How to start a business in France with ONLYLYON Invest?

Understanding the steps to start a business in France

Define your project, market, and business model

Before completing any administrative formalities, it is essential to clearly define your business project. This stage involves analyzing the French market, assessing competitors, identifying customer needs, and developing a viable business model.

Foreign investors should consider:

• How their offering is positioned in the French market
• Recruitment needs
• Growth opportunities in France and across Europe
• The industrial, technological, or commercial partnerships required

Conducting preliminary research also helps identify public incentives, support programs, and financing opportunities available from the earliest stages of the project.

Choose the right legal structure: SAS, SARL, SA, subsidiary, or branch office

The choice of legal structure depends on the size of the project, the number of shareholders, financing requirements, and the desired level of autonomy in France.

The SAS (Simplified Joint-Stock Company) is currently the most common structure used by foreign investors. Its flexibility makes it particularly suitable for growth-oriented businesses, startups, and subsidiaries of international groups.

The SARL (Limited Liability Company) is generally well suited for smaller businesses or companies seeking a more regulated legal framework.

The SA (Public Limited Company) is typically chosen for large-scale projects requiring structured governance or significant fundraising.

International companies can also choose between two forms of establishment:

• A subsidiary, an independent French legal entity, suitable for long-term development in the French market with local governance.
• A branch office, which remains legally attached to the foreign parent company and is often a practical solution for testing the French market before expanding further.

The choice among these options should take into account legal, tax, social, and operational considerations. Specialized advisors can help determine the structure best aligned with the company’s business objectives in France.

Complete administrative, tax, and employment formalities

Once the legal structure has been selected, several formalities are required to establish a company in France:

• Drafting the articles of incorporation
• Depositing share capital
• Registering the company
• Completing tax and employment-related registrations
• Ensuring compliance with industry-specific regulations

Depending on the business activity, additional licenses or certifications may be required.

For international investors, working with legal, tax, and accounting experts helps secure the process and ensure compliance from day one.

Establishing your business in Lyon

Access a strategic location between the French and European markets

Choosing Lyon gives businesses access to an exceptional location at the heart of Europe’s economic flows.

The Lyon region is less than two hours from Paris by high-speed rail and serves as a natural gateway between Northern and Southern Europe. Lyon Part-Dieu Station, France’s largest rail hub outside Paris, handles hundreds of trains every day and provides direct connections to major French and European cities.

Lyon-Saint Exupéry Airport strengthens the region’s international reach with direct flights to destinations across Europe, North Africa, North America, and the Middle East. Combined with a major highway network and the multimodal Port Édouard Herriot logistics platform, it enables companies to connect efficiently with French and international markets.

Lyon is therefore an ideal gateway for companies seeking to operate across multiple European markets from a single location.

Benefit from industry clusters, talent, and world-class infrastructure

The Lyon region is home to internationally recognized ecosystems across several strategic sectors.

It is a major hub for life sciences and healthcare, featuring France’s leading biodistrict in Gerland, global companies such as Sanofi, bioMérieux, and Boehringer Ingelheim, and a particularly dense biotechnology ecosystem.

The region is also recognized as a leading European center for advanced manufacturing, sustainable chemistry, decarbonization technologies, energy, and cleantech, supported by initiatives such as the Chemical Valley, the AXELERA competitiveness cluster, and numerous innovative companies developing the industrial solutions of tomorrow.

In digital technologies, artificial intelligence, and deeptech, the Lyon area benefits from a dynamic network of startups, innovative SMEs, research laboratories, and large corporations. It is also home to H7, a flagship innovation hub bringing together entrepreneurs, investors, and businesses around innovation and growth. The region also boasts a strong ecosystem in creative industries and video gaming through the Game Only cluster.

This sector diversity is supported by a highly qualified talent pool, nurtured by institutions such as INSA Lyon, École Centrale de Lyon, emlyon business school, and a wide range of universities, engineering schools, and research centers.

Identify growth, financing, and partnership opportunities

Starting a business in France often requires securing financing and building a local network quickly.

The Lyon region offers a highly developed financial ecosystem that includes international banks, investment funds such as Siparex, business angel networks including Lyon Métropole Angels, family offices such as Evolem, and many venture capital and growth support organizations.

Entrepreneurs can also benefit from several national and regional programs supporting investment, innovation, research, and development. These include Bpifrance funding programs, France 2030 initiatives, support from the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Region, ADEME programs, and tax incentives that encourage innovation, such as the Research Tax Credit (CIR) and the Young Innovative Company (JEI) status.

Beyond financing, Lyon provides an ideal environment for developing partnerships thanks to its concentration of competitiveness clusters, business associations, research centers, accelerators, incubators, and international corporations.

To learn more about available financing opportunities, discover our dedicated support services:
Funding and incentives

Get Support from ONLYLYON Invest for your business setup project

Connect with the right legal, administrative, and financial partners

For foreign investors, quickly identifying the right contacts is often a critical success factor.

Backed by the Lyon Metropole and the Lyon Chamber of Commerce and Industry, ONLYLYON Invest provides free support to international companies by connecting them with the most relevant partners for their project:

• Law firms
• Accounting firms
• Banks and financial institutions
• Tax advisors
• Business networks
• Public and institutional organizations

Thanks to its extensive knowledge of the Lyon ecosystem, the agency facilitates access to the resources needed for a successful business launch.

Learn more about our services:
Our services
Legal and tax support

Simplify business setup, recruitment, and local integration

Beyond administrative formalities, establishing a business in Lyon involves finding office space or operational facilities, recruiting employees, and understanding the local business environment.

ONLYLYON Invest supports companies throughout every stage of the process:

• Real estate and site selection assistance
• Connections with key economic stakeholders
• Recruitment support
• Access to professional networks
• Support for the integration of international executives and employees

The agency acts as a local facilitator, allowing investors to focus on growing their business.

To prepare for your recruitment and workforce needs:
Human Resources