After I got my translation degree in 2001, I chose to study management for a year in order to know the basics when I started as a freelancer. I realised that I did not enjoy navigating the maze that is French business law, and probably couldn’t afford to start a company at that time.
A client suggested I work with an umbrella company. The first one I found was not adapted for translators, but when I joined the Aprotrad in 2005, a colleague gave me the name the one she was working with. I am still working with them.
An umbrella company gives me the opportunity to do my job as a translator like any freelancer would, but the umbrella company is in charge of the invoices, taxes etc. for a reasonable fee, and I get the same social security as an employee in France. It is a little more expensive than working as a “real” freelancer, but it allows me to allocate time for my hobbies and private life that I would otherwise spend doing paperwork.
I really get the best of both worlds: the freedom of a freelancer, and the safety net of an employee.