Income tax declaration deadlines loom in France: how to get help
In French or English, by telephone, online or in person
You can get basic help through the message function in your personal space on the French tax website
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The deadline for declaring your 2023 income to be assessed for French tax is approaching, reaching the first departments on May 23. We look at the ways that people struggling to complete their declarations can get help.
Everyone who lives in France must make a declaration as well as people who live outside the country but receive income from a France-based source, such as rental income from a French property.
Read more: You must declare for tax in France even if nothing to pay
France’s income tax deadline dates are staggered across the country’s 96 departments in groups of alphabetical order.
However, the deadline for paper declarations is set nationally on May 21 at midnight. The post mark is accepted as proof of the date and time for these declarations.
For online declarations, the deadlines are:
Departments 01 (Ain) to 19 (Corrèze): May 23, 2024 at midnight. This is also the deadline for non-residents who have received taxable income from French sources in France.
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Departments from 20 (Corse-du-Sud) to 54 (Meurthe-et-Moselle): May 30, 2024 before midnight.
Departments from 55 (Meuse) to 976 (Mayotte): June 6, 2024 at midnight
How to get help with your tax declaration in France
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Contact the tax authorities
You can send a message to the tax authorities via your personal space on impots.gouv.fr.
Several members of The Connexion have found this to be effective, receiving replies within a few days. However, replies from this service can be curt and matter-of-fact.
You can also contact the national tax authorities on 0809 401 401 (this number only works from within France).
The service is available between 08:30 and 19:00, Monday to Friday, and you can ask any question about your declaration (French only).
Alternatively, you can telephone your local Centre des Finances Publiques. You can find its contact details online or in your personal space on the tax website.
There is also the option to book a meeting with your local Centre des Finances Publiques.
This is done by clicking the Contact et RDV button, and following the options to find your nearest centre.
Read more: Key errors foreigners may make with French tax declarations
Volunteers offer advice in French
‘Allô impôt’ is a free advice service provided by volunteers from the accountant federation l’Ordre des experts-comptables.
It has advised 1,200,000 people on their taxes since its creation in 2010. Most people contact the service by telephone, however in-person meetings are also possible.
You can contact the service by calling 0800 065 432, on May 22, 23, 29, 30, and June 5 and 6.
It takes calls between 09:00 and 18:00.
On the tax deadlines of May 23, 30, and June 6, the service runs until 21:00.
Help with French tax declaration in English
The Connexion’s dedicated tax guide to French tax declarations in 2024 (for 2023 income) is available as a digital download here.
It provides an overview of the French tax system in an easily digestible format, along with answers to many questions from Britons and other non-French people about the income declaration system in France.
It also includes information about declaring UK pensions, rental income from non-French sources, rules on self-employment income and many other topics.
