This guide is for self-employed VTC drivers operating in France, including Paris. Use it to close a week's accounts, not to predict earnings from an advertised fare or a busy evening.
Start with a reconciled statement
Keep the passenger-fare statement, commission invoice and bank payout together. Record whether your starting figure is revenue before fees or a payout after fees. Tips, refunds and adjustments need separate lines so that the statement matches the bank transfer.
A complete illustrative week
Every number below is an assumption, not an earnings promise or market benchmark. Assume a business benefiting from the French VAT exemption (franchise en base): no output VAT is collected and costs include non-recoverable VAT. Assume no tips, bonuses, refunds or other costs for this simplified week.
| Budget line | Assumed amount |
|---|---|
| Passenger receipts before platform commission | EUR 1,000 |
| Platform commission, deducted once | - EUR 200 |
| Payout received in the bank | EUR 800 |
| Fuel or charging for all kilometres | - EUR 100 |
| Vehicle, professional insurance and maintenance allocation | - EUR 180 |
| Operating balance before contributions and taxes | EUR 520 |
The same balance is 1,000 - 200 - 100 - 180 = EUR 520, or 800 - 100 - 180 = EUR 520 if you start with the payout. Never subtract the EUR 200 commission again from EUR 800.
Include every working hour and kilometre
Assume 40 hours: 25 with passengers, 10 waiting or repositioning and 5 on cleaning, charging and administration. The operating balance is 520 / 40 = EUR 13 per hour before contributions and taxes, not a net wage.
Assume 800 km in total, including 200 empty km. Empty mileage is 200 / 800 = 25%; the balance per total kilometre is 520 / 800 = EUR 0.65. Those empty kilometres already contribute to the energy and vehicle costs above: do not add the same costs again.
Move from the balance to personal income
Replace the EUR 180 allocation with your actual rental cost or a consistent ownership-cost method. Keep loan repayments, depreciation and maintenance provisions distinct to avoid counting the same expense twice. Add omitted costs such as parking, tolls, telephone and accounting.
Then reserve the contributions and taxes applicable to your French business and household. A micro-entrepreneur's declaration base is not simply this EUR 520 balance. If liable for VAT, rebuild the calculation with VAT separated and only eligible input VAT recovered.
Use the result to decide
Compare several similar weeks before changing schedules or vehicles. Paris weather and event information can help planning, but does not establish demand. The useful question is whether an extra shift improves the balance after its additional hours and kilometres.
Sources and scope
French tax authority: micro-enterprise and VAT
French tax authority: actual expenses under micro status
The legal and tax references concern France. Examples are illustrative unless expressly attributed to a source; they are not tariffs or promised results.