Hiring foreign artists (Quebec) and contributions

The bilateral agreement on social security between France and Quebec makes no provision for exemption from contributions payable to URSSAF and AUDIENS if the artist from Quebec is hired by an entertainment promoter based in France. The bilateral agreement on social security only applies when the artist from Quebec is seconded to France under a sales agreements with an entertainment promoter based in Quebec.

On the other hand, if the foreign artist is hired by an entity based in France, which would appear to be your case, things are different. If the artist resides in a non-community country, the principle states that the registration and contributions are the same for French salaried employees as for foreign salaried employees.

However, for salaried employees not domiciled in France, we should point out two specific provisions concerning CSG, CRDS and health contributions:

• CSG and CRDS (income-based taxes deducted at source as a contribution to paying off the French social security budget deficit) are not due;
• The employee’s portion of the health insurance contribution is 3.85% for artists and 5.50% for technicians (instead of 0.53% for artists and 0.75% for technicians domiciled in France).

Lastly, with regard to private pension, the French employer must pay a contribution based on the gross wage paid to the artists.