LES ACTIVITÉS NUCLÉAIRES : RAYONNEMENTS IONISANTS ET RISQUES POUR LA SANTÉ ET L’ENVIRONNEMENT inspection topics. For example, ASNR’s national lead inspector participated remotely in several inspections carried out as part of the campaign on counterfeiting, falsifications and suspected fraud (see point 7). On-site inspection however remains the preferred method of verification. Only a few percent of the inspections are performed remotely each year. The implementation of remote inspection measures in 2020 required that ASNR modify the inspection indicators. For this type of inspection, the critical review of documents transmitted by a party responsible for a nuclear activity, during the on-site inspection preparation phases, becomes the primary method. It is then no longer possible to differentiate between preparation of the inspection, involving this documentary examination, and the inspection itself. The following paragraphs show the number of inspector.days corresponding to the on-site inspections and the number of remote inspections. Table 3 shows the total number of inspector.days devoted to inspections, whether they are carried out on site, remotely or using a combination of the two. ASNR sends the licensee an inspection follow-up letter, published on asnr.fr, which officially documents: ∙deviations between the situation observed during the inspection and the regulations or documents produced by the licensee pursuant to the regulations; ∙anomalies or aspects warranting additional justifications; ∙best practices or practices to which improvements could be made, even if not directly constituting requirements. The requests contained in the follow-up letters may concern requests for corrective actions or additional information, in the light of the deviations found during the inspections. The follow-up letter prioritises the actions requested by ASNR, so that the licensees can also implement a graded approach to processing the deviations found and optimise coordination of the means at their disposal. The actual performance of the actions requested by ASNR is followed up in a manner proportional to the issues at stake. Thus, the priority action requests undergo exhaustive checks when their deadlines expire. The other requests are monitored by sampling, using appropriate methods (documentary check, follow-up inspection, etc.). Any non-compliance found during the inspection can lead to administrative or criminal penalties (see point 8). Some inspections are carried out with the support of one or more ASNR experts specialised in the installation checked or the technical topic of the inspection. ASNR inspectors ASNR has inspectors designated and accredited by its Chairman, pursuant to Article L. 596-2 of the Environment Code for nuclear safety inspectors and Article L. 1333‑29 of the Public Health Code for radiation protection inspectors, provided they have acquired the necessary legal and technical skills through professional experience, mentoring or training. The inspectors take an oath and are bound by professional secrecy. They exercise their inspection activity under the authority of the ASNR Director General and benefit from regularly updated practical tools (inspection guides, decision-making tools) to assist them in their inspections. As part of its continuous improvement policy, ASNR encourages the exchange and integration of best practices used by other inspection organisations: ∙by organising international exchanges of inspectors between Safety Authorities, either for the duration of one inspection or for longer periods that could extend to a secondment of up to several years. Thus, after having observed its advantages, ASNR has adopted the concept of joint inspections described earlier. However, it has not opted for the system involving a resident inspector on a nuclear site, as it considers that this choice provides greater clarity regarding the respective responsibilities of the licensee and the inspector. In addition, inspectors must work within a structure large enough to allow experience to be shared and that they must take part in inspections of different licensees and facilities in order to acquire a broader perspective on this field of activity; ∙by welcoming inspectors trained in other inspection practices. ASNR encourages the integration into its departments of inspectors from other regulatory authorities, such as the Regional Directorate for the Environment, Planning and Housing (Dreal), ANSM, Regional Health Agencies (ARS), etc. It also proposes organising joint inspections with these authorities on activities falling within their common areas of competence; ∙by organising the participation of its staff in inspections on subjects in different regions and fields, notably to promote the uniformity of its practices. Each ASNR inspector in a particular region takes part every year in at least one inspection performed in a different region. Table 4 shows the number of inspectors, which was 367 as at 31 December 2025. Some inspectors operate in several inspection Per Field Number of inspector.days Number of inspections carried out on site Basic Nuclear Installation/Pressurised Water Reactor 1,365 470 Basic Nuclear Installation/Laboratories Plants Waste and Decommissioning 918 338 Basic Nuclear Installation/Pressure Equipment 366 139 Small-scale nuclear activities/Industry 452 259 Small-scale nuclear activities/Medical 833 437 Small-scale nuclear activities/Natural radioactivity 30 27 Small-scale nuclear activities/Polluted sites and ground 7 6 Small-scale nuclear activities/Research 123 68 Small-scale nuclear activities/Veterinary 42 24 Small-scale nuclear activities/Other 5 3 Transport of radioactive substances 145 91 Approved Organisations/Approved Laboratories 132 65 Total(*) 4,415 1,927 * The fact that the various numbers are rounded off gives a total slightly different from the sum of each line. TABLE 3 Breakdown of on-site inspection days by topic in 2025 ASNR Report on the state of nuclear safety and radiation protection in France in 2025 147 01 02 03 05 09 06 10 07 11 13 04 08 12 A / Z
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