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MONEY

The complete French tax calendar for 2022

If you live in France or own property here, you may be liable for taxes, or to complete the annual tax declaration - here are the key deadlines to watch out for.

Published: 27 December 2021 16:01 CET
Updated: 19 October 2022 10:34 CEST
France is one of the most heavily taxed countries in the world. Read our guide to the deadlines to watch out for.
France is one of the most heavily taxed countries in the world. Read our guide to the deadlines to watch out for. Photo: PHILIPPE HUGUEN / AFP.

France has among the highest tax-GDP ratio of any EU state. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing – this money helps pay for a world class health service, education system and welfare net, and if you are a French taxpayer there is also a lot of help available for you from the government, from free French classes to books and concert tickets for the kids and subsidised holidays.

But it does mean that at various points of the year, you may find yourself presented with a tax bill.

The penalties for not paying tax can be steep, so it is important to stay on top of the deadlines. 

We have broken the main ones down for you here, as well as explaining what all these taxes are.

April 7th 

The online platform to make the déclaration des revenues (income declaration) opens. You will need to declare your earnings from 2021. If you did not move to France until after January 1st 2022, you don’t need to declare until next year.

Almost everyone who lives in France has to do this, as do some second-home owners with earnings here, and the deadline for doing so depends on how you declare and where you live. 

READ ALSO Who has to make a tax declaration in France?

May 25th 

If you live in départements 1-19 or outside France, this is the deadline to declare your annual income if you are doing so online. Over the summer, you will receive an email telling you how much you need to pay and when. 

May 31st 

If you live in départements 20-54, this is the deadline to declare your annual income if you are doing so online. Over the summer, you will receive an email telling you how much you need to pay and when. This is now also the date for filing by the post (the previous date was listed as May 19th, but those filing with paper forms now have an extension to the 31st). 

June 7th 

If you live in départements 50-101 or a French overseas territory, this is the deadline to declare your annual income if you are doing so online. Over the summer, you will receive an email telling you how much you need to pay and when. 

June 30th 

This is the deadline to register for monthly tax payments, rather than lump sum bills once-per-year. 

This option is only available for the taxe d’habitation, the contribution à l´audiovisuel public and taxe foncière (see below for details on these). 

August 22nd 

Property owners in France will receive notice of how much they must pay as a taxe foncière online. Some people will receive this notice via post, from August 31st onward. 

October 1st

If you are required to pay the taxe d’habitation – as second-home owners and 20 percent of French households are – you will receive a notice informing you of how much money you will be required to pay from this date onward. 

October 17th

You have until this date to pay your taxe foncière if doing so by an offline procedure.

October 22nd 

For individuals, you have until midnight on October 22 to pay your property taxes (tax foncière) online.

November 15th 

The deadline to pay the taxe d’habitation through the offline procedure. 

November 21st 

The deadline to pay the taxe d’habitation for people paying online. 

Mid-December 

If you made a mistake in your déclaration des revenues, the deadline to amend your filing generally falls in mid-December. The actual date has not yet been communicated but in 2021, it was December 15th. 

December 15th 

If you are subject to a TLV or THLV tax as the owner of a vacant property, the deadline is December 15th for non-electronic payments. 

December 20th 

This is the deadline for people to pay the TLV or THLV tax online.

So what are these taxes? 

  • Déclaration des revenues

This is the biggie. 

Almost everyone who lives in France has to fill in the annual declaration of their income (déclaration des revenues) and non-residents may also have to if they have any earnings in the country (including income from renting out property). Second-home owners usually won’t have to do the annual declaration but they are liable for property taxes. 

READ ALSO What exactly do I need to tell the French taxman about?

If you are still confused by the dates we have listed, there is an online simulator that allows you to find out the deadline for paying tax where you live. 

Find out HERE who has to make the declaration, how to do it and some handy vocab to use.

Many people assume that if their income all comes from another country then they don’t need to file a tax return but this is not the case.

France has double taxation agreements with most countries, so if you have already paid tax on – for example – income from a rental property in the UK you will not be liable for more tax in France on the same income, but you must still tell the French taxman about it.

All income must be declared, as well as all bank accounts in other countries even if they are dormant.

  • Taxe d’habitation 

The housing tax paid by those living in a property, not the owner, is in the process of being phased out – only 20 percent of French households will pay the taxe d’habitation in 2022.

However second-home owners are excluded from the phasing out and still have to pay it, bar a few exceptions. 

  • Taxe foncière 

This is the tax for property owners. Second home owners pay both this and the taxe d’habitation. The tax on property owners has risen in many areas over the past couple of years.

READ ALSO What is taxe foncière and do I have to pay it?

  • TLV and THLV 

In certain communes, you must pay a tax if you own a property that has been unoccupied for an extended period of time. The deadline to pay this tax is December 15th.  

If your property is in a zone tendue (a commune with more than 50,000 residents that has a housing shortage), you must pay the taxe sur logements vacants (TLV). You can find a list of the relevant communes HERE. The tax applies if the property has been unoccupied for a year or more. 

If your property is not in a zone tendue, you might have to pay the taxe d’habitation sur les logements vacants (THLV). This only applies to you if your commune has voted to enact this tax. It concerns properties that have been vacant for two years or more.

As with the TLV, you do not need to pay this tax if you have stayed in the accommodation for more than 90 consecutive days in a year; have put it on the rental market; or are doing building work worth at least 25 percent of the property value. If you are already paying the taxe d’habitation, you do not need to pay the THLV. 

There is an online simulator that tells you whether or not your property is situated in a zone tendue. There are various exemptions to these taxes available on the service-public.fr website. 

Member comments

  1. Please can you tell me whether a British citizen who owns a house in France, has a Carte de Séjour, but stays less than 6 months in France each year, is not employed, and receives no Income in France, needs to fill-in a tax return or pay any French tax ? Thanks.

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For members

TAXES

Tax benefits of having children in France

Parents in France benefit from a number of tax deductions, including for childcare or school costs, accommodation or even alimony payments, some of which can continue even when your kids are adults. Here's a look at some of the tax breaks that you may be entitled to.

Published: 24 April 2024 15:23 CEST
Tax benefits of having children in France

Having children in France is just as brilliantly difficult and gloriously maddening as it is anywhere in the world. But it can also be a major money-saver.

A not-uncommon topic of conversation is the generous support for parents. Three is the magic number of children for a family, for tax purposes – though that has to be offset against the realities of actually parenting three children.

READ ALSO Family-centred society: What it’s really like being a parent in France

We’ll leave that last calculation to you, and just deal with the French tax system, which is rather less complex.

So as tax declarations for 2024 are now open, here are the tax breaks you get for being a parent in France.

READ ALSO The 2024 French tax guide

Childcare

Let’s start with little kids, when you’re likely to be paying out for childcare.

Parents of children under the age of 6 on January 1st of any given tax year can obtain a tax credit towards the cost of childcare. This can either go towards crèche fees or the cost of an approved childminder or nanny.

The child concerned must be under 6 years of age on January 1st of the tax year. The credit is equal to 50 percent of the sums paid on childcare, up to a limit of €3,500 per child per year.

You must declare the net annual salary you pay any childminder/nanny, and any social security contributions.

School

A child in full-time education who does not have an employment contract entitles parents to a tax reduction of €61 if they’re in collège, €153 if they’re in lycée, and €183 if they’re in higher education, as long as they’re part of their parents’ tax household.

READ ALSO What you need to know if your child is starting school in France

In addition to the tax breaks, parents of school-age children are also entitled to various types of financial aid to help cover school costs including the ‘back to school’ bonus that is intended to cover those September costs for new uniform, stationery etc.

Divorce

If you’re divorced, then alimony payments may be tax deductible, depending on your childcare arrangements. The amount varies according to the financial situation of the parent paying the support. On the other hand, the cost of maintaining visitation rights, such as train tickets, are not tax-deductible. 

If parents have agreed shared custody of any children, any alimony payments are not deductible, because each parent is entitled to an increased tax share of their individual household.

Adult children

You might think that tax breaks are only available when your children are still young, but even when they reach the age of 18 there are still some tax benefits available.

Accommodation for adult children

If your adult child – that is a child over the age of 18 – lives with you and is attached to your tax household, you can deduct a lump sum of €3,968 from your income on your declaration for 2023 earnings, which is due now. According to the tax authorities, this amount corresponds to the cost of board and lodging.

“When the child’s accommodation covers only a fraction of the year, this sum must be reduced in proportion to the number of months concerned, with any month begun being deducted. Even if it is a lump sum, the amount deducted must be declared by the beneficiary”, the tax authorities’ website states.

Financial aid for children with no income

Parents who provide monthly financial assistance to adult children up to the age of 25 living on their own can declare the sums paid up to a limit of €6,368 per year. This aid is fully deductible. 

“You must keep all receipts for expenses, as they may be requested by the tax authorities. If the parents are taxed separately, each parent can deduct expenses up to this limit,” the tax office website says.

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