Since 1 July 2026 the relief has fallen from half to a quarter of contributions. A week's difference in your start date halves the amount.
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Everything starts there: ACRE must be applied for within sixty days of the start of activity.
Information verified on October 1, 2026. Indicative calculator with no legal force. The figures it applies are taken from official sources and dated: only your tax notice and the tax authorities are binding.
The official pages where we read the rules and amounts applied here.
ACRE pays nothing out: it lowers the contribution rate you pay on your turnover for the first quarters. You never see it arrive in your account, you see it on your declaration, as a smaller deduction.
For businesses started up to 30 June 2026, the relief covered half the contributions, 42% for professions attached to the CIPAV. From 1 July it covers only a quarter, whatever the activity. Beware the wording that circulates everywhere: when a page says ACRE moves to 75%, it means the rate PAID, now 75% of the normal rate. The relief itself went down.
The period runs to the end of the third calendar quarter following the one you started in, whatever you collect. If you register six months before your first invoices, you therefore lose half the relief, with no way to get it back.
Since 1 January 2026 the application is compulsory for everyone, within sixty days of the start date declared at the one-stop shop. With no answer from URSSAF after a month, ACRE is presumed granted.
| Activity | Full rate | Started up to 30 June | Started from 1 July |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sale of goods | 12.3% | 6.2% | 9.3% |
| Commercial services (BIC) | 21.2% | 10.6% | 15.9% |
| Liberal profession (BNC) | 25.6% | 12.8% | 19.2% |
| Regulated profession (CIPAV) | 23.2% | 13.4% | 17.4% |
These are the rates you pay, not relief percentages. None covers the vocational training contribution, the chamber levy or income tax, all still due in full.
Hugo registers his liberal activity on 30 June 2026, Léa on 1 July. Both collect €15,000 during their relief period.
Hugo pays 12.8%: €1,920, half the €3,840 he would have paid at the full rate.
Léa pays 19.2%: €2,880. Her relief is worth only €960.
One calendar day is worth €960, on the same turnover. Until you register, you can still choose your start date.
File within sixty days. Past that, the right is lost even when every condition is met.
Delay your start-of-activity declaration until you actually invoice, since the relief runs regardless.
Note the end date in your diary. The following quarter your deductions nearly double.
Your pension rights do not fall. They are still calculated on the charge that would have been due without the relief.
The full rate applies from the first euro. Build it into your prices rather than discovering it at the first deadline.
ACRE received more than three years ago reopens the right for a new business.
Setting up in a rural revitalisation area, ZFRR or ZFRR+, is also an entry route in its own right.
ACRE is not the only start-up support. ARCE and keeping ARE are looked at separately.
On 1 July 2026, the ACRE relief went from half to a quarter of contributions for businesses started on or after that date. Beware of the wording that circulates: it is not the relief rising to 75%, it is the rate paid becoming 75% of the normal rate. The relief was halved.
ACRE lasts until the end of the third calendar quarter following the one you started in, so nine to twelve months depending on the date. Starting on 1 January or on 31 March gives exactly the same end date, 31 December.
Since 1 January 2026, everyone has to apply for ACRE: it is no longer automatic. You have sixty days from the start date declared at the one-stop shop. With no answer from URSSAF within a month, it is presumed granted.
ACRE cannot be received twice within three years. ACRE received for a previous creation or takeover closes the entitlement for that period, whatever became of the earlier business.
The ACRE relief runs even if you invoice nothing, and that is what costs the most. The period runs out on a fixed date, not as turnover comes in. Registering well before your first invoices wastes part of the relief.
ACRE does not reduce your pension rights. Your rights are calculated on the contribution charge that would have been due without it. It does not cover the vocational training contribution, the chamber levy or income tax.
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