Source date: 2026-05-26
Economic Life Simplification Act
Sale of business assets: the Hamon Law procedure evolves Published on May 27, 2026 - Entreprendre Service Public / Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister's Office)
The Economic Life Simplification Act relaxes the framework established by the Hamon Law. The latter introduced a mechanism for prior notification to employees in companies with fewer than 250 employees in the event of a sale of the business or transfer of the majority of share capital. The aim is to streamline the procedure to reduce administrative burdens and strengthen legal certainty for businesses.
The simplified procedure for the sale of a business or transfer of the majority of share capital applies to:
-
companies with fewer than 50 employees;
-
companies with 50 to 250 employees that do not have a CSE (Social and Economic Committee).
This procedure requires the employer to inform employees of their intention to sell the company within a timeframe allowing them to submit a potential purchase offer.
The Simplification Act now limits this simplified procedure to companies with fewer than 50 employees.
Companies with at least 50 but no more than 250 employees that have a CSE are no longer required to inform employees directly. However, they remain subject to the obligation to inform and consult the CSE.
Furthermore, the Simplification Act introduces the following changes to the simplified procedure:
-
the employer must inform employees at least 1 month before the sale (instead of 2 months previously);
-
in case of failure to comply with the information obligation, the fine is reduced. It is set at 0.5% of the sale price (instead of 2% previously).
The reform will apply to sales concluded 2 months after the promulgation of the law (i.e., sales concluded after July 27, 2026).
Legal texts and references
See also
Source: Service-Public professionals