Overtime: growth and legal calculation

Introduction: an inescapable reality for French businesses

Overtime is occupying an increasingly important place in work organisation in France. According to DARES data published in late 2025, the volume of declared overtime hours has increased by 12% over three years, driven by labour shortages in certain sectors and increased flexibility in contracts. For HR teams and SME leaders, mastering the legal calculation of overtime is a social, fiscal and legal obligation. This article guides you through the Labour Code rules, applicable increases, current exemptions and best practices in document management — notably via electronic signature for HR — to secure each stage of the process.

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The fundamentals of overtime in French law

Definition and triggering threshold

In accordance with article L3121-28 of the Labour Code, overtime is considered to be all hours worked beyond the legal weekly working time, set at 35 hours. This rule applies to full-time employees on standard employment contracts. For employees subject to a forfait en jours (fixed days) agreement, the regime differs substantially.

The count operates on the calendar week (Monday 0:00 to Sunday 24:00), unless a collective agreement provides for another reference period. In the case of annualised working time (company or sectoral agreement), overtime is calculated over the year, with the threshold set at 1,607 hours.

The annual contingent of overtime hours

Article L3121-33 of the Labour Code sets the legal annual contingent at 220 hours per employee per year, unless collective agreement provisions are more favourable (some collective agreements reduce this contingent to 130 or 180 hours). Beyond the contingent, the employer must obtain prior advice from the CSE (Works Council) and the employee benefits from mandatory compensatory rest (COR).

In 2024, according to URSSAF, nearly 4.2 million private sector employees worked overtime beyond the conventional contingent, representing an increase of 8 points compared to 2022.

Maximum working time periods

The legislator strictly limits overruns:

• Maximum daily duration: 10 hours (derogations possible up to 12 hours by agreement or authorisation from the labour inspectorate).

• Absolute maximum weekly duration: 48 hours in a single week.

• Average maximum weekly duration: 44 hours over 12 consecutive weeks.

Any unjustified overrun exposes the employer to criminal sanctions (5th class misdemeanour, €1,500 per employee concerned) and payment of damages in the event of employment tribunal proceedings.

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Calculating increases: legal and collective rates

Legal increase rates

Article L3121-36 of the Labour Code sets the minimum salary increase rates:

• 25% for the first 8 overtime hours (from the 36th to the 43rd hour inclusive).

• 50% from the 9th overtime hour (from the 44th hour).

A company or sectoral agreement may provide for a lower increase rate, but never below 10% (the legal floor resulting from the law of 20 August 2008).

Example of concrete calculation:

An employee whose gross hourly salary is €18 works 42 hours in the week.

• Normal hours (35 hours): 35 × 18 = €630

• Overtime hours with 25% increase (7 hours): 7 × 18 × 1.25 = €157.50

• Weekly gross salary: €787.50

Replacement by compensatory rest

The employer may, with a collective agreement or failing that with the employee's agreement, replace all or part of the payment of overtime hours with equivalent compensatory rest (RCE). This mechanism is particularly used in sectors with high seasonality (hospitality, catering, construction).

Since the social security financing law for 2024, the combination of compensatory rest and tax exemption is only possible if the agreement is formalised in writing, which reinforces the importance of rigorous HR documentation.

Tax and social exemption: the "Tepa" scheme

Stemming from the TEPA law of 21 August 2007 and continued by the 2016 Labour Law, the exemption scheme remains in force in 2026:

• Income tax exemption within the limit of €7,500 per year of remuneration paid for overtime (article 81 quater of the General Tax Code).

• Reduction of employee social contributions: flat-rate deduction of 11.31% on remuneration for overtime hours (rate updated on 1 January 2026).

• Flat-rate employer deduction: applicable only in companies with fewer than 20 employees (€1.50 per overtime hour).

These tax benefits explain in large part the growth in declared overtime use observed since 2018.

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Document management of overtime: issues and modernisation

Recording and traceability obligations

Article L3171-4 of the Labour Code requires the employer to keep a document controlling the duration of work for each employee whose working time is not organised collectively. In the event of a dispute, the burden of proof falls on the employer: they must be able to produce signed hour records or data extracted from the badge system.

The Court of Cassation has confirmed on several occasions (Cass. Soc. 18 March 2020, no. 18-10.919) that the absence of a precise count creates a presumption against the employer of unpaid overtime hours.

Electronic signature applied to HR documents

The formalisation of overtime — whether amendments to employment contracts, recovery agreements, payslips or hour records — can now rely on electronic signature in the business. This approach offers several advantages:

• Certified timestamp: each electronically signed document includes a time stamp that is probative evidence, essential in case of dispute over the date of approval of hours.

• Complete traceability: the audit log preserves the identity of the signatory, their IP address, the device used and the hash of the original document.

• Reduction in lead times: signing an amendment remotely takes on average 4 minutes compared to 3 to 5 days by post, according to sector benchmarks published by the National Digital Council (2025).

To deepen the differences between signature levels (simple, advanced, qualified), consult our comprehensive guide to electronic signature.

Integration with payroll and HRIS software

Modernising the management of overtime also involves integrating signature solutions into HRIS (Silae, PayFit, Sage, ADP). Open APIs make it possible to automatically trigger a signature request as soon as an hour counter exceeds the legal threshold, ensuring compliance without manual intervention. Our ROI calculator allows you to assess the potential savings linked to this automation in your organisation.

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Trends 2025-2026: why overtime is increasing

Macro-economic and sectoral factors

Several dynamics explain the increase in declared overtime in France:

• Labour market tension: in the logistics, healthcare and IT sectors, the rate of vacant positions exceeds 5% (source: Pôle Emploi, 2025 report). Rather than recruiting, many SMEs prefer to resort to overtime, considered more flexible.

• Maintained tax advantage: the stability of the TEPA scheme since 2018 has anchored overtime as a variable remuneration lever, particularly for workers and employees with a low marginal tax rate.

• Tertiarisation and work hybridisation: remote work creates blurred boundaries between work time and personal time, leading to under-reporting or over-reporting depending on sectors, which complicates URSSAF checks.

Risks of drift and URSSAF control

URSSAF adjustments related to overtime have increased by 18% between 2023 and 2025 (source: URSSAF annual report 2025). The most frequent reasons:

• Increases calculated on an incorrect hourly basis (exclusion of bonuses integrated into the salary).

• Annual contingent exceeded without notification to the labour inspectorate.

• Exemptions applied incorrectly to hours not justified by signed records.

The adoption of an eIDAS-compliant electronic signature solution is an effective safeguard against these risks, making documentary evidence unassailable.

Legislative perspectives

The full employment bill, under discussion in Parliament in spring 2026, plans to experiment with an increase in the legal contingent to 270 hours in companies with fewer than 50 employees in sectors facing shortages. If adopted, this scheme will further increase the need for traceability and digital formalisation of individual agreements.

Legal framework applicable to overtime

Founding texts of labour law

Regulation of overtime in France is based on several legislative and regulatory texts that must be understood:

• Articles L3121-28 to L3121-41 of the Labour Code: define legal duration, contingent, minimum increases and methods of replacement by compensatory rest.

• Article L3171-4 of the Labour Code: imposes the obligation to count individual working time.

• Article 81 quater of the General Tax Code: sets the tax exemption within the limit of €7,500 annually.

• Decree no. 2008-1132 of 4 November 2008: specifies the methods of application of the flat-rate reduction of employer contributions.

Legal value of formalisation documents

Any amendment, recovery agreement or overtime record constitutes a legal act capable of providing evidence in court. Its probative value depends on its integrity and the certain identification of the signatories.

The eIDAS Regulation no. 910/2014 (and its eIDAS 2.0 revision in force since 2024) establishes three levels of electronic signature:

• Simple: sufficient for most routine HR documents.

• Advanced: recommended for salary amendments and recovery agreements, as it guarantees the identity of the signatory and document integrity.

• Qualified: required for certain authentic deeds; rarely required in routine labour law.

The Civil Code, articles 1366 and 1367, recognises the full probative force of electronic writing when the person from whom it originates can be duly identified and when document integrity is ensured.

Personal data protection

Overtime records contain personal data within the meaning of GDPR Regulation no. 2016/679: name, employee identifier, actual working time. As such:

• The retention period must be defined (generally 5 years in labour law, the statute of limitation for employment tribunal proceedings).

• Hosting must comply with data localisation requirements (EU servers or adequate countries according to European Commission decision).

• Any electronic signature service provider processing this data is a controller within the meaning of article 28 GDPR and must be subject to a DPA (Data Processing Agreement).

Legal risks in case of non-compliance

• URSSAF penalties: late-payment increases of 5% + interest of 0.20% per month.

• Employment tribunal proceedings: condemnation to pay non-increased hours + damages for concealed work (6 months minimum salary, article L8223-1 of the Labour Code).

• Criminal sanctions: fine of €1,500 per employee for failure to comply with maximum durations (5th class misdemeanour).

Usage scenarios: digitalising overtime management

Scenario 1 — An industrial SME with 80 production employees

An industrial SME employing 80 production operators must regularly activate overtime during order peaks. Previously, hour records were printed, hand-signed by team leaders and filed in physical cabinets. In the event of an URSSAF inspection, finding a document from 3 years ago took on average 2 hours per file.

After deploying an electronic signature solution integrated into its payroll software, the company automatically generates a weekly record per employee, sent for signature in less than 2 minutes. Documents are archived with certified timestamp and can be found instantly. Result: 90% reduction in administrative time spent on overtime and zero adjustments during the last two URSSAF inspections, compared to a €12,000 adjustment identified under the old system.

Scenario 2 — A group of private clinics with approximately 400 beds

A group of private clinics managing several facilities and approximately 400 beds faces strong constraints: high staff turnover in nursing, schedules modified urgently, and traceability requirements imposed by the national collective agreement for private hospital facilities. Amendments to modify schedules had to be physically signed, creating delays incompatible with the required reactivity.

The adoption of an advanced electronic signature compliant with eIDAS now allows any amendment related to overtime to be formalised in less than 10 minutes, including for staff working nights or travelling between sites. The rate of documents signed within regulatory deadlines increased from 64% to 98% in six months, eliminating risks of disputes over night shifts and Sunday hours.

Scenario 3 — An accounting firm managing 150 payroll files

An accounting firm handling the payroll for 150 micro and small enterprises notes that seasonality (fiscal closures, year-end festivities) generates a peak in overtime hours each quarter for its clients. These clients transmitted records by unsecured email or post, causing calculation errors and processing delays.

By integrating an electronic signature workflow into its service offering, the firm allows its clients to validate hour records directly from their smartphone. Data are automatically imported into the payroll software. Data entry errors fell by 35% and the average time to process payslips including overtime was reduced from 4.5 days to 1.2 days, according to internal measurements carried out over two consecutive financial years.

Conclusion

Overtime is both a performance lever for businesses and a minefield from a legal and social perspective. Mastering legal calculation, respecting contingents, correctly applying increases and tax exemptions, and above all formalising each agreement in writing are the necessary conditions for compliant and smooth management.

Digitalising these processes — notably via electronic signature — is no longer optional but a necessity for HR teams facing increasing volumes of documents of probative value. It reduces costs, accelerates timescales and secures each document against possible inspection or litigation.

Certyneo supports you in this transformation with an eIDAS-compliant electronic signature solution, designed for HR teams and accountants. Discover our offers and start for free today.