Understanding French Tax- Are You Tax Resident in France?

Tax residency (or domicile fiscal) is determined by the French tax authorities based on a set of criteria laid out in article 4 B of the Code général des impôts. Your domicile fiscal is considered to be in France if you meet any one of the following criteria:

• Your household (foyer) is in France. Your foyer is defined as you, your spouse or partner (including a concubin), and your children. If you are single without children, your foyer is the place where you habitually reside, outside of professional travel.
• Your principal place of stay (lieu de séjour principal) is in France. This means you spend at least 183 days in France during the calendar year, i.e. more than six months.
• Your principal professional activity (activité principale) is in France. This is the activity to which you devote the most effective time, or the one that provides the majority of your income. An activity carried out on an accessory basis does not count. Note that directors of companies headquartered in France with a turnover exceeding €250 million are also considered to have their domicile fiscal in France.
• The centre of your economic interests (centre des intérêts économiques) is in France. This applies if you have made your principal investments in France, or if the headquarters from which you manage your assets is in France.

It is important to understand that meeting just one of these criteria is sufficient to establish your domicile fiscal in France. They are not applied in a hierarchy; if any single one applies to you, you are considered tax resident.

It’s also important to note that your tax residency is determined on an individual basis, and it is possible to be considered tax resident in France even if your spouse is not. In that case, you must declare your own income and that of your children and dependants who are domiciled in France, plus any French-source income of your spouse (provided that the right to tax this income is attributed to France under the relevant tax treaty).

See the official rules for French tax residency here.

The 183 days rule for French tax residency

Legally speaking, the limit for which a non-resident can live in France is 183 days in each one-year period – if you go over this, you will also be classed as resident for tax purposes in France.

If you are spending more than 183 days a year in France, it is your responsibility to seek residency and file an income tax return – failure to do so could lead to a tax investigation (and the applicable consequences if you are found to owe taxes) further down the line.

France’s Double Tax Treaties (Conventions Fiscales)

France has bilateral double tax treaties (conventions fiscales internationales) with over 120 countries, including the UK, the United States, and Australia. You can find the full list of France’s international tax treaties on impots.gouv.fr.

These treaties are designed to prevent you from being taxed on the same income in two countries. Where a treaty exists, it will include “tie-breaker” rules to establish your tax residency in one country. International treaties always take precedence over French domestic legislation.

However, a double tax treaty does not mean that you are free from all French taxes. For example, even if you are not tax resident in France, you may still be liable for French property taxes, capital gains tax on French real estate, or tax on French-source income (see below). It also does not necessarily mean you will never owe additional tax in the other country. Typically, you receive a tax credit against any taxes already paid, but this may still leave you liable to pay the remainder, and certain charges (namely prélèvements sociaux or social charges) are not always covered by the agreement.

If there is no treaty between France and the other country, it is possible in principle to be considered tax resident in both countries under each country’s domestic legislation. In cases of dispute, it will be down to the tax authorities of each country to resolve the matter.

Having your domicile fiscal in France means that you must declare and may be liable for French income taxes (and potentially prélèvements sociaux too) on all of your worldwide income. This includes your salary and business revenue, investments and savings interest, rental income, capital gains, inheritance, your overseas pension, and any other income.

You must submit a French tax return each year, regardless of whether you have any income to declare or taxes to pay. How much tax you are liable to pay and where it is payable may depend upon the rules of the relevant double tax treaty. For example, tax on rental income from a UK property or on UK government pensions is typically paid in the UK, but must still be declared on your annual tax return in France (see our guide to Tax Liability on Rental Income in France: Non-Residents).

Read our guides:

Understanding French Income Tax- What You Need to Know

What You Need to Know About French Social Charges

Do I have to Pay French Taxes if I am Not Tax Resident?

Even if you have determined that you are not tax resident in France, you may still be liable for French taxes if you own a business, property, or assets in France. Here are a few of the key taxes to be aware of.

Property Taxes

French property owners are liable for the taxe foncière regardless of whether they are resident in France or not. The taxe d’habitation has been abolished on all primary residences since 2023, but remains payable on second homes. If you do not have your domicile fiscal in France but own a property here, it is treated as a secondary residence and the taxe d’habitation will apply. If your property is in a zone tendue (an area of France with a known housing shortage), an additional surcharge may be applied.

Read our guides:

French Property Taxes: Taxe d’Habitation and Taxe Foncière

What Are France’s Zones Tendues?: Rental Caps and Extra Taxes on Second Homes

Income Tax

Non-residents who work or receive business revenue in France may still be liable for French income tax. The principle is that you will be taxed on income from French sources (revenus de source française). Non-residents are taxed according to the standard progressive scale, but subject to a minimum rate of 20% on income up to €29,579 (for the 2026 declaration on 2025 income). You may request to be taxed at a lower average rate if you can demonstrate that your effective rate on all worldwide income would be lower.

In practice, if you took a temporary position in France or carried out work for a French company, tax would likely be deducted at source. Similarly, income from French rental property is taxable in France.

Wealth Tax

France’s wealth tax, the Impôt sur la Fortune Immobilière (IFI), applies to households whose net real estate assets exceed €1.3 million. While residents are subject to the IFI on their worldwide real estate assets, non-residents may still be liable on the value of real estate held in France.

Read our guide Understanding French Wealth Tax- Are You Liable?

Inheritance Tax

Properties and real estate in France may be subject to French droits de succession (inheritance tax) even if the deceased is a non-resident. Both the domicile of the deceased and the heir will be taken into account when calculating inheritance tax liabilities, and the rules can be complex.

Capital Gains Tax

Selling a second home or other property in France can result in capital gains tax (impôt sur les plus-values immobilières), and most tax treaties dictate that this is paid in France regardless of whether you are a French resident.

See our guide Understanding French Capital Gains Tax- What You Need to Know.

Do I Need to File Two Tax Returns?

If you receive income or own assets in more than one country, such as the UK and France or the United States and France, determining where you are tax resident is the first step towards establishing where to file your tax return and pay your income tax. However, as we’ve outlined above, being non-resident for tax purposes doesn’t necessarily mean you aren’t liable to pay tax in that country.

So, does this mean you need to file two tax returns? Quite possibly, but the kind of tax declaration will depend upon the rules of each country. For example, a UK resident in receipt of pension income or rental income from the UK may still need to submit an annual tax return, even if there is no tax due. US citizens must file an annual tax return with the IRS when resident overseas, even if they have no US assets or income.

Filing a tax return in France as a non-resident

In France, non-residents with French-source income must file a tax return using the standard déclaration de revenus (form 2042), along with any applicable supplementary forms. Returns can be filed online at impots.gouv.fr. For the 2026 declaration (on 2025 income), the deadline for paper returns is 19 May 2026. Online filing deadlines vary by département and are published each spring.

Non-residents can contact the dedicated Service des impôts des particuliers non résidents for guidance:

Service des impôts des particuliers non résidents 10 rue du Centre, 93465 Noisy-le-Grand Cedex Tel: +33 (0)1 72 95 20 42

Remember, it is your responsibility to declare any taxable income in France, and it’s highly recommended to seek professional advice if you are not sure what taxes you are liable for.

The French government also publishes fact sheets on international tax treaties detailing declarable income in France depending on your country of residence.