Section 6b: SME Innovation Account

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Article L221-32-6

French Monetary and Financial CodeIn force

Updated 8 Nov 2023

I. - Cash withdrawals may be made from the cash account associated with the SME Innovation Account defined in article L. 221-32-4.

II. - In the event of the liquidation of a company whose shares are held in the securities account associated with the SME Innovation Account, the sums allocated to the holder of this account in respect of the cancellation of the said securities which are not included in the tax base pursuant toarticle 161 of the General Tax Code and which are not paid into the cash account of the same account constitute a cash withdrawal up to their amount.

III. - Withdrawal of shares from the SME Innovation account securities account may be made without closing the account.

IV. - Failure to comply with one of the conditions stipulated in article L. 221-32-5 or failure to use the sums held in the cash account of the innovation SME account within the period stipulated in III of the same article L. 221-32-5 shall result in the closure of the innovation SME account.

V. - The holder of an SME Innovation account may decide to close it at any time.

VI. - The death of the account holder results in the closure of the PME innovation account.

Mariela Petrova

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Working with a corporate lawyer in France — Q&A

Any time a strategic decision changes how the company is owned, governed or contractually bound — incorporation, fundraising, M&A, restructuring, shareholder agreements, or major commercial contracts. Earlier engagement always costs less than later remediation.

A notary (notaire) is a public officer who authenticates specific deeds (mainly real-estate transfers and certain family-law acts). A corporate lawyer (avocat) advises on strategy, negotiates and drafts company documents, and represents you in disputes. The two roles complement rather than overlap.

Yes — most of our clients are foreign suppliers, investors or holding entities. We bridge the gap between French law and your home jurisdiction's expectations and deliver everything bilingually.

The SAS (Société par Actions Simplifiée) is the default choice for most international structures: flexible governance, single shareholder allowed, no minimum capital, and works cleanly with foreign holding entities. We assess SARL, SA, SCI on the merits when the situation calls for it.

Yes — communications with a French avocat are protected by the secret professionnel (Article 66-5 of the Law of 31 December 1971). This protection is broader than the common-law attorney-client privilege and applies to written and oral exchanges.

We work on fixed fees for clearly scoped engagements (incorporation, contract drafting, audits) and on monthly retainers for ongoing advisory. Hourly billing is the exception, not the default. You always know the cost before work starts.

Typical timeline is 2–3 weeks from KYC kick-off to RCS registration, assuming standard documentation. Holding-company structures, foreign-shareholder identification or in-kind contributions can extend this — we flag the gating items at the first meeting.

Absolutely. We routinely coordinate with your in-house counsel, expert-comptable or notaire — pragmatic collaboration is the norm, not the exception. We send them everything they need to do their part without duplicating work.

Mariela Petrova

Mariela Petrova

Avocate au Barreau de Paris

Toque #C2396

15+ Years In Corporate Practice

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Communications protected by professional secrecy — secret professionnel de l'avocat, Article 66-5 of the Law of 31 December 1971.

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