Automobile Repair Professional

To open an automobile repair business in France, you must prove your professional qualification. You need either a relevant diploma (CAP, baccalauréat professionnel or BTS in vehicle maintenance) or at least three years of professional experience in the trade. If you qualify through experience, you must obtain a professional qualification certificate from the CMA (Chambre des Métiers et de l'Artisanat).

You must submit the JQPA form (Cerfa 14077) with your business registration at the Guichet Unique. The activity is subject to honorability conditions, meaning certain criminal convictions can bar you from practicing. Professional liability insurance is required for self-employed practitioners.

Required Qualifications

  • Accepted diplomas: CAP "maintenance of passenger vehicles", professional baccalaureate "maintenance of passenger vehicles", or BTS "vehicle maintenance", "racing vehicle preparation and development", "racing vehicle mechanic"
  • Professional experience: In the absence of a diploma, demonstrate three years of effective professional experience in the European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA) as a business manager, self-employed worker or employee
  • Integrity: No prohibition from directing, managing or administering a commercial or craft business, and no prohibition from practicing a professional activity
  • Insurance: Mandatory professional liability insurance for self-employed practitioners

Procedure for EU/EEA Nationals

  • Temporary exercise (LPS): Prior declaration to the chambre de métiers et de l'artisanat (CMA - Chamber of Trades and Crafts) of the place of service provision. If the profession is not regulated in the country of origin, demonstrate one year of practice in the previous ten years. CMA response time: one month
  • Permanent exercise (LE): Request for attestation of recognition of professional qualification to the CMA of the place of establishment. The CMA has three months to decide to recognize the qualification, subject to a compensation measure (adaptation period or aptitude test), or refuse
  • Compensation measures: In case of substantial differences between qualifications, the CMA may impose an adaptation period (maximum three years) or an aptitude test before a jury
  • Appeals: Possibility of administrative appeal to the préfet (prefect) or legal appeal to the administrative court within two months of notification

Training and Costs

  • CAP: Accessible after third grade, level V diploma, free training in most cases, accessible through apprenticeship, continuing education, professional contract or validation of acquired experience (VAE)
  • Professional baccalaureate: Accessible after third grade, level IV diploma, three-year training, free in most cases
  • BTS: Level III diploma obtained after two years of training in a high school or school, accessible to baccalaureate holders, free training in most cases
  • Qualification attestation: Free from the CMA. Fixed fees may be requested for compensation measures. Additional fees possible if consultation of the centre international d'études pédagogiques (Ciep - International Centre for Educational Studies) is necessary