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Why the tabac is essential to life in France – even if you don’t smoke

A cornerstone of the French culture, the tabac has long been a place for more than just cigarette shopping. Paying bills and fines - and soon even purchasing ammunitions - are just some of the services that tobacconists offer.

Published: 29 July 2020 12:12 CEST
Updated: 27 November 2023 10:42 CET

Why the tabac is essential to life in France - even if you don't smoke

Customers arrive at a 'tabac' in France (Photo by RAYMOND ROIG / AFP)

France’s tabac (tobacco shops) have long been a place for more than just purchasing cigarettes. Their iconic red sign, found in any French city, town and village, is associated with a place for locals to socialise over a beer or a coffee, or watch the horse racing and have a bet.

With some 23,300 shops across France, 41 percent of which are located in towns with fewer than 3,500 inhabitants, tabacs are an important part of French life, even for those who do not smoke.

“We are aware that we will sell less and less tobacco in the future. This… goes hand in hand with our change of identity,” said Gérard Vidal, President of a tobacconists federation in the Occitanie region of southern France.

The French government therefore added new services to the list of errands that can be run in a tabac, most recently including ammunition sales.

“More than a tobacco shop, tobacconists have become local utility traders,” Vidal told French daily La Dépêche.

So what exactly can you do in a tabac in France?

Buy ammunition

Starting in 2024, tabac shop owners will be able to obtain certification that would allow them to sell certain types of ammunition. This would help hunters, who often have to travel long distances, have easier access to supplies.

In order to be qualified, tobacconists will have to pass a two-day training course, according to France’s interior ministry. They will only be able to sell ‘category C ammunition’ (mainly used for hunting) and ‘category D ammunition’ (the least dangerous grouping, available to adults – this includes items like air rifles).

Once they obtain a licence after taking the course, participating tabacs must also receive authorisation from the préfet after consultation with the local mayor. For the purchase of category C ammunition, the customer must show ID, proof of either a hunting or shooting licence, as well as a declaration of their firearm from the SIA.

Pay your bills

Since 2020, you can pay bills for school fees, cafeteria fees, crèche (nursery) or even the hospital.

This is however only possible IF the bill has a QR code AND says that it is payable auprès d’un buraliste (can be paid to a tobacconist).

If the bill ticks both boxes, you may pay it at the tobacconist whatever the amount if you pay by card. If you pay cash the limit is €300.

Before going you should however verify that your tobacconist offers the paiement de proximité service.

You may find your nearest tobacconist providing these services here (select your département and your commune and you get a list of the different tabacs and a map showing where they are situated).

Some French people like to visit their local tabac to have a beer and watch the TV. Photo: AFP

Pay your taxes

As with bills, this new addition was added in 2020, provided the tabac offer these services and the taxes you are paying are of an amount less than €300.

The taxes included in the system are:

taxe d’habitation or taxe foncière (property taxes)
income taxes with a QR code on the bill

Pay your fines

As with your bills and taxes, you can also pay fines in a tabac. Again, this is provided that the fine has a QR code and says that it is payable auprès d’un buraliste (can be paid to a tobacconist). It also requires that the tobacconist in question features on the list providing these services (see above).

Buy train tickets

In 2019 the national rail company SNCF made it possible to buy train tickets for the high speed TGV trains and regional TER trains in a tabac.

Buy stamps

For non-smokers, buying stamps is one of the most common reasons to frequent into a tabac. Ask for un timbre, s’il vous plaît (one stamp, please) and stick it on your letter or postcard. If you want a pack of stamps the thing to ask for is un carnet de timbres, s’il vous plaît.

Place a bet

If you like to gamble, the tabac is the place to go. Whether it is to bet on the next horse race via the PMU or get a lotto ticket, you will find it here.

Get postcards

Many tabac sell postcards (and sometimes the cards are nicer than the ones sold in supermarkets and cheaper than those in tourist shops).

Buy more phone credit

If you need to top off your phone minutes you can pop by your nearest tabac to see if they sell phone credit (they usually do).

Make photocopies

A tabac is also a place to make photocopies – if they have one – and the price is usually just a few cents a page.

Get a souvenir

Some tobacconists sell local products and souvenirs, so if you’re on a trip in rural France and looking for something to bring back home, you could pop by the local tabac to see if they have anything interesting.

Snack

Finally, if you’re feeling like a snack, tobacconists sell candy bars – the carambar toffees are a classic here in France – and sometimes even patisséries like croissants and pain aux chocolats.

Have a beer or a coffee

Not strictly part of the tabac service, but in many small towns there is a combined tabac/café/bar in the same building, so once you have conducted your business you can sit down and order a drink.

Member comments

Anonymous - 30 July 2020 at 10:19 CEST

The French Government has recently done its bit by severely reducing the amount of ciggies in Spain. It can be considered another unfriendly gesture to Spain.
Anonymous - 1 November 2020 at 15:07 CET

Who are you trying to kid? The TABAC is dead.
Everything you mentioned had been replaced by an app.
But the French still smoke more than any country in the world!
1. Anonymous - 15 November 2021 at 16:10 CET
  
  Actually France at 34.6% is almost exactly in the middle of the 2021 world average of 33.3. Greece, Latvia and Bulgaria are at 38-39 %. Hungary, Austria, Sweden, Germany, Spain, Portugal are at 28-29%. Switzerland, US and Belgium at 25%. Italy, Netherlands and Ireland at 23%. Canada, Denmark and UK 18-19%. It’s still too high of course. As of 2018, 36% of french males and 33% of french females were smokers. Cost and social acceptance are the keys to reduction rates.

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'A €70k tax bill arrived out of the blue' - How accountant errors impact foreigners in France

When Australian Marie set up as a freelancer in France she did the responsible thing and got an accountant who said they specialised in advising expats.

However repeated errors and neglect on the part of her accountant plus a lack of correct registration with URSSAF led to her receiving a bill out of the blue for an additional €70,000 in social charges – something that she is still making payments to clear more than two years later.

She joins a long list of foreigners who feel let down by accountants who either make mistakes, fail to fully explain the French system or register people in incorrect regimes.

Paris-based Marie told The Local: “The first firm I went to set me up as a SASU business (société par actions simplifiée unipersonnelle). I was set up as a business with myself as president and paid myself a salary – which they had recommended – but that put me on a really high rate of tax.

“I moved to a different firm after that and they moved me onto a SARL business status, which was better suited to my business, but they forgot to notify URSSAF of the change so I was being incorrectly billed for months.

“It was only because I had alerted them several times to the final demands I was receiving, over the course of two years, that this was rectified.

“They also made a mistake with my invoices, and put through invoices for work done in India for 40,000 rupees (about €400) as €40,000 which put me into a higher tax bracket. It was only much later that another accountant told me that all invoices – no matter what country they come from – must be in euros.

“For example, one month they just forwarded me a €20,000 bill for URSSAF contributions that I wasn’t expecting and simply asked how I wanted to pay it – like I had that kind of money just lying around.

“I’ve spoken to so many people who work as freelancers or set up small businesses in France and I seem to hear the same stories over and over again of accountants who don’t explain the system, don’t register people correctly and just make endless mistakes. It also seems impossible to make a complaint to an ombudsman when your accountant has comprehensively messed up.

“I’m still paying extra contributions to pay off URSSAF charges which the accountants didn’t inform me about.

“I went to two firms that specifically advertised themselves as having expertise with expats who do work in multiple countries, but neither of them seemed to know what they were doing.”

Marie’s story is thankfully an extreme case, but it’s true that many foreigners in France end up with unexpected bills due to unhelpful, poorly explained or simply incorrect advice from their accountants.

We’ve put together a list of tips to help people when setting up a business and choosing an accountant;

Setting up as a freelancer/ contractor/ small business

Understand different status options – France has several different regimes for people who are running a small business or working as a freelancer and your status can make a big difference.

For many freelancers, the best option will be the micro-entrepreneur status (formerly known as auto-entrepreneur), as this is designed to be as simple as possible for people who are starting out their business. It has an upper earnings limit – €77,000 a year for services or working in a liberal profession such as journalism or €188,000 a year for commercial or property-related activity. However if you pass the threshold after a couple of years in business you can switch to another status without attracting a penalty.

Understand the difference between tax and social charges – For those in work, there are two kinds of income deductions – tax (impôts) and social charges (prélèvements sociaux). Many people just look at tax rates, but actually social charges are likely to make up the bulk of deductions from your earnings. For salaried employees, social charges are deducted at source in the same way as taxes but freelancers and the self-employed pay their charges through URSSAF.

Charges are billed either annually or quarterly but are usually based on the income you declared in previous years – so you can end up with an extra bill if you have had several months where you earned more than previously. This is particularly difficult for freelancers whose income tends to fluctuate and often end up getting extra bills from URSSAF.

Understand how URSSAF works – URSSAF is, notoriously, among the trickiest government agencies in France to deal with and things tend to take a long time. It helps to spend a bit of time swotting up so you understand the outlines of the system and therefore have an idea of what to expect and when a mistake might have been made.

Understand any other charges – if you are setting up as a business you need to fully understand both your personal and business tax liabilities, plus social charges so you can understand and budget for roughly how much you will be paying.

Ask the tax office – they can’t give you financial advice but if you have a question about how the tax system works or you are confused about a bill you have received, employees at the tax office can help you. You can either call the helpline or visit your local tax office in person – no appointment needed – and employees are often surprisingly friendly and helpful. They will even flag up if you are entitled to tax credits that you haven’t claimed.

7 tips for dealing with the French tax office

Finding an accountant

When finding an accountant, personal recommendations are often best – but this can be hard for new arrivals who don’t know many people.

Here are some tips on finding the right person;

Check their speciality – plenty of accountants advertise themselves as ‘expat specialists’ or simply as ‘English speaking’ but that doesn’t necessarily mean they have any expertise with the area that you need. If you’re working in more than one country, you need someone who understands the tax systems in both countries.

Hopefully this goes without saying, but also check that they are qualified and registered in France. Only a registered ‘expert-comptable‘ can help you file tax declarations for businesses – you can check that they are correctly registered HERE

Get multiple opinions – ‘shop around’ is generally good advice and this goes for accountants too. It’s definitely worth asking for several opinions about how to correctly register yourself and your businesses and what the best options are for you. As Marie’s experience shows, ending up with the wrong accountant can cost you money and cause you endless hassle, so it’s definitely worth taking some time to find the right person.

Be clear about your earnings – a lot of accountants, especially those who advertise as ‘expat services’ are used to dealing with high net worth individuals. If this isn’t the case for you, you need to be clear with them about what you expect to earn and ask them to tailor their advice accordingly. If they start recommending complicated arrangements to minimise your tax liability, ask them exactly how much you can expect to save and whether it’s worth the hassle – often it won’t be worth it if you’re a single individual earning a medium income.

Ask them to explain – the French tax and business registration system is complicated and as a foreigner it will be strange to you. It’s not unreasonable for you not to understand it and to need things spelled out to you. If an accountant is unable or unwilling to explain the tax or business registration system to a foreigner in simple terms then count that as a red flag.

Expat forums are unregulated – many foreigners in France turn to expat forums or Facebook pages to ask for help, but there is no system of regulation for these types of forums and just because a particular firm is recommended it doesn’t mean that it’s any good. It may just be run by a friend of the person who set up the site.

If possible, follow personal recommendations from people who you know.

And finally – check immigration rules. Accountants advise about money and tax law, but you do need to double check that anything they advise is compatible with your immigration status. For example, if you’re advised to set yourself up as a business to minimise tax but you’re in France on a visitor visa (which doesn’t allow you to work), this will create a conflict.

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