Notices for this year’s taxe foncière will begin to arrive from this week for some homeowners in France.
Notices will begin arriving on one of four dates, depending on the method you receive it and how you pay your tax.
Online versions will begin arriving in your personal space on the French tax website as of:
August 27, 2026, for those who pay the tax in one lump sum
September 19, 2026, for those who pay the tax in monthly instalments
For those who opt to receive physical paper versions, they will arrive:
Between August 24 and September 21, 2026, if paying the tax in one lump sum
Between September 21 and October 9, 2026, if you have been paying the tax in monthly instalments
Inflation and exemptions
Millions of property owners will need to pay France’s main property owner’s tax, which for most will see a minimum 0.8% increase from last year.
Local authorities can vote to levy a further increase, or to lower the amount of tax owners must pay although this is rare.
Note that the taxe foncière charge on millions of properties in France is set to increase due to an update of presumed ‘comfort features’ present - however this would only apply from 2027 bills, if mairies opt in to the changes.
Certain owners may be partially or fully exempt from the bill.
In recent years, significant sums have been ringfenced by the government for refunds due to errors as well as for recours gracieux, which allow some people pleading special circumstances to see a reduction in the sum they must pay.
While some errors can be attributed to recent overhauls to property taxation including the end of taxe d’habitation for main homes and the new requirements to self-declare use of property, these should now be under control. However the risk of miscalculation is always possible.
It is therefore important to check your bill includes the correct figures and information.
We review below how to check your bill is correct – and what you can do if you believe there is an error.
Compare information to recent bill
The first thing to do is check the information contained on your avis (tax notice) is correct.
The first page of your notice will show you personal information (name, address, etc), together with further information about the property.
This includes the valeur locative cadastrale (theoretical rental value or VLC) of the property, a key component of the government’s calculations for the tax.
This is the base figure that sees an across-the-board increase linked to inflation, this year set at 0.8%.
The notice will also show any increases or decreases to the final bill voted on by local authorities.
Your first step is to compare this information to last year’s version of the bill.
Look at the final sums for the two bills and calculate whether the national increase to VLCs, alongside any increases in local authority rates applied to these correlates to the increase in question.
You can also find information on historical rates in your municipality online.
Remember that certain property improvements (new swimming pool, conservatory, garage, etc) can increase the overall rate of taxe foncière, as the value of the property increases.
A two-year grace period following such improvements is applied, providing they are correctly declared.
After this period the new elements are used to recalculate the tax, which may cause the bill to increase.
Another source of the increase may be local fees such as refuse taxes, particularly the TEOM (taxe d'enlèvement des ordures ménagères), which can contribute up to 8% of a bill’s final amount.
If these have changed significantly you can check with your local authorities to see if any new services are in place that may have contributed to an increase.
Request detailed information on calculations
If you believe any changes do not justify the increase you can ask the tax authorities (specifically the centre des impôts fonciers; property tax centre) for a breakdown of its calculations.
You can find your local centre online using this government search tool.
You can request the information used to calculate your final bill, which will include form 6675-M, a detailed breakdown of VLC of your property and how it is calculated.
This form is complex and may require expert help to decipher.
You can contact a local property expert for help, or take the form to your local tax office – either the property tax office or more general service des impôts des particuliers.
If looking for assistance from the authorities, they will explain the calculations to you.
An expert may be able to help you compile evidence that the calculations are incorrect (if this is the case) and prepare a refund request.
Note however that the above steps are useful but not mandatory in claiming a refund if you believe a mistake has been made (see below).
When must payments be made?
An initial deadline of October 15 is in place for cash, cheque, bank transfer payments (with a SEPA bank), or paying at a tabac.
However, this is extended to October 20 for those paying online through their personal space on the French tax website or the official mobile application.
If you choose to pay via a single direct debit you have until September 30 to choose this option.
Amounts of over €300 must be paid digitally, either online through a one-off payment, direct debit, or monthly payments.
As mentioned, there is the option to split the tax into monthly payments, which are taken out the following year in ten instalments (between January and October).
If you have this option in place, the previous deadlines do not apply as the bill is automatically divided and paid monthly.
The deadline to switch to monthly payments is December 15, 2026, for payments from January 2027 onwards.
You can ask to switch to this method (mensualisation) by clicking Paiements and then Adhérer au prélèvement mensuel pour le prélèvement de mes impôts via your personal space on the French tax site.
Requesting a refund
The request can be made one of three ways:
Online, via your personal space on the French tax site, heading to the ‘Nous contacter / Ma messagerie sécurisée’ section and then ‘Je signale une erreur sur le calcul de mon impôt’. Explain that you are writing about your taxe foncière specifically and attach your evidence (see more below)
Via post, by sending the request and evidence to your local centre des finances publiques (the address will be on the top right of your taxe foncière notice). Make sure to date it and send it registered with acknowledgement of receipt (lettre recommandée avec accusé de réception)
In person at your local tax office. If doing this make sure to receive a dated receipt of your request.
You will need to submit evidence showing why you believe the increase is too high.
This can include previous bills, information about the property, identity records, income information, etc.
You should still pay the bill even when contesting it and then, if your request is successful, you will receive a payment at a later date.
You can request to defer payment when making your refund request, but you must make this clear in your demand and it is before the payment date falls due.
You have until December 31 of the following year to request a refund. For bills received this year, this is December 31, 2027.
If you are struggling to make payment due to an increase in the sum due, you can request assistance in spreading out or delaying the payments (including while you request a refund).
You can find out more information in our article.
If your claim is rejected or you do not receive a response within six months, you can make a complaint to the conciliateur fiscal in your department, or to the mediator for the Economy and Finance Ministry.
