There are between five to 10 captives waiting for approval in France, according to Marine Charbonnier, head of captives and facultative underwriting for APAC and Europe at AXA XL.
The number of captives in France has steadily increased since the jurisdiction introduced specific captive legislation in June 2023, with the number of captives in the jurisdiction now standing at 19.
“We are working with more than half of the captive space in France, so we think there could be between five and ten captives waiting for decision and/or approval,” Charbonnier told Captive Intelligence at the FERMA Forum in Madrid last month.
“Some clients are taking their time because they really want to compile a comprehensive file with all the necessary data, and that takes time on their end.”
In October French multinational aerospace and defence corporation Safran received approval to re-domesticate its Luxembourg captive to France.
Charbonnier said a review has been scheduled for the French government in September 2025 to further advance captive regulation in the jurisdiction.
“We are all awaiting this next step,” she said. “It has been stated that it should not pose a challenge, but we can never be certain.”
“A note is expected to be prepared and submitted to the government.”
Charbonnier said that as the domicile continues to grow, recruiting local talent to expand the captive ecosystem will be one of the main challenges for the local market.
“This business is quite different from broking and it requires a specific set of skills,” she said.
“Even though captive managers may be connected to broking and their network, finding local talent is complex.
“They need to explain and train new employees while also recruiting experienced professionals locally. In France, this process has already begun.”
Charbonnier said there are not many local captive mangers, but their relevance is growing, which she said is important for clients.
“In other European countries I’m not sure if similar preparations are in place yet, but it takes time,” she said.
“Managing captives requires broad knowledge and diverse skills – technical expertise, underwriting, accounting, actuary and a solid understanding of regulations, among other things,” she added. “Additionally, it requires sufficient volume.”