URSSAF Audit On-Site, Document-Based or Digital: Key Differences, Your Right to Refuse and the Pitfalls of Remote Audits
Not all URSSAF audits are equal: the method chosen by the inspector determines your rights — and in particular your right to refuse. Understanding the difference between an on-site audit, a document-based audit and a digital audit means avoiding a procedure you could have redirected.
This article is part of the series URSSAF Audits: The Employer’s Guide. Previous step: the notice of audit.
The accounting and contribution-base audit: the common core
Whether conducted on-site or on the basis of documents, the audit aims to verify the accuracy of the declared contribution bases and rates (Articles L.243-7 and R.243-59 et seq. of the French Social Security Code (CSS)). Any reassessment must be substantiated in fact and in law: this is a requirement whose breach is sanctioned.
On-site audit vs. document-based audit
- On-site: the inspector visits your premises. You control the practical arrangements (a dedicated room, a single point of contact).
- Document-based: everything hinges on the documents you submit. The temptation to “provide too much” is strong; yet every document communicated may feed a ground for reassessment.
In both cases, the contributor may be assisted by an adviser at any time (Article R.243-59-1 of the CSS).
The digital audit (contrôle dématérialisé, i.e. paperless audit): an agreement you can refuse
The document-based digital audit (Article R.243-59-3 of the CSS) relies on the transmission of files (DSN social declarations, payroll files). It requires your consent.
DAIRIA advice: systematically exercise your right of refusal within 15 days, and request precise details of what is expected. This refusal does not constitute an obstruction of the audit and does not expose you to any surcharge — it simply puts you back in control of the timetable and scope.
If you accept the digital audit, request the precise list of files consulted and the processing operations carried out (Article R.243-59-4 of the CSS). You can only effectively challenge what you are aware of.
Interviews (auditions): fertile ground for nullities
The inspector may interview paid individuals (Article R.243-59-3 of the CSS; Article L.8271-6-1 of the French Labour Code in matters of undeclared work). The pitfalls of these interviews are numerous: interviews conducted without consent, without prior information, or outside the cases provided for by law. An irregular interview may result in the nullity of the findings derived from it.
Frequently asked questions
Can a digital audit be refused? Yes, within 15 days; this does not constitute an obstruction of the audit.
Can interviews be annulled? Yes, if the required formalities (consent, prior information) are not respected.
On-site or document-based, what is the difference? The location and the practical control; the adversarial process (contradictoire) remains identical.
Written and supervised by Guillemette Watine, attorney, former URSSAF litigation inspector, head of the URSSAF practice at DAIRIA Avocats.
Next step → How URSSAF Calculates a Reassessment: Flat-Rate Taxation, Sampling and Extrapolation