French Classification Of Activities - Nomenclature d'activités française (NAF), France

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The NAF (Nomenclature des Activités Françaises) classification system in France is used to categorize the economic activities of businesses and organizations. It is managed by INSEE (the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies) and is based on the European NACE classification but with adaptations for the French business and economic context. The NAF is a hierarchical four-level system ranging from broad sectors at the top to finer industrial categories at the lowest level.

Structure

The French Classification Of Activities - Nomenclature d'activités française (NAF) is a five-level hierarchical framework for categorizing economic activity in Germany. In its current version, it is structured as follows:

  • Sections: 21 sections represented by letters ranging from A to U. This is the broadest category in the NAF and is aligned with the United Nation's ISIC and the European Union's NACE.

  • Divisions: 88 divisions represented by two-digit codes (01-99) that align with ISIC and NACE.

  • Groups: 272 groups represented by three-digit codes (01.1-99.0) that align with NACE.

  • Classes: 615 classes represented by four-digit codes (01.11-99.00) that also align with NACE.

  • Sub-classes: 732 sub-classes represented by five-digit codes (01.11Z-99.00Z). This is the finest level of detail in the NAF constructed according to the French economic context. This is the case with other national classification systems in Europe. For example, the sub-class level of the UK SIC (United Kingdom) and WZ (Germany) have 191 and 839 activities respectively.

The table below breaks down each of the 21 sections in the current version of the NAF. The manufacturing section (C) is the most diverse section with 259 subclasses which is 35% of the NAF's 732 subclasses. The "wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles" section has the second highest number of subclasses (116). These top two sections together account for just over half (51.23%) of the NAF's sub-classes.

Section

Title

Divisions

Groups

Classes

Subclasses

A

Agriculture, forestry and fishing

3

13

39

39

B

Mining and quarrying

5

10

15

15

C

Manufacturing

24

95

230

259

D

Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply

1

3

8

8

E

Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities

4

6

9

9

F

Construction

3

9

22

38

G

Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles

3

21

91

116

H

Transportation and storage

5

15

23

30

I

Accommodation and food service activities

2

7

8

11

J

Information and communication

6

13

26

33

K

Financial and insurance activities

3

10

18

19

L

Real estate activities

1

3

4

6

M

Professional, scientific and technical activities

7

15

19

22

N

Administrative and support service activities

6

19

33

35

O

Public administration and defence; compulsory social security

1

3

9

11

P

Education

1

6

11

12

Q

Human health and social work activities

3

9

12

28

R

Arts, entertainment and recreation

4

5

15

16

S

Other service activities

3

6

19

21

T

Activities of households as employers; undifferentiated goods- and services-producing activities of households for own use

2

3

3

3

U

Activities of extraterritorial organizations and bodies

1

1

1

1

Total

88

272

615

732

History and Versions

  • Early Development: Before NAF, France used different classification systems for economic activities, which were often inconsistent and difficult to standardize across different sectors. This fragmentation led to inefficiencies in data collection and analysis, prompting the need for a unified system.

  • Introduction (NAP, 1973): The precursor to NAF was known as NAP (nomenclature d'activités et de produits) which was in place from 1973 to 1992. The NAP was part of France's broader effort to modernize its statistical tools and align with international norms. It provided a comprehensive framework for uniformly categorizing economic activities, thereby improving the accuracy and comparability of economic data.

  • NAF 1993: In 1993, the NAF was introduced replacing the "activities" part of the NAP following the structure of the European Community's NACE system, which itself is derived from the United Nation's ISIC. The introduction of NAF was part of France's commitment to European integration, ensuring that its economic data could be easily compared with that of other EU member states.

  • NAF 2003: NAF was refined in 2003 to account for changes in the economy, such as the rise of new industries and the decline of others. This version continued to support the harmonization of French statistics with European standards, reflecting updates made in the NACE Rev. 1.1. It was in force from 1 January 2003 to 31 December 2007.

  • NAF 2008: This is the current version of NAF, also known as NAF Rev. 2. This version was aligned with NACE Rev. 2, the updated European classification system. NAF 2008 contains more detailed categories, reflecting the growing complexity of economic activities, especially in technology, services, and global trade. This update allowed for more precise identification and categorization of economic activities. A new revision of the NAF is in progress with implementation by the French national statistics office (INSEE) expected from January 2026.

Where is it used?

The NAF is primarily used by INSEE to categorize economic activity in France. Major national databases such as the Sirene Directory (which contains detailed information on all businesses and establishments in France) use the NAF. Other government agencies as well as private companies use the NAF for a range of purposes. In addition to its administrative and regulatory uses, the NAF is a widely used in academic research on business and economic issues in France.

Further Resources

Download NAF