Companies wishing to do so can make donations for the benefit of certain associations and, as such, benefit from a tax reduction. Donations that can take different forms. While cash donations (payment of a sum of money) are the best known, they can also be in-kind donations, particularly in skills. Skills sponsorship consisting for a company of making voluntary employees available to an association free of charge, during their working time, in order to allow it to benefit from their know-how. In order to help companies, in particular SMEs, to use this tool, the Ministry of the Economy, Finance and Recovery recently published a guide to good practices in this area on its website.
Note: according to the “Corporate sponsorship in France” study Admical IFOP of November 2020, only 18% of companies practicing skills sponsorship are SMEs, compared to 54% of large companies.
The establishment of the collaboration
This guide presents, in a schematic way, the different steps necessary to set up skills sponsorship. Thus, in the first place, the company must anticipate this collaboration by thinking about how it can help an association. For example, an IT company can propose the creation of the association’s website. Secondly, the beneficiary association must be identified in such a way that it is in line with the values of the company and the aspirations of the employee (s) made available. The labor loan can then be defined and formalized via two documents: an amendment to the employment contract of the employee (s) made available and a sponsorship agreement. Finally, in the third and last place, it is necessary to ensure the follow-up of the sponsorship mission and its usefulness, both with the employee (s) engaged and the company in its together.
A tax advantage in the key
Companies that make a donation, including through skills sponsorship, for the benefit of certain organizations of general interest can benefit from a reduction in income tax, equal to 60% of the payment, withheld within the limit. of € 20,000 or 0.5% of their turnover excluding tax when the latter amount is higher. The rate being lowered from 60 to 40% for the fraction of the donation greater than € 2 million, with some exceptions.
Note: when the donation takes the form of skills sponsorship, it is valued at cost price, namely the remuneration of the employees concerned and the corresponding social charges. These sums being withheld, for each employee, within the limit of three times the amount of the Social Security ceiling, i.e. € 10,284 per month in 2021.
www.economie.gouv.fr, “Practical guide to skills sponsorship”, November 2021
