The BPF explained: who must file it, when and how to complete it
The bilan pédagogique et financier (BPF) is the annual activity report of every French training organisation. Little known to founders, it is nonetheless the obligation whose neglect costs the most: the lapse of your activity declaration number (NDA). Here is everything you need to file it without stress.
Who must file a BPF?
Every holder of an NDA active during the previous financial year — whatever the status (micro-entreprise, company, association) and whatever the activity volume. Three concrete cases:
- You delivered a single 7-hour session in the year: BPF mandatory.
- You obtained your NDA in November and have invoiced nothing yet: BPF mandatory, filed as "nil" (zero activity), completed in minutes.
- You ceased activity mid-year: BPF for the activity period.
If you have just obtained your number through the Cerfa 10782 activity declaration, note the rule now: your first BPF will come sooner than you think.
When and where to file?
Every year before 31 May, for the previous financial year, online on "Mon Activité Formation" (mesdemarches.emploi.gouv.fr) — the same portal as the activity declaration. The form only exists in digital version; archive the filing receipt and a copy of the validated BPF.
The form's sections, one by one
| Section | Content | Point of vigilance |
|---|---|---|
| A and B | Identification and characteristics of the organisation | Check the address is current (otherwise file an amendment) |
| C | Origin of revenue: companies, joint bodies (OPCO), public authorities, individuals, other training organisations | The most audited section — see the mistakes below |
| D | Expenses tied to the training activity | With a mixed activity, only allocate the training share |
| E | People who delivered training hours: internal and external | Do not forget your own owner-trainer hours |
| F | Trainees: headcounts and trainee-hours per action type and objective | Trainee-hours = headcount × duration (8 trainees × 14 h = 112) |
| G | Training specialities (NSF codes) | Choose a code consistent with your programmes |
The four most frequent mistakes
- Filing subcontracting under "companies". If you deliver on behalf of another training organisation, that revenue goes into the dedicated line "contracts concluded with other training organisations". It is the number one mistake of first BPFs.
- Confusing training hours and trainee-hours. A 14-hour session with 10 participants is 14 delivered hours (section E) but 140 trainee-hours (section F).
- Declaring a mixed activity's entire revenue. Only vocational training belongs in the BPF: consulting, product sales or lectures do not. Without analytical accounting, the split becomes a headache — code your invoices at issuance.
- A total inconsistent with the accounts. Section C must match your accounts' training revenue. Any unexplained gap is a signal for the audit service.
The link with the NDA's lapse
Two situations make the NDA lapse: failing to file the BPF, and a BPF showing no training activity for two consecutive years. The sanction has heavy consequences: loss of the registration, of the associated VAT exemption, no contracting with funders — and the obligation to refile a complete activity declaration, with a new first contractual document. For a simple form oversight, that is a steep price: set two yearly reminders (1 April: prepare; 15 May: check the filing).
The BPF and Qualiopi
If you target certification, know that the BPF plays an indirect but real role: your certification body requests it to size the audit, and the auditor checks the consistency between your declared volumes, your presented activity and your published performance figures. A clean BPF is also proof of administrative seriousness that sets the audit off on the right foot. To know whether certification concerns you, read Is Qualiopi mandatory for you?.
The painless method
Keep a session table all year long: client, funder type, amount, trainee count, duration, trainee-hours. Thirty seconds per session, and April's BPF becomes a formality of under an hour — accounting reconciliation included.
Take action
The BPF template in the Complete Qualiopi Kit contains the ready-to-use collection table, the explained sections and the annual calendar — along with every other document a provider needs (€197, 14-day guarantee, documents in French). And if you have not created your organisation yet, the ebook Créer son organisme de formation en 30 jours devotes a full chapter to the BPF.