Approval of an association

Verified 03 June 2024 - Directorate of Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister), Ministry for Associative Life

Would you like to know what the approval is used for, the conditions that the association must meet to benefit from it, the documents to be provided to the administrative authorities, the duration of the approval, whether it can be canceled,...? We present you with the information you need to know.

Accreditation reflects the state recognition (or by one of its public institutions) of the commitment of an association in a particular field (consumer protection, environmental protection, animal protection, etc.).

The approved association shall benefit frombenefits variables according to the license: possibility to apply for public subsidies, tax advantages, right to practice certain activities,...

The association law 1901 or theassociation of Alsace-Moselle must meet the following 3 conditions:

  • To respond to an object of general interest, that is to say that not being based on a prohibited cause or object, contrary to the law, to good morals
  • Present a democratic mode of operation (e.g. regular meetings of the governing bodies)
  • To respect rules that guarantee financial transparency, that is to say to keep accounts, establish an annual budget,...

One recognized association of public utility (Arup) or an association which has already been approved for at least five years shall automatically be considered as meeting these three conditions.

The issue of an approval may also be subject to other specific conditions depending on the approval applied for (having at least 1 year of existence, having a certain number of members, etc.).

Responding to an object of general interest

In order to fulfill an object of general interest, the following conditions must be met:

  • Justify a selfless management and not pursue profit-making
  • Be open to all without discrimination
  • Present sufficient guarantees with regard to respect for individual freedoms, i.e. not have the aim of undermining the integrity of France and the republican form of government
  • The association's action must not be limited to defending the collective interests of your members

Present a democratic way of working

The functioning of the association shall be considered as democratic if all of the following conditions are met:

  • The General Assembly shall meet regularly, at least once a year
  • Up-to-date members of their obligations (in particular of their contributions) shall have the right to participate effectively in the general meeting and to vote
  • Rules and regulations The documents necessary for their information shall be communicated to them in accordance with the conditions laid down in the statutes or in the
  • At least half of the members responsible for administration or management shall be elected by the general meeting
  • The regular renewal of the members responsible for administration or management and the annual activity report shall be submitted for approval to the general meeting

Adhere to rules ensuring financial transparency

Financial transparency shall be considered to be fulfilled if all of the following conditions are met:

  • An annual budget and financial statements or, where appropriate, accounts shall be drawn up
  • The annual budget, financial statements or accounts shall be communicated to the members within the time limits laid down in its statutes
  • These documents shall be submitted to the general meeting for acceptance
  • The publication and communication of budgetary and accounting documents to public authorities shall be carried out in accordance with the rules

The application file shall include the following:

  • Activity reports for the last completed financial year
  • Proof of declaration of changes in the statutes, management or administration of the association

An association that is not required to publish its annual accounts must also provide its approved financial statements for the last year ended. This is the case for associations whose amount of donations and/or grants is less than €153,000.

The legal representative of the association must establish a certificate on the honor to certify the following points:

  • The information provided to justify that the association fulfills the three conditions (object of general interest, democratic functioning, financial transparency) is accurate and sincere
  • The association complies with the laws and regulations
  • The association is up to date with its accounting obligations
  • The association respects the Republican contract of service

Other specific elements may be requested (minutes of general meetings, note presenting the activity of the association,...).

The dossier shall be forwarded to the competent authority in order to issue the desired approval.

The competent administration varies according to the activity of the association : environmental protection association, sports association not affiliated to a sports federation, educational association, youth and/or popular education association, ...

Répondez aux questions successives et les réponses s’afficheront automatiquement

Environmental Protection Association

The request should be addressed to the prefect of the department in which the association has its registered office.

Who shall I contact

Non-affiliated sports association

The request should be addressed to the prefect of the department in which the association has its registered office.

Who shall I contact

Educational Association

The application for national accreditation shall be forwarded to the Office for Educational, Cultural and Sports Activities of the Directorate-General for School Education of the Ministry responsible for national education.

Association with a youth and/or popular education activity

The application for national accreditation is to be forwarded to the Directorate for Youth, Popular Education and Associative Life of the Ministry in charge of Youth.

The approval decision shall be taken by the competent administrative authority. This depends on the approval requested.

Once the application has been accepted, approval shall be granted for a period of Five years.

The license shall be renewable. The renewal dossier shall be sent to the same body as for the first application.

The administrative authority which issued the authorization may cancel it where a condition necessary for its granting is no longer fulfilled. We're talking aboutabrogation. It shall be carried out in accordance with the procedure specific to each approval.

Who can help me?

Find who can answer your questions in your region