This charter applies, without geographical limitation, to all AFEP staff and persons authorised by AFEP.

Our principles

  • Transparency and professionalism

AFEP’s budget, its members list, organisations to which it belongs and its main positions are public, in particular on its website. AFEP’s representatives systematically declare to the institutions and organisations they meet who they are acting for.

AFEP’s actions are guided by the values of honesty and integrity. AFEP publishes reliable, verified information and analyses based on in-depth expertise, reflecting the state of current knowledge. These analyses are independent of the media and politicians.

  • Respect for national and European legislation

AFEP complies with current national and European legislation, in particular the legislation governing the procurement and publication of official documents.  AFEP is prohibited from exercising illegal influence or participating in acts of corruption.

  • Independence from public authorities and political parties

AFEP is a non-governmental organisation whose annual budget consists exclusively of contributions from its member companies, without any contribution from central government, local authorities or other organisations. AFEP is apolitical and does not fund any political party or express any partisan political preferences.

  • Equality of treatment of its member companies according to the “one member = one vote” principle

The financial contributions by AFEP’s members are identical, regardless of the size of the company. No company or sector of activity has a prevailing influence.

Our commitments

AFEP relies on a team of specialists, with recognised expertise.

In their contacts with the public authorities, AFEP’s teams undertake to:

  • enrol in the registers of interest representatives in accordance with the applicable legislation and respect the codes of conduct, good governance practices and regulations of the institutions that they lobby;
  • declare their identity and the interests, objectives or purposes that AFEP promotes to each person they contact;
  • declare any potential conflict of interests;
  • refrain from any national or European political office during the time they are at AFEP;
  • refrain from authorising persons exercising public office to represent their interests;
  • refrain from offering benefits, gifts or paying for costs in order to obtain consideration or undue advantage;
  • refrain from any approach aimed at obtaining information or decisions by illegal means;
  • not encourage the representatives of public authorities to breach the rules and standards of behaviour applicable to them;
  • not take advantage of their formal relationship with the public authorities in their relationships with third parties;
  • present the companies’ positions in good faith and respect the expectations of their contacts, who may have divergent positions from those defended by AFEP;
  • prove their integrity and intellectual probity and protect the confidentiality of the information communicated;
  • at all times develop arguments referring to reliable, verified information and analyses based on in-depth expertise, reflecting the state of current knowledge;
  • respond thoroughly to information requests.

In regard to the members of the Association, the AFEP teams undertake to:

  • protect the confidentiality of the data sent to them;
  • respect equality of treatment by defending the general interest of the member companies without preference for a particular company or sector of activity, within a consensus defined by the members;
  • send its members clear, regular and reliable information on the main legislative and statutory developments in the Association’s fields of action;
  • report on the Association’s activities in memos and one-off or monthly meetings and in the business report.

List of organisations in which AFEP participates

  • ANSA, Association Nationale des Sociétés par Actions (National Association of Companies Limited by Shares)
  • Association Française d’Etude de la Concurrence (French Association of Competition Research)
  • Association Française des Juristes d’Entreprise (French Association of Company Lawyers)
  • Business Climate Summit Association
  • Club des Juristes (legal think tank)
  • Cercle du Droit (legal think tank)
  • Cercle Montesquieu (legal think tank)
  • Cofrac (French Accreditation Committee)
  • Décider Ensemble (think tank)
  • European Roundtable on Climate Change and Sustainable Transition
  • EuropeanIssuers
  • Global Compact France
  • Institut Français des Administrateurs (French Institute of Directors)
  • International Fiscal Association
  • Institut des Avocats Conseils Fiscaux (Institute of Tax Lawyers)
  • Observatoire des Conventions fiscales (Observatory on Tax Conventions)
  • Paris Europlace
  • Union pour la Juridiction des Brevets (Union of Patent Courts)