Purchasing power: what will change for the French

End of suspense. The joint joint committee which met on Wednesday evening on the amending finance bill resulted in a deal that the deputies then, in the process, the senators validated this Thursday afternoon, signing the end of the extraordinary summer parliamentary session.

Inventory measures targeting purchasing power which will come into effect:

. Discount on fuel price

Result of a compromise between the government and Les Républicains, the exceptional reduction per liter of fuel will go from 18 to 30 centimes in September and October and drop to 10 centimes in November and December.

. Abolition of the “TV license fee”

The audiovisual contribution, costing 138 euros per household in mainland France and 88 euros overseas and bringing in more than 3.5 billion euros, will be abolished this year. It will therefore not appear in the fall on the council tax notice for those who still pay it. Funding for public broadcasting will henceforth be provided by allocation of part of the VAT collected .

. Revaluation of social benefits and pensions

Parliament has approved an early revaluation of social benefits indexed to inflation by 4% retroactive to 1^er July. Many are affected. There are in particular, in addition to pensions, the activity bonus, the active solidarity income (RSA), the allowance for disabled adults (AAH), the specific solidarity allowance (ASS), disability pensions, family allowances, the allowance of the youth employment contract…

. Exceptional start-up bonus

Modest families will receive an amount of 100 euros per adult and 50 euros per child in addition to the back-to-school allowance which will be paid on August 16 for those in school. In total, more than 8 million households will be affected: the initial scope of the measure has been extended to all beneficiaries of the activity bonus.

. Deconjugation of the disabled adult allowance

Rejected during the previous five-year term by the executive, the AAH deconjugalization was passed unanimously. People who receive it will no longer see their spouse’s income taken into account, ensuring greater autonomy. However, the reform should only come into force in the coming months.

. Mobility aids

The income tax exemption limit for the years 2022 and 2023 for the “transport bonus” and the sustainable mobility package will be raised from 500 euros to 700 euros, including a maximum of 400 euros for fuel costs (gasoline, diesel) instead of 200 euros. Over these two years, the employer will be able to finance subscriptions to public transport at the same time. It will also be able to cover up to 75% of these subscription costs exempt from contribution and income tax.

. Rent increase capped at 3.5%

The increase in rents is capped at 3.5% in France for one year, a measure which has been extended commercial leases and companies with less than 250 employees. Parliamentarians also prohibits rent increases in tight areas for housing that does not offer all the guarantees of comfort . Also note the general obligation of a power reduction period of one month before any power outage.

. Value Added Sharing Bonus

Established by company agreement or unilateral decision of the employer after consultation with the CSE, the added value sharing bonus will come into force retroactively to July 1. The system which replaces the exceptional purchasing power bonus (“Macron bonus”) will concern the employees of the company but also the temporary workers made available to it.

Its amount can be paid in several instalments. Up to 3,000 euros, he will be exempt from employee social security contributions as an employer between 1^er July 2022 and December 31, 2023 but subject to the social package. This ceiling will be doubled in the event of a profit-sharing agreement for companies with 50 or more employees, subject to the participation obligation, and in the event of a profit-sharing or participation agreement for the smallest.

Between 1^er July 2022 and December 31, 2023, still, will be added, for employees whose gross remuneration is less than three times the minimum wage (nearly 4,000 euros), an exemption from income tax up to 3,000 or 6,000 euros, including the possible “Macron bonus” received in the first half of 2022.

. Measures encouraging “overtime” and the monetization of RTT

Several measures to circumvent the 35 hours have been adopted. With regard to overtime, already exempt from employee contributions, it is planned raising the exemption ceiling income tax from 5,000 to 7,500 euros. In addition, on the employers’ side, whereas until now only companies with fewer than 50 employees benefited from a flat-rate reduction in contributions on overtime for their employees, the measure will be extended to all employers with 50 to 250 employees. . The flat rate will be set at 50 cents, compared to 1.50 euros for small businesses.

In addition, an incentive for the monetization of RTT will be introduced, subject to the employer’s agreement, between 1^er January 2022 and December 31, 2025. The days worked will give rise to a salary increase at least equal to the rate of increase for the first overtime hour applicable in the company. This remuneration will be subject to the same social and tax regime as overtime: exemption from employee contributions; exemption from income tax up to 7,500 euros; flat-rate deduction of employer contributions.

. Early release of employee savings until December 31, 2022

Until the end of the year, any employee may release his participation or profit-sharing within the limit of 10,000 euros being exempt from income tax and social security contributions. The only rule to be respected: that the money is not saved elsewhere but is devoted to “the acquisition of goods or the provision of services”. A non-binding obligation. Only sums placed in a collective retirement savings plan (Perco) or in solidarity funds cannot be released and a collective agreement will be required to allow the release of employee savings invested in company securities.

. Lower social security contributions for self-employed earners

A reduction in health and maternity insurance contributions will be initiated for those whose monthly income does not exceed 1.6 times the minimum wage, i.e. 2,700 euros, until they become zero at the minimum wage, where the gain is estimated at 550 euros. per year. The 70% of self-employed people concerned will only see the impact from January 1, 2023, the current payment schedules until the end of the year having already been sent to them.

Microentrepreneurs will also benefit from a reduction in their flat-rate contribution rates. A decree will determine, for each category of microentrepreneur, the amounts of turnover or receipts at the level of which the equivalence of these contribution rates is assessed.

. Extension of the “Ségur de la santé” measures

Many professions hitherto excluded from the “Ségur de la santé” will be able to benefit from the wage increases it provides. This ranges from nursery nurses or staff from child welfare services to mobile patrol teams and youth legal protection services.