2026-2027 Budget: CAPEB warns of the impact of budget cuts on very small construction businesses

In a context already marked by the slowdown in construction activity, the decline in orders and job losses, the professional organization believes that several cost-cutting measures risk having a lasting impact on small construction businesses.

Budgetary measures deemed detrimental to the building trades

According to CAPEB, several decisions already made or currently under consideration could have direct consequences on economic activity, employment, apprenticeships, and energy-efficient renovations. These include, in particular, the increase in the minimum wage (SMIC) coupled with a freeze on social security contribution reductions, the reduction of apprenticeship subsidies, cuts to energy-efficient renovation programs, and a decrease in funding for heritage preservation and social housing in France's overseas territories.

For building tradespeople, the accumulation of these measures comes in a particularly degraded economic environment, where companies are already facing rising costs of materials, energy and fuels.

1. Rising labor costs: a risk to local employment

CAPEB is particularly concerned about the freeze on social security contribution reductions decided alongside a significant increase in the minimum wage. This measure would lead to an immediate rise in labor costs for very small construction businesses, even though the sector has already lost more than 30.000 jobs in two years.

The organization believes that this decision could further weaken local employment and the ability of small businesses to recruit.

2. MaPrimeRénov': a €300 million cut that threatens energy renovation

Another cause for concern is the reduction of 300 million euros in the funds allocated to MaPrimeRénov' for energy renovations by gesture in 2026.

For CAPEB, this decrease risks accelerating the contraction of activity in the energy renovation sector while limiting household access to work that improves the energy performance of their homes.

The organization also opposes the complete elimination of single-step energy efficiency measures, planned for next September. These measures currently represent a key entry point to comprehensive renovations, allowing individuals to quickly achieve improvements in thermal comfort and purchasing power.

3. Apprenticeships: an 88% reduction in regional funding

CAPEB also denounces the decrease in funding allocated to apprenticeships. Funding for regional authorities would fall from €268 million in 2025 to just €33 million in 2026, representing a reduction of 88%.

According to the organization, this reduction would jeopardize the investments of apprenticeship training centers (CFA) in educational equipment and could lead to the closure of some training courses, particularly in rural areas.

This announcement comes as apprenticeships in the building trades are already experiencing a 7% decline in the 2025-2026 academic year.

4. Social housing in overseas territories: more than €100 million in funding at risk

CAPEB also expresses its concern regarding the planned reduction of more than 100 million euros of the Single Budget Line (LBU), the main financing mechanism for social housing in overseas territories.

This decrease in credit could lead to a significant slowdown in the construction and renovation markets in the overseas territories, with direct repercussions on the order books and cash flow of local businesses.

In Réunion in particular, some budget cuts could reach up to 60%, reinforcing the concerns of professionals in the sector.

5. Built Heritage and Green Fund: Local Investments in Decline

The announced budget cuts for the Green Fund and for building heritage restoration operations are also causing concern among craftsmen.

These programs finance, in particular, energy renovation work on public buildings and heritage preservation projects undertaken by local authorities. For CAPEB, their reduction risks weakening a local, non-relocatable activity that directly benefits local businesses.

A major economic sector weakened

CAPEB points out that the building trades represent a central player in the French economy with more than 500.000 businesses. The sector generates nearly half of the construction industry's revenue, employs half of the sector's workers, and trains the majority of apprentices.

Faced with state budget constraints, the organization asserts that it advocates a targeted approach that would generate savings without penalizing very small businesses. In particular, it argues for concentrating apprenticeship subsidies on companies with fewer than 50 employees, which it believes would free up nearly one billion euros in savings.

CAPEB also mentions the possibility of strengthening the framework of the micro-enterprise scheme and lowering the VAT exemption threshold in the building sector in order to generate additional budget savings.

For Jean-Christophe Repon, president of CAPEB: "These budgetary decisions, made without consideration of the realities on the ground, risk permanently stifling very small businesses in the construction sector. We are not rejecting budgetary efforts, but rather demanding coherence and economic survival for companies already under significant pressure."

CAPEB is therefore calling on the Government to review its budgetary guidelines in order to preserve the activity of very small businesses in the building sector, local employment, apprenticeships and investments in energy renovation, all levers considered essential to economic growth and the transition of the French building stock.

Illustrative image of the article via Depositphotos.com.