Although micro-entrepreneurs are not required to submit an annual balance sheet, they are required to keep a book of receipts and, for those engaged in the sale of goods, supplies, objects or foodstuffs, or in the provision of accommodation, a register of purchases.
What are the accounting requirements for micro-businesses?
Microenterprises benefit from simplified accounting: unlike other types of business, they are not required to keep books of account or file annual financial statements.
However, they do have two accounting obligations, and in some cases three. The first is to open a dedicated bank account as soon as sales exceed 10,000 euros for 2 consecutive years.
The second accounting obligation of a micro-business is to keep a revenue book, listing all receipts received during an accounting year.
Finally, certain micro-businesses are subject to a third accounting obligation: keeping a purchase register. Only micro-businesses whose main activity is to provide accommodation services, or to sell goods, supplies, objects or foodstuffs for consumption on the premises or to take away, are required to keep a purchase register.
The purchase register lists all purchases made by the microenterprise over the course of an accounting year, and must be accompanied by purchase receipts, which must be presented in the event of a tax audit.
Micro-businesses also have tax obligations: they must declare their income to social organizations and the tax authorities, then pay their social security contributions and income tax.
Last but not least, microenterprises are required to submit invoices. An invoice must be issued for every service rendered, or for every sale made. However, there are some nuances. While invoices are compulsory for sales of products or services to professionals, they are only compulsory for private individuals in the following cases:
- Distance selling ;
- Services costing at least 25 euros;
- Building work ;
- Deliveries at public auction of collectors' items, antiques, works of art and second-hand goods.
In all other cases, a ticket or note will suffice. Invoices must be kept for 10 years from the end of the financial year.
How do I keep a recipe book?
The revenue book must be organized chronologically, and must not be modifiable. It can take the form of a paper account book, or be downloaded from an official model. It can also be dematerialized, using accounting software for example, designed in such a way that accounting entries cannot be modified.
The microentrepreneur's revenue book must contain the following information, in chronological order:
- The amount of revenues received: if the microentrepreneur is subject to VAT, he must indicate revenues including all taxes;
- The origin of revenue collected: each receipt must correspond to the name of a customer and the date of purchase;
- Method of payment: for each receipt, the microentrepreneur must specify the method of payment chosen by the customer;
- Supporting document references: each receipt must refer to an invoice, note or ticket number, for example. These supporting documents must be filed and kept. They will be requested in the event of a tax audit.
Depending on the type of business you're in, you'll need to keep track of your revenue book on a more or less regular basis. Micro-entrepreneurs with several daily sales will need to update their revenue book every day, while for others, a monthly follow-up will be sufficient.
A microentrepreneur who makes several sales a day, each for less than 76 euros, is entitled to group the various transactions together in a single sale in his sales ledger. However, the receipts for each of these transactions must be kept, and numbered so that they can be linked to the receipt shown in the sales ledger.
In all cases, it's essential to be regular and meticulous, and to keep all supporting documents in a safe place.
How do I keep a purchase register?
The purchase register only concerns micro-businesses whose main activity is the provision of accommodation or the sale of goods, objects and supplies, as well as the sale of food to be consumed on the premises or to be taken away.
The microentrepreneurs concerned must be able to present a register of purchases for each accounting year.
This document can be a paper ledger, an Excel file, or generated by accounting software. It must contain numbered pages, and be organized chronologically.
The following information is mandatory:
- The nature of the purchase ;
- The date on which it was carried out ;
- Payment method: cash, credit card, cheque, etc. ;
- Purchase amount ;
- The name of the supplier from whom the purchase was made;
- Voucher number, whether invoice, ticket or note.
All supporting documents must be organized, filed and retained. They will be requested in the event of a tax audit.
What are the penalties for failure to comply with accounting obligations?
In the event of failure to comply with accounting obligations, particularly in the absence of a register of purchases or a book of receipts, or if these documents are incomplete or inaccurate, or if supporting documents are missing, the microentrepreneur is liable to tax penalties.
When a sales declaration is missing, a penalty of 50 euros is applied. This amount applies to each missing declaration. Normally, sales declarations must be made on a monthly or quarterly basis, depending on the option chosen by the microentrepreneur when declaring the start of business. If the microenterprise has not generated any sales, the declaration must mention 0 euros, but it remains mandatory.
Finally, invoicing violations are punishable by a fine of 75,000 euros for individuals, i.e. sole proprietorships including micro-businesses. In the event of a repeat offence within 2 years, the fine is increased to 150,000 euros.