Tax in France
See what France's tax rules do to your property portfolio.
What Freeholt models for property, income and retirement in France, and what it does not.
Free to start. No card. Rules reviewed 1 July 2026.
Modelled here
- Tax on rental income
- Capital gains on a sale
- Duty on purchase
- Annual property or land tax
- Inheritance and what happens on death
EUR · Rates as at 1 July 2026 · Rates editable in Settings · Estimates, not advice
Unfurnished rent is taxed at progressive rates plus 17.2% social charges. Non residents pay a 20/30% minimum rate; owners in an EU/EEA social security system pay only 7.5% social charges instead of 17.2%.
How rental income is taxed in France
For a resident owner: Progressive rates from 11% to 45%, stacked on other income in this country. The top rate of 45% applies above €181,917. A further 17.2% surcharge applies. For an owner living abroad and renting this out: Progressive rates from 20% to 30%, stacked on other income in this country. The top rate of 30% applies above €29,579. A further 17.2% surcharge applies. Residents of the EU or EEA are treated differently again, and Freeholt applies that branch when it knows the owner's country of residence.
Interest and losses
Mortgage interest is deductible against the rent. A rental loss is ring fenced: it carries forward against future rental income rather than reducing other income now.
Capital gains on a sale
Gains are taxed at a flat 19%. A holding period taper reduces the taxable gain year by year, so the date of sale matters as much as the price. A further 17.2% surtax applies to the gain.
Annual property tax while holding
About 0.8% a year on the property value.
What it costs to buy
About 6.3% of the price on purchase. Resale purchase costs run ~7 to 8% all in (droits de mutation ~5.8% + notary); new builds pay 20% VAT with reduced ~2 to 3% fees.
Inheritance and what happens on death in France
Charged on each beneficiary's share, at a rate that depends on how they were related, at up to 60%. The charge falls on each person who inherits rather than on the estate as a whole, so who inherits, and how closely they were related, changes the bill. The 60% is a worst case rather than a rate anyone is promised. It is the top of the least generous class of beneficiary, usually somebody unrelated, and a child inheriting from a parent normally faces a good deal less. Anything passing to a spouse or civil partner is exempt, without limit. These rules were verified 6 August 2026. Freeholt models the country's rules rather than any particular will, so what an estate pays still depends on who inherits and what is in it.
How Freeholt models France
Every rate above is priced from Freeholt's own table for France and runs through the whole projection: rental income, a modelled sale and the annual holding costs all use the same figures. They are also defaults that can be edited in Settings, so a position that differs, or a rate that changes before we catch it, can be corrected and the projection reprices around it.
What running this property costs
In France this covers taxe foncière, copropriété charges, landlord insurance (PNO), maintenance and ~6 to 8% agency management fees.
How borrowing works here
Long fixed rate principal & interest loans (20 to 25 years) are the norm; lenders apply strict debt service caps (~35%).
What actually happened here
This country's own record, one year at a time. Nothing on this page is borrowed from another country. Move across a chart to read a year.
Recent rule changes in France
- LFSS 2026 (law 2025 to 1403) raised CSG on FINANCIAL capital income to 18.6%. Rental income and property gains stay 17.2% by explicit derogation; 17.2% used.(proposed only, never priced into your figures)
What Freeholt models here
- ModelledTax on rental income
- Resident and non resident rates, with interest and losses treated under the local rule.
- ModelledCapital gains on a sale
- Priced in the year of the sale under the rules of that year.
- ModelledDuty on purchase
- One off, on the way in, at the scale in force.
- ModelledAnnual property or land tax
- Charged every year the property is held.
- Not yetIncome tax beyond the rent
- Not modelled for this country yet.
- Not yetDividends, interest and share sales
- Not modelled for this country yet.
- Not yetRetirement savings
- Not modelled for this country yet.
- ModelledInheritance and what happens on death
- Who pays, and on what, when property passes on.
What Freeholt does not model here
- Treaty relief between this country and the owner's country of residence
Coverage deepens country by country. Every figure is an estimate, not advice.
Compare with another country
Each page is built from the same table the app runs on, so the figures line up side by side.
Compare France with another country — rent, gains, annual tax and duty, side by side.
Questions people ask
- Does Freeholt model France property tax?
- Yes. Rental income tax, capital gains on a sale, duty on purchase and annual property or land tax are priced from Freeholt's own rate table for France. Any rate or threshold can be corrected in Settings so the whole projection reprices. Every figure is an estimate, not advice.
- How is rental income from France taxed if I live somewhere else?
- Progressive rates from 20% to 30%, stacked on other income in this country. The top rate of 30% applies above €29,579. A further 17.2% surcharge applies. Tax may also be due in the country of residence, with credit for what was paid here. Estimates only, not advice.
- What are the France figures as at?
- The rate table for France was last reviewed on 1 July 2026. Freeholt date stamps every country rather than implying all of them were checked on the same day. Estimates only, not advice.
Model a property in France alongside everything else you own: see the year your portfolio starts paying you back.