DSN: definition of the French nominative social declaration

In short:

1. The DSN is the nominative social declaration: a monthly file produced from payroll.
2. It is filed on the 5th or the 15th of the following month, at noon, depending on the company.
3. It is supplemented by event notifications: sick leave, end of contract, early return to work.
4. It is sent online on net-entreprises, by file upload or by API.

DSN: definition

The DSN, or déclaration sociale nominative, is a monthly file generated by payroll software. According to net-entreprises, it relies on the single, monthly, paperless transmission of payroll data and on event notifications.

It replaced a large number of earlier social declarations, including the unified declaration of social contributions (DUCS).

Employers covered

• Private-sector companies.
• The civil service.
• Agents who file on behalf of companies or self-employed employers.

Filing deadlines

Event notifications

In addition to the monthly DSN, the employer sends a notification when one of the following events occurs:

• sick leave, maternity leave, paternity leave or a workplace accident;
• the end of an employment contract;
• an early return to work after a period of leave.

How to submit the DSN

1. Run payroll and produce the French payslip for each employee.
2. Generate the DSN file from the payroll software.
3. Upload the file to net-entreprises, or send it by API directly from the software.
4. Follow up on the reports returned by the organisations.

Registration and use of the service are free.

DSN, DPAE, software: not to be confused

• The DSN is monthly and relates to payroll. The DPAE is a one-off declaration that is part of the hiring formalities.
• The DSN contains personal data. The choice of tool must take into account the rules that apply to any HR software in terms of personal data.

Monthly DSN, notifications and contributions: the timeline

Entreprendre.Service-Public sets out the pace of the various transmissions in a guide checked on 4 May 2026.

The monthly DSN

The DSN is sent once a month, during the month following the paid period of employment. The deadline depends on headcount:

• fewer than 50 employees: no later than the 15th of the following month;
• 50 employees or more: no later than the 5th of the following month.

If the deadline falls on a public holiday or a non-working day, it moves to the next working day.

Event notifications

Between two monthly DSNs, an event may need to be reported without waiting: sick leave, workplace accident, end of contract. This notification is sent within 5 days of the event.

Paying contributions

For companies with 1 to 9 employees, the payment deadline is the 15th of the month following the period of work. An employer who opted for quarterly payment pays contributions on the 15th of the month following the quarter.

An example

For March payroll, a company with 30 employees sends its DSN by 15 April at the latest. A company with 80 employees sends it by 5 April at the latest.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• net-entreprises, Déclaration sociale nominative (DSN), page consulted on 4 October 2026.
• Entreprendre.Service-Public, Déclaration sociale nominative (DSN), guide checked on 4 May 2026, consulted on 7 October 2026.