French MPs vote to extend incest definition to first cousins

French MPs have taken a major step towards recognising incest as a distinct criminal offence and extending the legal definition of incest to first cousins.

The measures form part of a sweeping bill to tackle sexual and domestic violence against women and children, adopted by the Assemblée nationale on October 13, with 503 votes in favour and none against. A further 67 MPs abstained.

The bill would give incest its own section in the French penal code, rather than treating it principally as an aggravating factor in other sexual offences.

The legislation must still pass through the Senate before becoming law.

Aude Doumenge, advocacy lead at Face à l’Inceste, told The Connexion that including a section on incest in French law was “a victory in itself”.

“It will make a real difference,” she said. “The bill essentially makes the crime of incest more straightforward in law, which should mean more victims can be identified.”

The campaign for a comprehensive law against sexual violence gained public momentum in France during the #MeToo movement.

In May 2024, 147 public figures called for action in an appeal published in Le Monde, accompanied by a photograph of 100 of them.

Signatories included actresses Juliette Binoche, Judith Godrèche and Isabelle Adjani, and writers Leïla Slimani and Vanessa Springora.

Why include cousins?

The proposed changes follow years of campaigning by victims and child protection organisations for greater recognition of incest and its consequences.

During parliamentary debates, Socialist MP Florence Herouin-Léautey said an estimated seven million people in France had experienced incest during their lifetime.

She also cited figures showing that first cousins were identified as perpetrators in 13% of cases involving female victims and 16% involving male victims.

Under the existing definition, sexual offences involving cousins could be prosecuted, but were not legally classified as incestuous offences, unlike those involving certain other relatives. 

Ms Herouin-Léautey described this as “incomprehensible and very violent” for victims.

Renaissance MP Catherine Ibled said incest was not simply sexual violence, but also a form of family, psychological and physical violence.

“Naming incest tells these millions of victims, children of yesterday and today, that what they suffered has a name and that the law protects them,” she said.

The Coalition féministe et enfantiste, which brings together around 200 organisations campaigning against sexual violence, welcomed the measures, including the extension of the definition to cousins.

An amendment proposed by the Rassemblement National to introduce life imprisonment for incestuous rape was not adopted. Ecologist MP Sandrine Rousseau warned that the prospect of a family member receiving such a sentence could discourage victims from speaking out.

Wider protection for children

The bill, known as the loi intégrale, contains a series of measures intended to improve the detection, investigation and prosecution of sexual violence.

These include individual interviews at school to help identify children experiencing abuse. Four compulsory interviews are planned across a child's schooling before annual interviews become mandatory from 2032.

Other provisions include specialised police units, minimum investigative requirements for complaints and changes to the courts handling sexual and domestic violence.

Victims would also be exempt from upfront medical costs for treatment resulting from sexual violence, without having to make a police complaint first. The bill also provides for multidisciplinary support centres for victims in every department.

However, the coalition warned that the legislation's effectiveness would depend on government resources, including funding for specialist police units, judges and courts.

It has also called for further improvements, including stronger legal assistance for victims with disabilities and measures addressing chemical submission, in which drugs or other substances are used to facilitate abuse.

Supporters hope to secure the law’s adoption before the 2027 presidential election.

“It does not contain everything we would have wanted,” Ms Doumenge said. “But it gives campaigners something they can work to improve in future.”