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Hervé Mariton, President of the Fédération des entreprises d'outre-mer (Fedom), came to meet representatives of the island's socio-professional world in the middle of last week. Hervé Mariton was received on the premises of the Chambre économique multiprofessionnelle (Cem). On Wednesday September 10, he held a morning of discussions with key players from the business world, and the following day, he met with Xavier Lédée, President of the Collectivité territoriale.
For Hervé Mariton, the reasons for visiting Saint-Barthélemy are obvious. The Fedom defends overseas businesses," recalls the former Minister for Overseas France (from March to May 2007). Saint-Barthélemy is one of those areas where it's easier to get positive messages across. "The Fedom president recalls his first visit to the island, in 1978. "Things have changed a lot since then," he smiles.
25 million in tax exemptions for Saint-Barth
His visit was punctuated by a series of working sessions. Starting with a morning at Cem. Together with Sandrine Jabouley, a lawyer specializing in labor and social security law, Hervé Mariton discussed the subject that had been occupying his attention for several months. In this case, the 2026 Finance Bill and the risk of seeing the Lodeom regime (Law for the Economic Development of Overseas France), which allows private employers to benefit from specific exemptions from tax, being abolished.specific exemptions from employers' social security contributions (sickness, maternity, disability, death, old age, family allowances). These exemptions are also important for Saint-Barthélemy," says Hervé Mariton. The draft budget for 2026 calls for nearly 700 million euros a year in cuts to the two main schemes supporting business activity, employment and investment in the French overseas territories: the social Lodeom and the tax incentives for overseas investment. In the case of Saint-Barth, the tax exemption represents 25 million euros. It's true that the system in Saint-Barthélemy is not very tightly controlled, but that's no reason to throw the baby out with the bathwater. We mustn't throw a spanner in the works for the good performers. "
While he agrees with many observers that Saint-Barth's model of success is "not necessarily reproducibleHervé Mariton stresses that "success doesn't mean we don't have to think about the future, particularly in economic terms". These are thoughts that can be shared within the Caribbean region. There's the question of adapting standards, which is in the common interest of overseas France, in the building sector for example," he explains. We need adapted standards that are acceptable to insurers. In fact, the subject of insurance was shaken up by Irma, as it was by other major events in overseas France. On the whole, insurance companies have a very cautious perception of the overseas world. It has become a systemic issue. "It's a subject that was touched on by Senator Micheline Jacques in her speech on August 24.
Cem president Jérémy Laplace underlined the quality and interest of the exchanges that took place during Hervé Mariton's visit. The presence of accounting firms at the Cem meeting was interesting, because it's also up to them to explain the situation to their clients," says the president, referring to the cut announced in the PLF 2026. Today, the French government is commissioning studies on the high cost of living, but if we change the tax exemptions tomorrow, this will have consequences on the cost of living. "Discussions with the future Lecornu government therefore promise to be crucial.
