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It is official! You can claim a refund of the French social charges.

The French Tax Administration has confirmed in a press release of 20 October 2015 the modalities for a refund of the French social charges.

The “Conseil d’Etat” (CE), in a decision dated July 27, 2015, drew the consequences of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) judgement of 26 February 2015 (Case C-623/13, Mr de Ruyter). It confirmed the taxation of social charges on French income-generating assets of persons affiliated with a social security system of another Member State of the European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland is against European Law.

Following the CE decision, the government has now confirmed that the payment of social charges can be claimed back in accordance with the following conditions:

You must be registered under a social security scheme of another state other than France located within the EU, EEA or Switzerland.

If you are not residing in France, you can claim the social charges that you have paid on your French Property rental income or the social charges that you have paid on the gains when you sold your French property.

If you are residing in France, you can claim the social charges you paid on your assets income as well as well as your investment products.

Exclusion

The total rate of social charges is 15.5%. 

The French Tax administration confirmed that the 2% solidarity levy (“prélèvement de solidarité”) paid before the 1st January 2015 is not affected by the Ruyter case as this tax does not finance the French social security system.

Deadline 

Under French law, any tax claim must be issued by 31st December of the second year following the year in which the tax was paid.

It must be reminded that there is a time deadline for non-residents who have paid social charges in 2013 on their 2012 incomes. They have until 31st December 2015 to submit a claim for a refund. Similarly, non-residents who sold a French property in 2013 and have been subjected to social charges are able to claim the corresponding tax until 31st December 2015. 

For those who have paid undue social charges in 2014 or have just received their tax assessment, we recommend them to issue a claim as soon as possible. 

How to claim the social charges?

The tax claims can be issued to the French tax office for non-residents or to the tax office where you are registered. They must be legally motivated and include all supporting documents establishing the right to claim for a refund of the French social charges.

We recommend that you seek legal advice to ensure that your claim has been correctly drafted and accompanied by the necessary supportive documents.

This article was written by Loic Raboteau, French Legal Advisor and director of French Legal Consulting.

Francophile legal Consulting can assist you with international property matters. For more information on this topic, please do not hesitate to contact Loic Raboteau, managing director by completing the form below. 

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