Drafting of the statutes of an association

Verified 13 October 2022 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

The statutes are the founding act an association. This is a contract signed by at least 2 people (7 minimum in Alsace-Moselle). This contract is established freely. However, the statutes may be subject to special obligations for certain associations. We present you with the information you need to know.

The statutes are the birth certificate of the association.

They include information describing the purpose (or purpose) of the association and its operating rules.

Statutes may be supplemented by a rules and regulations.

A copy of the articles of association must be provided with the declaration by the association in the prefecture.

Statutes must be drafted in French by the founders of the association (minimum 2 persons). They are written freely, without special shape.

Statutes may have to meet certain obligations where the law so provides. This is the case, for example, with the hunting federations.

It is strongly recommended to mention the following in the statutes:

Title of the association, subject matter, duration and registered office
Conditions for admission and removal of members
Rules of organization, operation of the association, and determination of the powers assigned to the members responsible for administering it
Conditions for amending the statutes and conditions for dissolving the association
Rules governing the allocation of the association's assets in the event of dissolution (voluntary, statutory, judicial or by decree)

An example is available:

Example of the statutes of an association Law 1901

It is recommended that statuses do not include information that is likely to become obsolete in the near future. For example, the amount of dues or personal information (such as the name, first name, address of the members or the civil status of the founders).

Warning

the initial articles of association may state that the association is entitled to own property, but not that it is the owner. This is so because, until its creation is published in the JOAFE: titleContent, it does not yet have legal personality (i.e. the possibility to take legal action, to sign a contract, etc.).

In some cases, the statutes must comply with the following rules:

State that they provide services or sell products in the usual way
Comply with model statuses (example: hunter federation)
Submit the statutes to a supervisory authority such as a ministry (e.g. approved association of professional freshwater fishermen)

For example, the following federations or associations are affected by these rules:

Hunters Federations
Approved associations of professional freshwater fishermen
Associations selling products or providing services

The statutes are the birth certificate of the association.

They include information describing the purpose (or purpose) of the association and its operating rules.

Statutes may be supplemented by a rules and regulations.

The statutes must be filed in the court of the place where the association is established.

Statutes must be drafted in French by the founders of the association (minimum 7 persons). They are written freely, without special shape.

The articles of association must contain the following information:

Name, purpose, duration and seat of the association
Conditions for membership and exclusion of members
Obligations of members vis-à-vis the association (participation, contribution, ...)
Governing bodies of the association
Conditions for convening a general meeting and the formalities for doing so
Methods of recording decisions of the general meeting

Warning

the initial articles of association may state that the association is entitled to own immovable property, but not that the association is the owner. This is so because, as long as it is not yet entered in the register of associations, it does not yet have legal personality (that is to say, the possibility of taking legal action, signing contracts, etc.).

Example of the statutes of an association Law 1901