tax declaration in france

Tax : how to do your First income Tax declaration in france?

18 Comments / FAQ, Finance, Income Tax / By

An income tax declaration requires a tax identification number (TIN). In France, TIN is known as ‘numéro fiscal’ or “numéro d’identification fiscale” (NIF). If you do not have this number, you are in the right place. This article is written for people who will be doing their first income tax declarations in France.

Income Tax declaration is done during the current year for the income earned in the previous calendar year.

For example, the 2024 declaration is done for the income earned from January to December 2023.

Article last updated: 12th March 2024

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Table of Contents

  1. Documents Required
  2. Declaration Process
  3. Related Articles
  4. Sources & References

1. Documents Required

You need to collect the following documents for your income tax declaration.

  • Form Formulaire 2042 : Déclaration de revenus (2024 year version will be available in April). It is the basic tax declaration form. 
  • Annexure Form Formulaire 3916-3916-BIS (2024 year version will be available in April). This form allows you to declare all your non-french accounts from banks, insurance, crypto exchanges, etc.
  • Other annexure forms apply to your situation. The most common ones are 2042 RICI (Tax credits & reductions), 2047 (Foreign income) and 2074 (Profit or loss from investments).
  • Copy of your passport and a valid French resident permit. If you are an European citizen, copy of your EU identity card. 
  • Copy of a valid address proof in France. So, it can be a rental contract, rent receipt, an attestation d’hebergement, etc and an utility bill less than 3 months old like gas, electricity, landline, mobile number, etc.
  • Copy of your French Bank RIB (relevé d’identité bancaire) which has your complete bank account details. It can be downloaded from the documents section on your bank’s website or mobile application.

2. Declaration Process

First-time declarations in France cannot be done online, except when you have obtained your Tax ID and  the online login credentials in advance. So, the paper-based declaration documents have to be sent by post or directly dropped into a box at your local tax office. This can be done during the tax season on or before 21st May 2024. 

Step 1: Preparing the documents

For your first income tax declaration, you do not need a numéro fiscal (Tax ID) because you can tick the box next to “Vous déposez une déclaration pour la première fois” on the main tax form 2042.

When your paper declaration is processed around August or September, the tax department “Impots” will generate your tax ID too. Even if you manage to get a tax ID in advance, it doesn’t really help.

Then, you should continue completing the entire 2042 form manually with all your details like personal information, address, income, any capital gains, tax credits, tax reductions, etc. You should also attach relevant annexure forms applicable to your situation like 3916, 2047, 2042 RICI, etc.

If you have any specific questions about completing these tax forms, please ask directly in the comments section.

You can also visit your local tax office or a France Services office to ask your questions, with or without appointments.

Step 2: Submitting the documents

When your declaration is complete with all the annexures and supporting documents, you need to start searching the postal address of your local tax office.

You can use the search option on Service Public website or simply google “SIP + City Name” and find your local tax office. When you have found your tax office address, you need to send the documents by a registered post or simply walk in and drop the documents.

Here is an example for Toulouse. 

Tax office search

3. Related Articles

4. Sources & References

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Disclaimer

  • Any finance-related information shared is not professional legal, tax, or investment advice.
  • The information provided is of an educational and general nature and is not investment advice within the meaning of Articles L. 321-1 and D. 321-1 of the French Monetary and Financial Code.
  • Investment carries risks of loss and past performance does not guarantee future performance.
  • For all professional advice, please consult a certified financial planner, CGP, CIF, tax consultant, etc.

18 thoughts on “Tax : how to do your First income Tax declaration in france?”

  3. Shivaraj

    Hello ,
    I have my first tax declaration 2023 NOV which is late. I never got a tin. But recently I tried to connect via mes droits and using france connect I saw I was able to get impot login with doc saying
    Impôt sur les revenus de 2022
    Avis d’impôt établi en 2024
    CENT.

    Question:
    Is the numero fiscal on this my tin ?
    Thank you

    Reply
  4. Raj

    Hello,
    I am new to France and started working from Feb-2024 onwards.
    Do i Need to file Income Tax?
    If yes, which form will be applicable 2042/2042RICI/2047?
    If no, then how to Obtain Fiscal number?

    Reply
    1. Prasanth

      Hello Raj,
      In your case, you can just do a zero tax declaration using the 2042 tax form. This will generate the tax ID and will allow you to submit an online declaration next year.

      Reply
  5. Aditya

    Hi Prasanth!
    I’m an apprentice currently, declaring revenue & tax for the first time. I wanted to know if I can declare student loan back in India & get the Net Imposable reduced? I checked Form 2042 RICI for reduction, but didn’t find any suitable field. I’d really appreciate your inputs, thanks a lot!

    Reply
  6. Poornima

    In the section “attestation d’hébergement”, should we fill the details of the house owner and get their signature or should we fill our details and attach the rental contract?

    Reply
  7. Harsh

    Hi Prasanth,
    For the French tax returns, do we need to specify Indian Capital Gain tax or dividend income, interests etc? Its my first time French tax returns.
    Or in income section of form 2042 I mention only the French income as seen in my salary slip?

    Reply
    1. Prasanth

      Hello, Yes all the income from India must be declared in 2047 annexure and carry-forwarded to the respective lines in the main tax form 2042.

      A have explain a few topics here.
      https://prasanthragupathy.com/2024/03/tax-form-3916-declaration-of-foreign-bank-insurance-and-investment-accounts/
      https://prasanthragupathy.com/2024/04/tax-declaration-of-indian-income-in-france-based-on-dtaa/
      https://prasanthragupathy.com/2024/04/tax-how-to-declare-your-foreign-bank-interest-income-in-2047-2042-tax-forms/

      Reply
      1. Harsh

        Hello, thank you for the reply. But it is bit confusing for me. I am already paying my taxes in India (Filing ITR) on capital gains, dividends, interests etc. In France I am on salary. So why do I have to mention my Indian income for which I have already filed the ITR

        Reply
  8. Vinay

    Hi I have a question.

    I worked for a few months in France (October 2023 – April 2024), Now i have moved to Belgium. I currently don’t have any address in France. How should I provide accommodation details in France?

    Reply
  9. Alok bhatt

    Hey, I am a bit late on filing my first tax. Will it be processed if I still went there physically and filled the forms. I need TIN number to open my NRE account back in India.

    Reply
    1. Prasanth

      Hello,
      You are already late. Submit it asap. Going to the tax office is not going to change anything. The tax returns will be available only from end of July.

      Reply

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