An update to housing files by France's Ministry of Economy will cause a property tax increase for 7.4 million homes in 2026. The operation aims to incorporate comfort criteria for greater fairness. The average rise will be 63 euros per home, generating an extra 466 million euros for local authorities.
France's Ministry of Economy has announced an update to property databases that will affect the property tax paid by around 32 million owners. This reform, confirmed by Bercy to Agence France-Presse and first reported by Le Parisien, will impact 7.4 million homes starting in 2026.
The property tax is based on the surface area of properties, but also on comfort criteria such as running water, electricity, toilets, or sinks. These features artificially increase the square meters considered, thereby raising the tax amount. "The operation to strengthen property databases to be conducted in 2026" will incorporate these elements when they are not yet included, according to the General Directorate of Public Finances (DGFiP).
"It is a matter of the efficiency and equity of the tax: that everyone pays according to the type of housing they own," justified the office of the Minister of Public Accounts, Amélie de Montchalin. According to estimates, this update will result in an average increase of 63 euros per affected home, for a total gain of 466 million euros benefiting local authorities.
Owners whose homes do not actually have these facilities can contest their assessment and obtain corresponding reductions, the DGFiP specifies. This measure aims to align the tax with the actual state of properties, without changing existing rates.