URSSAF Inspections: Key Differences, Right to Refuse, and Digital Check Pitfalls
Not all URSSAF inspections are the same: the method chosen by the inspector determines your rights — including your right to refuse. Understanding the difference between on-site inspections, document-based inspections, and digital checks helps avoid undergoing a process that could have been redirected.
This article is part of the URSSAF Inspection Employer’s Guide. Previous step: the inspection notice.
Accounting Inspection: The Common Framework
Whether conducted on-site or based on documents, the inspection aims to verify the accuracy of the declared bases and rates (Article L.243-7 and R.243-59 et seq. CSS). Any adjustment must be factually and legally justified: this is a requirement whose absence is sanctioned.
On-Site Inspection vs. Document-Based Inspection
- On-site: the inspector comes to your premises. You control the material organization (dedicated room, single point of contact).
- Document-based: everything hinges on the documents provided. There is a strong temptation to “submit too much”; however, each document shared may lead to a reassessment claim.
In both cases, the contributor can be assisted by a counsel at any time (Article R.243-59-1 CSS).
Digital Check (CDA): An Agreement You Can Refuse
The document-based digital check (Article R.243-59-3 CSS) is based on the transmission of files (DSN, payroll files). It requires your agreement.
DAIRIA Advice: always exercise your right to refuse within 15 days, and request precise details of what is expected. This refusal does not obstruct the inspection and does not expose you to any penalties — it simply gives you control over the timeline and scope.
If you accept the CDA, request a precise list of the files reviewed and the processes undertaken (Article R.243-59-4 CSS). You can only effectively contest what you are aware of.
Hearings: A Minefield of Invalidities
The inspector may hear individuals who are compensated (Article R.243-59-3 CSS; Article L.8271-6-1 of the Labour Code regarding illegal work). The traps of hearings are numerous: hearings without consent, without information, or outside the cases provided for. An irregular hearing may lead to the nullity of the observations derived from it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a digital check be refused? Yes, within 15 days; it does not obstruct the inspection.
Can hearings be annulled? Yes, if the required formalities (consent, information) are not respected.
What is the difference between on-site and document-based inspections? The location and material control; the adversarial nature remains the same.
Written and supervised by Guillemette Watine, lawyer, former inspector at the URSSAF litigation department, head of the URSSAF department at DAIRIA Avocats.
Next step → How URSSAF quantifies reassessments: flat-rate taxation, sampling, and extrapolation*