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Tax and inheritance in France

Inheritance and tax lawyers in France. One estate, several countries.

A house or an account in France brings French heirs' rules and French tax into your estate, wherever you live. We plan ahead, settle what is open and work alongside the notaire.

The matters we handle

  1. French will and choice of lawYour wishes, valid in France.
  2. Lifetime gift planPass on assets while you can.
  3. Couple's regime reviewProtect the surviving partner.
  4. Estate settlement coordinationThe French side of an estate.
  5. Inheritance tax returnFiled on time, heir by heir.
  6. Tax residence reviewWhere you pay, before you move.
  7. IFI wealth tax reviewFrench property and the wealth tax.
  8. Trust French tax reviewYour trust, seen from France.

Selected matter

French will and choice of law

A will covering your French assets, aligned with your home will, choosing your national law where it helps.

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Our services

Your estate. Planned, settled and declared.

Three moments: planning while you can, inheriting when it happens, and holding wealth across borders every year.

Planning

Without planning, French law decides who inherits your French assets, and in what shares. A notaire (French notary) is a public officer who authenticates legal instruments, including the final deed of a property sale.

French will and choice of law

A will covering your French assets, aligned with your home will, choosing your national law where it helps.

  • Your existing will and French assets reviewed
  • Choice of law under the EU Succession Regulation
  • Forced heirship exposure checked
  • Will drafted, with registration guidance
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Lifetime gift plan

A plan to pass French assets to children or a partner during your life, using allowances renewed every 15 years.

  • Allowances and tax per beneficiary
  • Usufruct and bare ownership split
  • Treaty check with your country
  • Brief for the notaire who signs the deed
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Couple's regime review

How your marriage, civil partnership or joint ownership protects the surviving partner in France, and what to change.

  • Your applicable marriage regime
  • Tontine, spousal gift or regime change compared
  • Outcome per scenario, in writing
  • Coordination with the notaire
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Inheriting

Heirs abroad face a French process, a French notaire and a tax deadline, in the same month.

Estate settlement coordination

We steer the French side of an estate for heirs abroad, from the notaire to the transfer of assets.

  • Map of assets, heirs and applicable law
  • Notaire briefed and followed up
  • European Certificate of Succession or foreign probate
  • Closing report with each heir's share
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Inheritance tax return

The French inheritance tax return prepared and filed, with tax computed per heir and treaty relief claimed.

  • French assets and debts valued
  • Allowances and rates per heir
  • Double taxation relief checked
  • Filed within the 6 or 12-month deadline
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Wealth

Living in one country and owning in another brings yearly questions: where you are taxed, and on what. IFI (real estate wealth tax) is the French wealth tax on taxable real estate assets, subject to the applicable rules and exemptions.

Tax residence review

Before or after a move, where you are tax resident and how your income, pensions and investments are taxed in France.

  • Residence test under French law and the treaty
  • Pensions, dividends, 401(k), ISA and rents
  • Pre-arrival checklist
  • Optional ruling request to the tax office
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IFI wealth tax review

Whether your French real estate triggers the wealth tax, what reduces it lawfully, and the annual return.

  • Net property position at 1 January
  • Deductible debts and exemptions
  • Look-through of SCIs and companies
  • Return prepared
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Trust French tax review

Any trust with a French settlor, beneficiary or asset, reviewed and its French filings put in order.

  • Trust classification under French tax law
  • Annual trust returns
  • Exposure to the trust levy and inheritance tax
  • Plan if filings were missed
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What you are buying

Not more legal language. A clear decision for your estate.

Before work begins on your estate or tax matter, three things should be clear enough to repeat in one sentence.

01 / Scope

What we will do

The documents we review, the questions we answer and the people we coordinate with: notaire, your adviser at home, the tax office.

02 / Price

What it will cost

A fee agreed before any work begins, with the scope of your estate or tax matter set out in writing.

03 / Next step

What happens now

Which documents to gather, which questions to settle, and the next decision on your estate.

FAQ

Inheritance questions. Answered plainly.

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Since 2015, the EU Succession Regulation applies in France. By default, the law of the country where the person lived at death governs the whole estate. A will can instead choose the law of your nationality, which is the first planning decision for British and American owners.

If French law governs the estate, children are entitled to a reserved share that a will cannot remove. Choosing your national law can avoid it, but since 2021 children left out may in some cases claim a share of the French assets. The answer depends on your family and where you live.

Not always. A foreign will is valid in France, but it rarely addresses French assets, French tax or forced heirship, which slows the notaire's work. A French will drafted to match your home will makes the estate simpler to settle.

Each child receives 100,000 euros from each parent free of tax, then pays progressive rates from 5% to 45%. A surviving spouse or civil partner is exempt. Siblings, other relatives and unrelated heirs pay much higher rates, up to 60%.

It can, which is what tax treaties are for. France has estate tax treaties with the United States and the United Kingdom that decide which country taxes what and how double tax is credited. Their rules differ, so they are checked estate by estate.

Six months from the death when the person died in France, and twelve months when they died abroad. Late filing brings interest and penalties, so heirs abroad should start the process with the notaire early.

Tell us what the estate looks like. We'll map what comes next.

A first call to understand your matter. A fee agreed in writing before any work begins.

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