You must pay French income taxes if you intend to live here permanently, have a residence permit, spend more than 183 days in the country, earn a salary here, or if most of your money and property is based here.

That's the bad news.

The good news is that the overall tax rate is headed down as of this year (and is, of course, supposed to go down more after the new president's fiscal reforms kick in). The other good news is that the government offers really quite a lot of information and assistance via its website (although information in English is limited).

Obtaining the form

If you qualified as a taxpayer in France starting at any point in 2006, then the first step is to fill out a Déclaration des revenus by May 31. (Taxes are calculated from January 1-December 31.) This tells you, and the State, how much you owe.

You must fill out a déclaration if any of the above conditions apply — and you'll be fined if you're late — but this doesn't necessarily mean you'll owe taxes. (The minimum taxable income for a single taxpayer is EUR 10,642 but EUR 16,256 for a married couple with no children.) 

If you are an employee of a French firm, then you probably have already received it in the mail; under a new system first launched nationwide last year, your déclaration should be already filled in as well (pré-remplie) with information provided by your employer. It is your responsibility, however, to cross out any wrong information and write the correct figures in underneath.

If you think you do owe taxes in 2006 and have not yet received a déclaration, then contact your local centre impôts service to get the form.

Don't panic: if you don't have enough time before May 31, you can fill out the form online and get an automatic extension. (Online filers, and payers, are offered small incentives in the form of extended deadlines and small deductions as well.) Make sure you declare your correct address to your tax-centre to get all forms on-time in future.

These are the extended deadlines if you declare your revenues online

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