Being audited by the Urssaf is never a pleasant experience, but it's important to remember that certain rules must be strictly adhered to. Recently, a judge annulled a company's tax reassessment for failure to comply with the required procedures.
Urssaf and its responsibilities during inspections
When Urssaf inspects a company, it must ensure that the inspection is legal and transparent. The union for the collection of social security and family allowance contributions informs the company in advance of its decision to carry out an inspection, notifying it of the date, place and reason for the inspection, as well as the information to be provided and the documents to be prepared, such as employment contracts, payslips, social security declarations, etc.
These documents must be requested from the person being audited and not from a third party. At the end of the audit, the contributor must be sent a letter of observations including the list of documents consulted during the audit.
Urssaf reassessment cancelled
The Pau Court of Appeal, in a decision dated June 24, 2021, and the Court of Cassation, in a decision dated September 28, 2023, invalidated an Urssaf reassessment concerning a company's general reduction in employer social security contributions, due to an irregularity in the inspection operations.
In the case of this company, whose reassessment was cancelled, certain documents justifying the sanction were not included in the list provided in the letter of observations. In addition, Urssaf had obtained information from a company employee, without the authorization of his manager.
To ensure the proper application of Social Security legislation, Urssaf has a duty to examine all documents relating to the management of employees, social security contributions and remuneration. However, the organization must always respect the rights of contributors to avoid finding itself at fault.