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Must I pay capital gains tax?

I am told that if I have rented out part of my main residence for holiday rentals I have to pay capital gains tax on the sale of my house. I pay my taxes in France. Is this true? D.L.

It depends on how you rent and whether the tax service sees the activity as a business or not.

If you rent as a business it is likely the tax office would seek to tax an eventual capital gain. The tax would be proportional to the part of the building used for this purpose.
This may be likely if you had been renting out part of it long-term, for example. However if you only do occasional rental on a ‘tourist rental’ basis it is less likely to be treated as a business, in which case when you sell your home the gain made should not be liable to any capital gains tax.
There are many individual factors that can define whether a capital gain could be taxable so it may be best to seek advice from a tax professional who can confirm the position for you.

Reader's query answered by Hugh MacDonald

If you have a money query send it to news@connexionfrance.com We select questions for answer every edition

The information here is of a general nature. You should not act or refrain from acting on it without taking professional advice on the specific facts of your case.
No liability is accepted in respect of this article. It is intended only as a general guide. Nothing herein constitutes actual financial advice.

The Connexion welcomes queries and publishes a selection with answers every edition. However, please note that we cannot enter into correspondence on money topics. Queries may be edited for length and style. Due to the sensitive nature of topics we do not publish full names or addresses on these pages.

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