Fact sheet: French tax resident
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Date of update
Tax residency is not a matter of choice; it depends on internal regulations or reciprocal agreements and treaties. Please find helpful information on our page Determining your tax residency.
Residents of France are taxed on the entirety of their income earned from French sources or from foreign sources.
The professional income of a French tax resident will be subject to withholding tax. See our fact sheet on withholding tax .
Some French tax residents are eligible to the special expatriates’ tax regime.
People resident in France for income tax purposes must file an annual income declaration, either online or by completing a paper copy of the form. Feel free to consult our fact sheet “Tax residents, declare your income”.
How is tax calculated ?
Tax is calculated on the basis of the combined incomes of the household.
Income to be declared may come from various sources (wages, salaries and allowances, pension annuities, property income, etc.).
The household’s total income is divided by the number of household units, as follows:
- One unit for each adult.
- One half-unit for each of the first two children.
- One unit for each child thereafter.
The effective tax rate on total household income is thereby determined on the basis of the size of the household.
For further details, please have a look at impots.gouv.fr
Calculating income tax in overseas departments and regions
Income tax is calculated according to the same rules in the overseas departments and regions (Guadeloupe, Martinique, French Guiana, Reunion Island and Mayotte) as in mainland France:
- The same tax scale applies;
- The family quotient system also applies.
However, once the tax amount has been calculated, an allowance is applied for persons domiciled in these overseas territories:
- 30% up to a limit of €2,450 in the departments of Guadeloupe, Martinique and Reunion Island;
- 40% up to a limit of €4,050 in the departments of French Guiana and Mayotte.
What tax rates apply?
The income of French tax residents in mainland France and the overseas departments and regions is subject to a progressive tax scale.
With a sliding tax scale, a specific rate applies to each taxable income bracket.
| 2023 Income tax rate table on 2022 income | |
| Taxable income brackets | Tax rate to apply |
| Up to €10,777 | 0 % |
| From €10,777 to €27,478 | 11 % |
| From €27,478 to €78,570 | 30 % |
| From €78,570 to €168,994 | 41 % |
| More than €168,994 | 45 % |
Source: impots.gouv
Withholding tax
With the introduction of withholding tax, tax rates can be applied individually depending on each spouse’s income, if the person in question is married or in a civil partnership.
If no declaration has been filed, the rate applicable is the neutral rate.
This neutral rate is determined according to a rate scale that does not take into account family situation, income or expenses. It varies according to the taxpayer’s place of residence.
Feel free to consult the default rate scale applicable to taxpayers resident:
This rate may be adjusted upwards or downwards.
If it is not appropriate it may be adjusted upwards or downwards, in which case the new rate is communicated to the employer, who must apply it within a maximum of two months.
In order to obtain a personalized rate and a tax number, the newcomer or his/her legal advisor has the option of filing a 2043 form (paper version only) directly with the relevant Personal Income Tax Department.
See our Witholding tax’s fact sheet
Tax simulator
An income tax simulator can be consulted online to determine whether or not you are a tax resident, and to estimate the amount of tax due.
