Property tax in France averages around €1,070 a year for a house and €850 for an apartment, based on 2024 figures for the main annual levy, the Taxe Foncière. For most owners the total recurring property tax bill lands between roughly 0.5% and 1.5% of the property’s market value per year, with urban properties in Paris, Nice, and Marseille pushing toward the top of that range and some rural communes coming in well below. There is no single flat rate: what you pay depends on the property’s official cadastral rental value, the rates your local councils vote each year, and whether add-on taxes like the second-home Taxe d’Habitation, the vacant-property tax, or the real estate wealth tax apply to your situation.
What Makes Up the Taxe Foncière Bill
Every French property owner pays the Taxe Foncière, whether the property is lived in, rented out, or empty. It covers buildings, apartments, and bare land. Whoever owns the property on January 1 owes the full year’s bill, even if they sell later that year.
The calculation starts with the cadastral rental value, an official estimate of what the property could rent for. For built properties, the tax authorities apply a flat 50% deduction to arrive at the net cadastral income; for undeveloped land, the deduction is 20%. That net figure is then multiplied by the rates set by your commune, intercommunal authority, and department. Because those rates are voted annually, your bill can move even when nothing about the property has changed.
Cadastral values are famously outdated, often reflecting rental conditions from decades ago, so the government applies an annual inflation-based uplift to keep them from drifting further behind. That uplift was 7.1% in 2023, 3.9% in 2024, and 1.7% in 2025. Even a flat local rate produces a slightly larger bill each year because of this built-in revaluation.
The per-square-meter cost varies widely. A standard apartment in a major French city typically produces a Taxe Foncière bill of €800 to €2,500 a year. Some rural communes charge less than a quarter of urban figures per square meter, though their local rates can be higher, so the totals sometimes surprise in either direction. The most reliable predictor of what you will actually pay is the previous owner’s most recent tax notice, which any seller or estate agent should be able to hand over on request.
The TEOM Waste Charge on the Same Notice
A separate line called the TEOM, the household waste collection tax, appears directly on your Taxe Foncière notice and is paid at the same time.1Service Public. Household Waste Collection Fee (TEOM or REOM) Landlords pay it upfront but can pass it on to tenants as a recoverable charge. Property tax exemptions for elderly or low-income owners do not extend to the TEOM, so even exempt owners still owe this portion.
Who Pays Less, or Nothing
New constructions are exempt from Taxe Foncière for the first two years after completion, but only if you file a declaration with the tax office within 90 days of the property being ready for occupation. Miss the window and you can lose the benefit.
Owners aged 75 or older whose household income sits below annually adjusted thresholds are fully exempt. Owners aged 65 to 74 meeting the same income criteria get a €100 reduction. Recipients of certain disability and pension-supplement benefits, including the Allocation aux adultes handicapés (AAH) and the Allocation supplémentaire d’invalidité (Asi), can also qualify for full exemption while their income stays below the applicable ceiling. Thresholds change every year and depend on household size, so check the figures shown on your most recent income tax notice.
Taxe d’Habitation: Second Homes Only
The Taxe d’Habitation used to fall on every occupant of a French home, owner or tenant. It was phased out on primary residences between 2018 and 2023, and since 2023 no household pays it on a main home.2Service Public. Property Tax 2025: What Is the Deadline to Pay?
If you own a second residence, such as a holiday home, you still owe it. The calculation mirrors the Taxe Foncière: cadastral rental value multiplied by local rates. In areas classified as “tense housing zones,” where demand outstrips supply, communes can add a surcharge of 5% to 60% of the base amount to discourage owners from holding homes for occasional use. More than 1,600 communes have opted in.
Tax on Vacant Property
Leaving a property empty for a long stretch triggers its own tax. An unfurnished dwelling that has been vacant for at least one continuous year, in a designated tense housing zone, owes the Taxe sur les Logements Vacants (TLV).3Service-Public.fr. Annual Vacant Housing Tax and Vacant Housing Tax The rate is 17% of the cadastral rental value in the first year of vacancy, then 34% for every year after.4Service Public. Taxe annuelle sur les logements vacants (TLV) et taxe d’habitation sur les logements vacants Owners have to show the vacancy is involuntary, for example that the property is listed for sale or rent at a reasonable price and hasn’t found a taker.
Properties outside tense zones aren’t subject to TLV, but the commune may impose a similar local levy called the THLV. From 2027, a new consolidated tax on vacant residential premises is expected to replace both, with rates that can reach 30% in the first year and 60% from the second year onward.
Real Estate Wealth Tax (IFI)
If the total net value of your French real estate crosses €1.3 million on January 1, you owe the Impôt sur la Fortune Immobilière.5Service Public. Real Estate Wealth Tax (IFI): Persons and Property Concerned Net value means current market value minus outstanding mortgage or secured loan balances. IFI is a household-level tax, so couples file jointly and include property held by minor children. Non-residents are only taxed on their French real estate, whether owned directly or through a company.
Once you cross the threshold, the tax is calculated progressively starting at €800,000:
- Up to €800,000: 0%
- €800,001 to €1,300,000: 0.5%
- €1,300,001 to €2,570,000: 0.7%
- €2,570,001 to €5,000,000: 1.0%
- €5,000,001 to €10,000,000: 1.25%
- Above €10,000,000: 1.5%
Qualifying debts secured against the property reduce the taxable base. To be deductible, a debt must exist and be certain on January 1, be borne by a member of the IFI household, and relate specifically to a taxable asset.6Service Public. Calculation of Real Estate Wealth Tax (IFI) Property used as a professional asset, such as a hotel or certain qualifying rental operations, may be exempt under strict conditions.
Putting a Number on Your Annual Bill
Because rates, cadastral values, and which taxes apply all vary so much, any single percentage is rough. Most owners find their Taxe Foncière, plus any applicable Taxe d’Habitation, comes to roughly 0.5% to 1.5% of market value per year. A standard apartment in a major city typically runs €800 to €2,500 in Taxe Foncière alone. On top of that base, budget for the TEOM waste charge on the same notice. Add Taxe d’Habitation and any tense-zone surcharge if the property is a second home. Add IFI if your French real estate portfolio crosses €1.3 million net. The single best predictor of the actual number remains the previous owner’s tax notice.
When Property Tax Is Due and How to Pay
Notices go out every autumn. In 2025, online notices were available from August 28 for owners paying in a lump sum and September 20 for those on monthly installments, with paper notices following through early October. The standard 2025 payment deadline was October 15 for cash or check and October 20 for online payments, with direct debit taken on October 25.2Service Public. Property Tax 2025: What Is the Deadline to Pay?
You can pay through your personal space on impots.gouv.fr, by direct debit, or in cash or by check at authorized locations for amounts of €300 or less.7impots.gouv.fr. Services Non-resident owners should keep a current postal or email address on file with the tax office. A French bank account makes life easier, but international transfers are accepted.
What the Cadastral Reform Delay Means
The cadastral rental values behind every one of these taxes have been overdue for a full national overhaul. New values were originally set to be based on January 1, 2025 data and feed into 2028 tax bills. The 2026 Finance Bill pushed that back by three years: new rental values will now be determined as of January 1, 2028 and will not affect tax bills until 2031.
In the meantime, a more limited verification and correction campaign is underway. Letters and emails are being sent to property owners in early 2026 asking them to confirm or update their property’s recorded characteristics. Owners have until April 2026 to respond and until June to provide supporting documentation. This is not the full revaluation, but it can still lead to adjustments where the recorded details are clearly wrong. When the full revision does take effect, properties in high-demand areas are widely expected to see meaningful increases in their tax base.