19 June 2026
French departments may temporarily increase the departmental rate charged on a property purchase. However, the increase does not apply to buyers who qualify as first-time buyers under the relevant rules and intend to use the property as their main home.
A departmental rate that may rise to 5%
For deeds and agreements completed between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2028, a department may raise the land registration tax or registration duty above 4.50%, up to a maximum of 5%. The increase is not nationwide: it applies only where the relevant department has adopted it.
The official tax guidance published on 17 June 2026 confirms that the higher rate does not apply where the purchaser is acquiring a first property within the statutory meaning and will use it as their main residence.
Who qualifies as a first-time buyer?
As a general rule, the purchaser must not have owned their main residence during the two years preceding the acquisition. The period is calculated from date to date. Ownership of a second home does not, by itself, prevent the purchaser from qualifying.
The test concerns full ownership. A person who previously held only a usufruct or bare ownership interest in their main home may therefore still qualify. The ownership test is confined to France: someone who owns their main residence abroad may benefit if the French property being purchased is intended to become their main residence.
There is no separate income test and the acquisition need not be financed in any particular way. The home must nevertheless be genuinely and habitually occupied as the purchaser’s main residence; the tax authorities generally refer to occupation for at least eight months each year.
Special care where there is more than one buyer
For an acquisition in joint ownership, eligibility is assessed separately for each purchaser and applies to that purchaser’s share. For married couples subject to a community property regime, the outcome may differ depending on whether the property enters the community or remains separate property. The Berger ministerial reply explains aspects of this assessment.
Eligibility therefore depends on each buyer’s previous ownership position, matrimonial property regime, the acquisition structure and the property’s actual use. These points should be reviewed before the deed is signed.
Photograph: Juan Verdaguer Aguerrebehere / Unsplash.
Further reading : What are the mandatory documents to buy a property in France?.
The office does not contractually guarantee the accuracy or currency of this information. For advice on how it applies to your circumstances, please consult a notary at the office.
