AbstractThe formulation of the poroelastoplastic constitutive equations at large strains of a fully saturated material is performed focusing on the usually ignored influence of large strain plasticity on the poroelastic properties. A micromechanics approach allows to take into account the evolution of the microstructure geometry which in turn induces a coupling between elasticity and plasticity. Such a coupling results in an additional term in the macroscopic Cauchy stress rate equation derived from inclusion‐based estimates that leads to a modified Jaumann derivative. The pressure rate equation is also analysed. The finite element discretization of finite poroplasticity is then presented taking into account the elasticity–plasticity coupling. Application to the consolidation situation shows that the coupling may lead to non‐negligible effects. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.