Most European Union countries apply a national minimum wage. This refers to the lowest remuneration that an employer can pay a worker hired under an employment contract. States with this system include, among others, France with its minimum salary known as SMIC.
1. What is the SMIC?
The SMIC (salaire minimum interprofessionnel de croissance) constitutes the national minimum wage in France. It is a lowest possible rate to which persons working in this country are entitled, as defined by law. Its purpose is to ensure a minimum income for employees. The rules concerning the SMIC apply to both metropolitan France and overseas territories.
2. SMIC amount in 2025
In 2025, the following gross SMIC amounts apply for adults employed in France:
- EUR 11.88 – minimum hourly rate,
- EUR 1,801.80 – minimum monthly wage,
- EUR 21,621.60 – minimum annual wage.
The amount given above are gross ones, i.e. before the application of mandatory deductions for social security and payroll tax.
It should be noted here that different rates apply to persons employed in Mayotte. Due to the local economic situation, these amounts are lower and they are as follows in 2025:
- EUR 8.98 gross per hour,
- EUR 1,361.97 gross per month,
- EUR 16,343.60 gross per year.
On the other hand, minor employees with less than 6 months of professional experience are entitled to a reduced SMIC rate (SMIC minoré), depending on their age. This refers to a salary constituting 90% of the SMIC, i.e. EUR 10.70 gross per hour in 2025 – for persons aged 17, and 80% of the SMIC, i.e. EUR 9.51 gross per hour in 2025 – for workers aged 16 and under.
Apprentices are also a special case, because they have a separate salary scale taking into account their age and the duration of their apprenticeship contract. The amounts that they are entitled to constitute a percentage of the statuory gross SMIC. For example: persons aged 18-20 in their first year of apprenticeship are entitled to 43% of the national minimum wage (approx. EUR 774.77 gross per month), and in the third year, the same age group receives 67% of the gross minimum wage (approx. EUR 1,207.21 per month).
3. SMIC and collective agreements
Collective labour agreements very often provides for a minimum salary treshold which is determined on the basis of factors such as, among others, the worker’s experience or professional classification. The remuneration specified in such documents is the minimum collective wage – SMC (salaire minimum conventionnel). However, it isn’t equivalent to the national minimum wage SMIC and its amount may vary depending on the industry.
If a collective agreement is in force in a given enterprise and the workers hired there receive the SMC in the amount lower than the SMIC, the employer should also pay them a supplement to bring their remuneration up to the SMIC level. On the other hand, in the event that the minimum collective wage exceeds the national minimum wage, the employer is obliged to respect the collective agreement and pay workers the amount due in the accordance with this document.
4. Changes in the amount of the minimum wage in France
The SMIC is subject to indexation and this means that the amount of the French minimum wage is periodically increased. As a rule, the rise occurs automatically on 1 January each year, based on the inflation rate for the 20% of households with the lowest income, as well as half of the increase in purchasing power of the average hourly wage for blue-collar and white-collar workers.
However, the above change in the amount didn’t take place at the beginning of 2025, because it had occurred two months earlier. The acceleration of revaluation came into effect on 1 November 2024 and was dictated by a higher increase in inflation than in previous years.
The national minimum wage in France can also be adjusted during the year if the consumer price index rises by at least 2% compared to the previous year. In addition, the government may at any time introduce a so-called ad hoc increase as an interim measure in response to specific economic or social circumstances.
5. Penalties for employers for paying wages lower than the SMIC
If an employer fails to comply with the provisions concerning the minimum remuneration rate, it faces a fine of EUR 1,500 for each worker who received an unlawful salary. On the other hand, in the event of a repeat offence, further violations in the form of payments below the SMIC amount are also subject to penalties. Regardless of the penalties described above, an employer who fails to comply with the provisions concerning the national minimum wage may be required to pay the worker compensation and the arrears of remuneration, i.e. the alignment to the SMIC level which is the difference between the statutory minimum wage and the underpaid amount received by the worker during a given period.
5. Legal notice
The study is a work within the meaning of the Act of 4 February 1994 on Copyright and Related Rights (OJ 2006, No. 90, item 631, consolidated text, as amended). Publishing or reproducing this study or its part, quoting opinions, as well as disseminating in any other way the information contained therein without the written consent of Crede sp. z o.o. is prohibited.
