What few business leaders know: the French State has a dedicated contact for companies in difficulty
This article applies exclusively to companies operating under French law.
When a business goes through a rough patch — tight cash flow, blocked financing, restructuring to organise — the reflexes are often the same: call the bank, bring in a broker, consider insolvency proceedings. What many leaders don't know is that there is a free, confidential and fully operational public scheme, run directly by the Departmental Directorate of Public Finances (DDFIP): the CODEFI.
The Comité Départemental d'Examen des problèmes de Financement des entreprises (CODEFI — Departmental Committee for the Examination of Business Financing Problems) is a local interministerial body, under the authority of the Prefect. Its mission: to intervene before insolvency proceedings are filed, while there is still time to act.
Who is the CODEFI for?
The CODEFI is aimed at companies with fewer than 400 employees, across all sectors, facing financing difficulties but with genuine prospects for recovery.
Two key conditions:
- The application must be made before any insolvency filing. Once cessation of payments has been declared, the CODEFI can no longer intervene under the same conditions.
- The company's registered office must be within the jurisdiction of the CODEFI approached. Each department has its own committee, managed by the Permanent Secretariat of the local DDFIP.
For companies with more than 400 employees, it is the CIRI (Comité Interministériel de Restructuration Industrielle — Interministerial Committee for Industrial Restructuring), at national level, that takes over with similar mechanisms.
What the CODEFI can do for you in practice
The CODEFI's intervention can take several forms, depending on the diagnosis established:
1. An audit and diagnostic The CODEFI can commission industrial, commercial or financial audits to establish an objective assessment of the situation. These expert analyses are organised in agreement with the company and identify recovery levers.
2. A coordinating role The CODEFI mobilises and coordinates the relevant public stakeholders — Bpifrance, DREETS, tax authorities, social security bodies — to build a coherent solution. It doesn't work alone: it orchestrates.
3. Direct financing solutions This is often the surprise: the CODEFI can grant direct State loans, via the Fonds de Développement Économique et Social (FDES — Economic and Social Development Fund). These loans can reach up to €800,000, under the following conditions:
- Capped at €3,000 per permanent (CDI) job maintained after the restructuring
- Limited to 20% of long-term private contributions (private co-financing is mandatory)
- Long-term maturities (up to 10 years) reserved for industrial companies
- Standard processing time: 1 to 3 months
4. Social and industrial measures Beyond financing, the CODEFI can support the implementation of industrial and social measures required by the recovery plan: reorganisation, job retention, redeployment.
How to apply to the CODEFI
The process is straightforward and confidential:
- Contact the Permanent Secretary of the CODEFI at the Departmental Directorate of Public Finances (DDFIP) of your department
- Or approach the Business Tax Office (SIE) on which your company depends
- Files are processed by the Permanent Secretariat within each DDFIP
Confidentiality is one of the scheme's key strengths: approaching the CODEFI does not mean publicly disclosing your difficulties. This is precisely what allows early action, without further weakening relationships with commercial, financial or social partners.
The key point: act early, not too late
This is the golden rule of the CODEFI — and more broadly of any prevention procedure: the application must be made before insolvency proceedings are filed. Once cessation of payments has been declared, room for manoeuvre shrinks dramatically and proceedings shift to the commercial court.
The CODEFI's mission is to detect difficulties as early as possible. It is not a last-resort mechanism: it is a tool for active prevention.
Warning signs that should prompt a business leader to approach the CODEFI:
- Structurally tight cash flow for several months
- Difficulty meeting banking or tax deadlines
- Financing refused by banks despite a coherent recovery plan
- Restructuring plan to finance without sufficient private contribution
CODEFI and CIRI: two complementary schemes
The CODEFI and CIRI operate as a mirror image of each other, depending on company size:
- CODEFI → fewer than 400 employees, departmental level, managed by the DDFIP
- CIRI → more than 400 employees, national level, coordinated by the Directorate General for Enterprise (DGE) in liaison with the CODEFI for complex cases
Both bodies can grant direct State loans and coordinate comprehensive recovery solutions. In some cases, they work jointly on files involving entities of varying sizes.
How Trevys can help
Identifying the right scheme, preparing a solid file, structuring public and private financing within a coherent restructuring plan: this is precisely the role of a firm that combines accounting expertise with operational advisory.
If you are going through a difficult period — or if you are supporting a business leader who is — don't let time work against you. The CODEFI exists. You just need to know which door to knock on, at the right moment.
Would you like to assess your situation or prepare a CODEFI application? Our teams support you from the initial analysis through to the file submission.
Sources: Direction Départementale des Finances Publiques (DDFIP) — Circulars of 25 and 26 November 2004 on State action in the prevention and treatment of business difficulties — Circular of 9 January 2015 on the procedures for receiving and processing files — Official fact sheet updated 13 April 2026. This article applies exclusively to companies subject to French law.