Everything you need to know about how the DSN will work in 2024
The Nominative Social Declaration (DSN) was introduced in 2017 (much to the delight of employers!) to facilitate social formalities, which are now all grouped together via this single declaration.
In this article, we provide you with all the essential information on the DSN, and the answers to the many questions you may be asking yourself (and quite rightly so), to ensure that you are fully compliant with these formalities.
Let's get started!
What is DSN?
Definition
The Déclaration Sociale Nominative (DSN) is a project aimed at gradually replacing all social security declarations with an automatic, single monthly transmission of payroll data via payroll management software or an HRIS. These contributions are essential for financing employee social protection.
DSN considerably reduces the time spent on the following declarations to social security bodies:
- the salary certificate for the payment of daily allowances in the event of maternity leave, paternity leave or sick leave (DSIJ),
- employer attestation for Pôle Emploi (AE),
- the declaration and survey of labour movements (DMMO and EMMO),
- deregistration of group contracts for complementary and supplementary insurance policies.
- the DUCS (déclaration unifiée des cotisations sociales) for URSSAF in Phase 2, as well as the BRC (Bordereau récapitulatif des cotisations) and the TR (Tableau récapitulatif). In Phase 3, declarations to supplementary pension funds (arrco, agirc) are added.
- the monthly statement of assignment (RMM) for temporary employment agencies in Phase 2.
To find out more, here's a video that sums up the DSN:
Monthly DSN vs. Event-based DSN
The monthly DSN concentrates your company's social security declarations.
Event-based DSNs, known as "event reporting" DSNs, are used in special cases:
- stoppage of work or occupational illness (to be sent to the CPAM),
- early return to work following sick leave or occupational illness (to be sent to the CPAM),
- end of contract (to be sent to Pôle emploi).
Which companies are affected by the DSN?
If you are a company operating in the private sector, then you must declare and pay the DSN.
There are a few exceptions:
- individuals
- companies in a particular geographical area (Monaco, certain overseas collectivities, etc.)
- companies employing seconded employees.
While the private sector has been paying for DSN since 2017, it is gradually being rolled out to public bodies from 2020!
There were 3 possible dates for starting DSN:
- 1 January 2020,
- 1 January 2021
- 1 January 2022,
- 1 January 2023.
From now on, the DSN will also apply to the civil service!
When should I submit my DSN?
You must send your DSN on a monthly basis. Sending a DSN always corresponds to sending the DSN for the previous month.
Company size | DSN transmission date |
Up to 49 employees | 15th of the month following payment |
50 or more employees | 5th of the month following payment |
When should DSN contributions be paid?
General scheme
Companies with fewer than 50 employees: on the 15th of the following month
Companies with more than 50 employees :
- on the 5th of the following month if the wages were paid in month M,
- the 15th of month M+1 if wages were paid in M+1.
ℹ️ Certain employees affiliated to a special scheme, such as notaries for example, have specific dates prior to the standard provisions.
Agricultural scheme
Company size | Salary payment dates | DSN payment due date | Comment |
1 to 8 employees | 15th of the following month | ||
9 to 10 employees | No later than 10th of the following month | 15th of the following month | If contributions are paid quarterly, the date is the 15th of the month following the quarter of employment. |
9 to 10 employees | From the 11th of the following month | 25th of the following month | |
11 to 49 employees | At the latest on the 10th of the following month | 15th of the following month | |
11 to 49 employees | From the 11th of the following month | 25th of the following month | |
More than 50 employees | The previous month | 5th of the following month | |
More than 50 employees | Between 1st and 20th of the following month | 15th of the month | |
More than 50 employees | A1 from 21st of the following month | 25th of the month |
Paying your DSN contributions by direct debit
The easiest way to pay your contributions is by direct debit. How does it work? All you have to do is enter a SEPA direct debit mandate in your URSSAF account, and your contributions will be debited automatically.
For peace of mind, it's the best option!
What are the penalties for non-compliance with the DSN?
Penalties apply in the event of non-transmission, omission or defect in declarations. These are as follows:
Reason | Penalty | Comment |
Non-transmission of the DSN | 17.14 per employee | |
Late transmission of the DSN | 51 per employee per month of delay (or fraction of a month) |
Up to a maximum of €5,142 per company per year if the delay is less than 5 days. You can have your late payment penalties waived (see conditions) |
Failure to declare an employee | 51 per employee per month late (or fraction of a month) | You avoid the penalty if you rectify the situation within 30 days of the declaration. |
Inaccuracy in the DSN | 34.28/employee if there is an error in remuneration, €11.32/employee if there is an error in information. | You avoid the penalty if you rectify the situation within 30 days of submitting your declaration. |
How to declare the DSN?
On the Net-entreprise website
Go to the Net-entreprise page dedicated to the DSN, log in to your space (or register if this is your first declaration) and follow the instructions.
ℹ️ This site is dedicated to private companies. Agricultural businesses should go to the MSA (mutualité sociale agricole) website to complete their formalities.
Via your payroll software
To declare the DSN via your payroll software, it must be compliant. This will save you time, as it automatically transforms pay slip data into usable data for the DSN.
Here are some of the features and services you need to comply with the law:
- employees can access their data and change it if they make a mistake,
- remote transmission of the declaration,
- conformity of the data sent to the DSN,
- DSN training.
💡 Good to know: you can leave it to your chartered accountant to tele-declare your DSN.
Here is an example of a DSN file:
Yourcegid HR | EBP | Sage Business Cloud Payroll |
✔ S uitable for SMEs ✔ Data hosted in France Exceptional functional coverage |
✔ Suitable for SMEs Data hosted in France ✔ Highly structured |
✔ Suitable for VSEs ✔ Assistance and support included ✔ Simple payslip production |
What will be added in 2023?
Collection of Agirc-Arrco supplementary pension contributions
The transfer of the collection of AGIRCARCCO contributions to the Urssaf Caisse Nationale took place in 2023 with the implementation of standardised URSSAF CRMs incorporating returns from Agirc-Arcco.
Collection of CRPCEN contributions
CRPCEN contributions have been collected by URSSAF since 2023:
- Transfer of apprenticeship tax and training contribution,
- Integration of the supplementary apprenticeship contribution (CSA) into DSN.
Extension of standardised CRMs
- CRPNPAC CRMs will be transmitted in a standardised format,
- CRMs relating to employee identities will also be transmitted.
Integration of working prisoners
As part of the Law on Confidence in the Judiciary, the DSN declaration of working prisoners has been possible since 2023.
Overhaul of the DSN dashboard
Work is underway to optimise the user experience on NetEntreprises.
DSN in brief
The Nominative Social Declaration (déclaration sociale nominative or DSN) is a file produced from payroll data, providing all the information required by the relevant bodies to ensure the social protection of employees.
It is transmitted electronically and paid monthly. The easiest way to do this is to use compliant payroll software, or to delegate this task to your accountant.