and transfers to us the assignment contractual responsibility. In this tripartite relationship, ABC Portage facilitates the process for both the client and the consultant.