Rental Income Tax Rules for Furnished and Unfurnished Homes in Paris

When you own a Paris property and decide to rent it out, the French tax system does not offer a single rate or a simple path. Instead, it uses a framework based on lease type, income level, and residency status, and each of these factors changes the rules in important ways. The better you understand where your rental income sits in that framework, the less likely you are to be caught off guard at declaration time.

The rules for Paris landlords changed significantly in 2025 and 2026. From January 2025, properties with a G energy rating can no longer enter new rental agreements, which removed a category of apartments from the market but also opened a tax opportunity for landlords willing to renovate. The Finance Law for 2026 introduced a new private landlord amortisation scheme, revised the micro-BIC thresholds for non-classified furnished rentals, and changed how the tax authority determines whether non-resident landlords qualify as professional or non-professional furnished renters.

This guide explains how rental income is classified, the tax regimes you can choose, the rates for non-resident landlords, and how civil code leases fit into the overall tax picture. If you own a Paris apartment that earns or will earn rental income, the following sections will help you prepare for your next tax declaration.

The category your rental income falls into shapes every decision that follows.

The difference between furnished and unfurnished

An unfurnished apartment rented under the standard residential lease governed by the loi du 6 juillet 1989 generates income in the "revenus fonciers" category (property income). This income is declared separately from your salary and other sources, and it is taxed through one of two regimes depending on how much gross rental income you receive and whether you opt for a more detailed declaration.

A furnished apartment generates income in the BIC category, bénéfices industriels et commerciaux. The thresholds, allowances, and deduction rules are entirely different from those that apply to unfurnished income. A landlord who rents the same apartment unfurnished one year and furnished the next, without updating their declaration, is filing incorrectly. That mistake is more common than you might expect, and fixing it after the fact takes time and usually costs money.

Where the civil code lease fits in this framework

A civil code lease (bail civil) applies when the tenant does not use the apartment as their main French residence. It is commonly used for corporate housing, diplomatic postings, and pied-à-terre arrangements.

This lease sits outside the 1989 residential tenancy law. As a result, the usual loi ALUR tenant protections do not apply. The landlord and tenant can freely agree on the lease duration, notice period, and exit terms.

However, this flexibility has limits. In Paris, furnished civil code leases signed since 1 July 2019 must still comply with encadrement des loyers, meaning the base rent cannot exceed the applicable reference rent ceiling.

The lease must clearly state that the apartment is not the tenant’s primary French residence and should specify the rent, duration, notice period, and exit terms. Standard property diagnostics (DPE, lead, asbestos, electrical, etc.) still apply.

Although a notary is not required, careful drafting is important. If the tenant actually uses the property as a primary residence, the lease may be reclassified as a standard residential lease, with 1989 law protections applying retroactively.

For tax purposes, furnished rentals under a civil code lease generate BIC income. The lease itself does not create a separate tax category, though higher rents from corporate or diplomatic tenants can increase the importance of choosing the right BIC regime.

In summary, a civil code lease offers more contractual flexibility than a standard residential lease, but only when the property is not used as the tenant’s main French residence.

For the current context on how Paris rents compare across lease types, the Paris rent guide for expat tenants sets out where the reference values and market rates currently stand.

The regime you declare under changes how much of your income is actually taxable, not just what rate gets applied to it.

Micro-foncier and régime réel for unfurnished rentals

For unfurnished rentals, the applicable tax regime largely depends on your annual gross rental income, with a baseline set at €15,000 per year:

• Micro-foncier is simpler and applies up to €15,000 in gross rental income, with a 30% flat allowance.
• Régime réel applies above this threshold or by choice, and allows landlords to deduct actual expenses.

If your gross rental income from unfurnished property is €15,000 or less per year, the micro-foncier regime applies automatically. Under this regime, the French tax authorities apply a 30% flat allowance to your gross rental income. The remaining 70% is added to your taxable income and taxed at your marginal income tax rate.

Micro-foncier is simple to manage. You do not need to declare each expense separately, provide detailed receipts, or complete a separate property income return. This regime often suits landlords with low expenses and straightforward rental income.

If your gross rental income is above €15,000 per year, the régime réel applies. You can also choose this regime voluntarily, even if your income stays below the threshold. Once elected, the option applies for a minimum of three years from the year of election.

Under the régime réel, you deduct actual expenses from your rental income. These may include:

• mortgage interest
• property management fees
• building insurance
• taxe foncière
• maintenance and repair costs
• qualifying renovation works

If your deductible expenses exceed your rental income, you create a property deficit. Part of this deficit can be offset against your overall taxable income, up to €10,700 for the tax year. Any amount above this ceiling can be carried forward and deducted from future property income for up to 10 years.

BIC for furnished and civil code leases

For long-term furnished rentals where the apartment is the tenant's primary residence, the micro-BIC threshold stays at €77,700 per year with a 50% flat allowance. But for non-classified short-term furnished rentals (a standard Airbnb without a formal tourism star rating), the rules changed sharply under the Loi Le Meur of November 2024: the threshold dropped to €15,000 and the allowance fell to 30%. If you rent your Paris apartment as a non-classified furnished tourist accommodation, the tax position for 2025 income is very different from what it was in 2023.

Under régime réel BIC, all operating costs are deductible, and the property and its furniture can be amortised over time. For a Paris apartment purchased at €500,000, annual amortisation under régime réel can reach €8,000 to €12,000 depending on how the asset is structured. That figure can bring taxable BIC income close to zero across a sustained period. The accounting is more involved, and the first year requires a formal set of accounts (a liasse fiscale), but for landlords with significant Paris assets, the fiscal result often justifies the extra work. The official rules for furnished rental income are documented on Service-Public.fr.

How to decide between micro and régime réel for your situation

The choice between regimes comes down to a number comparison. For unfurnished property, régime réel works better when your actual deductible charges exceed 30% of gross income, since micro-foncier gives you a 30% flat allowance regardless of what you actually spend. For furnished property, the break-even is 50% of gross income. In Paris, where taxe foncière alone can cost €2,000 to €5,000 per year on a mid-sized apartment, and management fees typically add another 8-10% of rents, many landlords cross those thresholds even without a mortgage.

On the amortisation side: under régime réel BIC, the building is typically amortised at 2-3% per year (a 33 to 50-year schedule) and furniture at 20% per year over five years. Both must be certified by a French-registered accountant in the first year and cannot be applied retroactively. If you are close to the break-even point, a single consultation with an accountant before the regime election deadline will usually pay for itself.

If you own rental property in Paris but live outside France, you are still liable for French income tax on that rental income. There is no minimum threshold below which you can skip the declaration.

Flat rates and social charges

France applies a minimum flat income tax rate of 20% on net rental income up to €29,315 for non-resident landlords (for income received in 2025 and declared in 2026), and 30% on any amount above that. These rates are applied before social charges are added.

Social charges stand at 17.2% on top of income tax for most non-residents. If you are an EU or EEA national affiliated with a mandatory health coverage scheme in your country of residence, presenting an S1 certificate to the French tax authority brings that rate down to 7.5%. That is a difference of nearly 10 percentage points on every euro of net rental income, and it is one that many eligible non-resident landlords miss, either because they do not know the reduced rate exists or because they do not have the paperwork ready in time. Full guidance on the non-resident declaration process is available on impots.gouv.fr.

If you can show, based on your worldwide income, that your effective French rate would have been lower than the 20% minimum, you can request to be taxed at that lower rate instead. You would need to share your full global income picture with the French tax authority. It is a more involved process, but it can produce a better result when your total income globally places you in a lower bracket than the non-resident flat rate assumes.

Double taxation and owners with US or UK connections

France has tax treaties with both the United States and the United Kingdom. Under the US-France treaty, rental income from French property is taxable in France, and the tax paid there is generally creditable against your US tax obligations on the same income. American citizens are still subject to US tax on worldwide income, but the treaty prevents paying the full rate in both countries on the same earnings. Post-Brexit, the UK-France treaty works on similar principles, though the forms and administrative steps are different.

If you hold a Paris apartment as a rental investment and file taxes in either country, understanding the treaty provisions before your first French declaration is much less costly than resolving errors later. And for anyone unsure whether they qualify as LMNP or LMP status in 2026 as a non-resident, the Finance Law for 2026 introduced a structural change: worldwide professional income is now considered when making that determination, not only French-sourced income. This affects some non-resident landlords who previously held LMNP status and may now fall into LMP territory.

The filing process and 2026 deadlines for non-residents

Non-resident landlords file with a specialist French tax service, the Direction des Impôts des Non-Résidents (DINR), based in Noisy-le-Grand near Paris. All declarations are now made online via impots.gouv.fr. For 2025 rental income, the online declaration window opens in April 2026 and closes in late May or early June, with the exact date depending on the département your property is attached to.

The forms you need depend on your regime. Unfurnished landlords under micro-foncier complete box 4BE on form 2042. Régime réel requires an additional form 2044. Furnished landlords under micro-BIC complete form 2042 C PRO. Régime réel BIC requires a full liasse fiscale submitted separately. If you are declaring as a furnished landlord for the first time, you also need to register your rental activity using form P0i before your first declaration. Missing this step does not prevent you from declaring income, but it creates an administrative gap that the tax authority will likely follow up on.

Since 1 January 2025, properties rated G on the Diagnostic de Performance Énergétique are no longer permitted to enter new rental agreements in France.

Why the G-class ban created a Paris-specific problem

For Paris landlords, this is not a distant regulatory concern. A notable portion of the city's older building stock, particularly in central arrondissements where Haussmannian construction predominates, carries weak energy ratings because of building age, limited insulation capacity, and historic construction constraints. The ban removed properties from the lettable supply without offering landlords an immediate alternative. But it also opened a fiscal mechanism that is worth understanding in full.

How the déficit foncier works for renovation costs

If you undertake works that move a property out of the G or F energy classification, those costs can be deducted against rental income as a déficit foncier. Under the standard rules, the annual ceiling for offsetting that deficit against global income (wages, pensions, other taxable sources) is €10,700. But the Finance Law for 2026 confirmed the continuation of a doubled ceiling at €21,400 per year for landlords undertaking qualifying energy renovation works, and that doubled ceiling applies through to 31 December 2027.

What the numbers look like in practice

To give that a concrete shape: a landlord in the 18th arrondissement receiving €11,000 in annual rent who spends €28,000 on insulation and window replacement can generate a deficit substantially larger than their rental income in that tax year. The portion attributable to the works (up to the doubled ceiling) offsets their global income directly. The surplus carries forward against future property income for ten years. Any state aid received, such as MaPrimeRénov', must be deducted from the declared work cost before the calculation is applied. But the net fiscal effect, for a landlord in a 30% or higher marginal bracket, can be material.

In short: The G-class ban is a compliance requirement for any Paris landlord holding an older property, but the renovation costs involved are not simply a sunk expense. Under régime réel, they become a deductible item that reduces tax across multiple years. Renovation is both a regulatory obligation and, when handled properly, a recoverable cost.

Understanding how the renovation framework interacts with the choice of long-term rental structure brings us to the most recent addition to the French fiscal toolkit for landlords.

The Finance Law for 2026, enacted on 19 February 2026, introduced a new private landlord amortisation mechanism called the dispositif Jeanbrun, named after the Housing Minister who championed it.

How the scheme works and who qualifies

The scheme allows owners of qualifying unfurnished residential properties to amortise the acquisition cost at annual rates between 3.5% and 5.5%, depending on the rent tier charged relative to a social classification scale. The amortisable base is 80% of the purchase price (20% allocated to land, which cannot be amortised). Annual deduction caps range from €8,000 for intermediate-level rents to €12,000 for very social-level rents. The commitment period is a minimum of nine years, the property must be let unfurnished as the tenant's primary residence, and rent caps aligned with Pinel Zone Abis levels apply to properties in Paris.

The rent cap that limits its use in central Paris

That last condition is the point where the scheme becomes less relevant for a significant portion of Paris landlords, particularly those whose properties attract international or corporate tenants. Pinel Zone Abis rent ceilings are set well below the encadrement des loyers reference values for most central Paris arrondissements. And since Jeanbrun applies only to unfurnished properties, landlords renting to executives or diplomatic tenants under a civil code arrangement (which is typically a furnished lease) are excluded on both grounds. The scheme is designed for landlords investing in below-market-rate long-term residential supply, not for owners whose tenant profile is corporate or diplomatic.

The more relevant path for international landlords

For that category of Paris landlord, régime réel under the BIC framework, which preserves full amortisation rights through the LMNP structure without requiring rent cap compliance, remains the more appropriate path. Jeanbrun is worth monitoring, particularly for anyone considering new-build investment in Paris with a genuine commitment to the nine-year unfurnished model. But it should not be treated as a default strategy without understanding the rent cap implications first.

In short, Jeanbrun is a meaningful fiscal incentive for landlords investing in affordable long-term housing in Paris. For owners targeting corporate, diplomatic, or executive tenants at market rates, the rent cap requirements make it largely inapplicable, and the régime réel BIC route offers more flexibility without the same constraints.

Declaring rental income in France is a multi-step process, and the path you follow depends on whether your property is furnished or unfurnished and which regime you are under. The steps below apply to the 2025 income declared in Spring 2026.

Step 1: Confirm your income category before anything else

Before you open a form, establish whether your rental income falls under revenus fonciers (unfurnished) or BIC (furnished, including civil code leases). This single classification determines which forms you need, which deductions are available, and where on the main return your income gets reported. If you changed the nature of your rental during the year, both categories may apply, and each needs to be declared separately.

Step 2: Gather your documents

The quality of your declaration depends on what you have in front of you before you start. Collect the following before logging in:

• a complete record of all rents received in 2025, month by month
• all invoices for deductible expenses: management fees, insurance, taxe foncière, maintenance, syndic charges, mortgage interest statements
• your property tax notice (avis de taxe foncière) for 2025
• any renovation invoices, with their dates and a note of any state aid received (MaPrimeRénov' or similar)
• your previous year's declaration if you are continuing under régime réel, to carry forward any existing deficit

If you use a property manager, their annual financial summary should cover most of this. If you do not, you are assembling this from your own records, which is where errors typically start.

Step 3: Log in and navigate to the right section

Go to impots.gouv.fr and access your personal space (espace particulier). Non-residents file through the same portal but are assigned to the Direction des Impôts des Non-Résidents (DINR). From your main return (form 2042), follow the path for revenus fonciers or revenus des professions non salariées depending on your category.

Step 4: Complete the correct form for your regime

This is where regime and income type determine your route:

• Unfurnished, micro-foncier: enter your gross rental income in box 4BE on form 2042. The 30% allowance is applied automatically. No additional form is needed.
• Unfurnished, régime réel: complete the supplementary property income return (form 2044) in full, listing all income and each deductible charge line by line. The resulting net income or deficit transfers to your Form 2042.
• Furnished, micro-BIC: report your gross receipts in the relevant box on form 2042 C PRO (box 5ND for the main declarant). The applicable allowance (50% for long-term furnished, 30% for non-classified short-term) is applied automatically.
• Furnished, régime réel BIC (LMNP): this requires a formal liasse fiscale, which is a set of business accounts submitted separately from your main return. The net result transfers to form 2042 C PRO. Given the complexity, most landlords under régime réel BIC work with an accountant for this step.

If you are declaring as a furnished landlord for the first time, form P0i (the registration of your rental activity) must have been submitted before your first declaration. If it was not, complete it and submit it alongside your return.

Step 5:Check for deficits and carry-forwards

Before submitting, review whether your declaration shows a property deficit. For unfurnished property under régime réel, up to €10,700 of that deficit can be applied against your global income for 2025. The portion generated by qualifying energy renovation works benefits from a doubled ceiling of €21,400, applicable through to 31 December 2027. Any remaining deficit carries forward automatically and should be tracked year to year.

For furnished property under régime réel BIC, the amortisation and charge deductions reduce the BIC profit rather than creating an imputable deficit. The mechanism is different, which is another reason the accountant step matters for this route.

Step 6: Submit before the deadline

The 2026 online declaration window for 2025 income opens in April. The closing deadline varies by département but typically falls in late May or early June. Non-residents attached to the DINR follow the same calendar. Late submission triggers automatic penalties starting at 10% of the tax owed, with monthly interest charges applied on top.

After submission, you will receive an avis d'imposition (tax notice) confirming the amount owed or any credit. If you have been paying monthly withholding installments (prélèvements à la source) during 2025, these appear as advance payments, and the final notice shows the balance due or refundable.

Common errors worth avoiding

A few mistakes come up consistently for Paris landlords, particularly those filing from abroad:

• Reporting gross rents inclusive of tenant-paid charges without separating the two, which inflates declared income
• Filing as revenus fonciers when the property was rented furnished, or vice versa, which triggers reclassification
• Missing the P0i first registration for new furnished landlords
• Forgetting to deduct state aid (MaPrimeRénov') from declared renovation costs before applying the déficit foncier
• For non-residents: not claiming the S1 certificate for reduced social charges when eligible

Managing a Paris rental from another country creates an administrative gap that most landlords only notice when declaration time arrives.

A property manager in Paris does not prepare your tax return. But what they produce directly affects how accurate your régime réel declaration can be. Each year, a professional manager provides a financial summary that covers:

• all rents received across the year
• all charges paid on your behalf, including syndic levies, maintenance, insurance, and management fees
• any vacant periods and their duration
• all works carried out, with invoices and their deductible classification

That document is the foundation for a régime réel declaration. Without it, most landlords either under-declare available deductions or spend significant time and money with an accountant trying to reconstruct a year's worth of transactions from scattered bank records.

For non-resident landlords specifically, misclassification is a real risk. Two common errors cause problems:

• A property rented as furnished but not formally documented as meeting the legal minimum equipment standard (defined by the decree of 31 July 2015) can be reclassified as revenus fonciers, removing the BIC amortisation advantage and triggering back taxes.
• Rent-inclusive charges not correctly separated in the declaration may be counted as gross income rather than as tenant pass-through amounts, inflating the taxable base unnecessarily.

A property manager with solid experience in the Paris market, and particularly with civil code lease structures and the documentation requirements for furnished BIC declarations, reduces both of those risks. Their annual summary is usually organised in exactly the format a non-resident tax accountant needs to work from.

When selecting either a property manager or a tax accountant for a Paris property held from abroad, two qualifications are worth checking directly. A property manager should hold a carte professionnelle issued under the loi Hoguet, the professional licence required to operate as a real estate manager in France. An accountant should have hands-on experience with DINR declarations, since the forms and procedures for non-resident filings differ from standard domestic returns in ways that matter. Asking both candidates directly whether they have handled civil code lease declarations and BIC amortisation schedules for international owners is a simple way to check before committing.

Relocation in Paris handles property management for short and medium-term furnished rentals, with particular expertise in civil code lease structuring for corporate and diplomatic tenants. The service covers tenant selection, lease drafting, ongoing charge management, and annual income reporting. Full details are available on the property management for Paris landlords page.