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The annual French property taxes will be due soon with taxe foncière bills beginning to arrive this month and taxe d’habitation bills for second-home owners set to arrive in November. 

The taxes are subject to an annual increase linked to the rate of inflation from the previous year which is used to calculate changes to a property’s cadastral value.

In addition local authorities apply their own rates to as part of the tax calculation, which have to be agreed annually and can increase (or drop) if they choose.

These bills represent the two remaining major locally-collected income streams for authorities, as opposed to funds received directly from the central state. 

Increases can comprise either additional across-the-board rises for all owners within an authority’s jurisdiction (in the case of taxe foncière), and / or to properties falling under certain criteria - for example taxes on homes left empty and unused. 

Councils in areas deemed to face housing pressures are also able to vote for a surtax on top of taxe d'habitation.

Last year, some 16% of local authorities voted to raise their rates for taxe foncière, further increasing the final bill for owners. 

In contrast, around 1.2% voted to reduce their rates taxe foncière bills. In the main the reduction cancelled the annual inflation-based increase. 

The remaining authorities left their rates unchanged, so subject only to the annual inflation increase (although several other factors can contribute to the final rate of a bill). 

Previous years have seen many authorities apply increases of up to 50% on a taxe foncière bill.

Compare values through official tool

The tax rates applicable to the current year are displayed on the notice (avis) owners receive annually.

For current information, you can also contact your local council to find out the values imposed as well as consulting information at the  website.

The website also provides information on local rates of property taxes.

Click on the ‘Fiscalité locale des particuliers et des professionnels’ section (its location may change on the homepage depending on the featured articles, news, etc). 

Following this, you can narrow your search to a specific department, and rates for the years 2021 - 2024. This year’s rates are likely to become available at a later date. 

You can review the rates for the following taxes: 

• Taxe foncière sur les propriétés bâties (TFB, the most common form of taxe foncière levied on bricks-and-mortar property)

• Taxe foncière sur les propriétés non bâties (TFNB, the form of the tax levied on empty land plots) 

• Taxe d’enlèvement des ordures ménagères (TEOM, refuse collection tax)

• Taxe d’habitation sur les résidences secondaires (THRS, the main form of taxe d’habitation)

• Taxe d’habitation sur les logements vacants (THLV, a levy on empty homes)

Once you have selected the department you wish to view, you can filter between different maps showing the rates for the above taxes. 

The map shows the rates for all jurisdictions within the department, using a gradient colour system to show the areas with the highest tax rates.

Clicking on different jurisdictions will allow you to compare their rates in more detail and also view additional information such as the population in each area.