April will see several major changes in France, as well as the start of holidays and the 2026 income tax season beginning.
The health and energy sectors see a number of key changes.
Health insurance emails
Starting in April, a new email format will be introduced by the state health insurance (Assurance Maladie), which the agency hopes will make its messages easier to read and to identify as official by policyholders.
The new format will make the sender more clearly identifiable, with the Assurance Maladie logo appearing in the top left corner.
The reading experience will be simplified with blue subheadings added to emails to structure the information more clearly, and the new format will also make it easier to directly access online services through a linked blue block at the bottom of the message.
Gas price drop
Gas costs will drop slightly from April 1 by around 0.7%, with prices falling to €0.135kw/h for cooking and hot water and €0.104 per kw/h for heating.
The price drop was confirmed before the start of the current conflict in the Middle East, however from May prices are set to rise due to higher base costs for gas.
Bills for benchmark-based tariffs are set to increase by around €8 per month, possibly up to €20 per month, depending on the impact of the conflict.
Energy vouchers available
The 2026 ‘chèque énergie’ campaign begins on April 1, providing six million eligible households with a voucher that can be used to pay for part of their bills.
Eligible households should be notified between April 1 - 20 about their voucher and how to claim/use it.
Values remain unchanged, between €48 and €277 depending on a household’s income level, and can be used anytime before March 2027.
The Ministry of Finance compiles a list of beneficiaries however those who believe they may qualify for this can check via the government site.
Online calculator for filing tax returns
With the tax filing season for 2025 income set to begin on April 9, taxpayers can see an estimate of how much they will have to pay via the French tax service’s online calculator.
The tax calculator helps you see your tax liability and reference tax income, and takes into account the new 2026 income brackets for different tax rates.
There is a simplified version of the calculator, and a more complete version for those who have to declare income from commercial, professional or agricultural activities, investments in overseas departments and regions, and overall deficits etc.
We note, however, that the simulator is not able to correctly account for some more ‘complex’ situations such as where people have foreign income attracting a tax credit for French tax (eg. US pensions or UK ‘government’ pensions).
Benefits increases
Several benefits will increase from April 1 due to changes included in the 2026 budget.
The prime d’activité, a financial supplement for low-income workers, allocation aux adultes handicapés (AAH, disability benefits), and aide personnalisée au logement (APL, housing benefits) and revenu de solidarité active (RSA, income top-up) will all increase by 0.9% per month.
This figure is tied to inflation across the 2025 year.
Nicotine pouches banned in France
Nicotine pouches and balls, as well as other oral products containing nicotine, will be banned in France from April 1.
Restrictions will not apply to medical devices used as nicotine replacement therapies to stop smoking.
Nicotine pouches contain nicotine and are available in various flavors such as mint, red berries, and cola, and are placed between the upper lip and gum.
France’s public health watchdog has warned that long-term use of the pouches can lead to addiction, with some people experiencing severe symptoms such as prolonged vomiting and convulsions.
Health watchdog Anses has also noted that advertising for the sachets often targets young people on social media.
The ban will extend to other oral products containing nicotine, including chewing gum, lozenges, and liquids, however the prohibition does not apply to chewing tobacco.
Changes to driving licence grants and verification
The government is discontinuing a financial assistance programme that gave a €500 lump sum grant to learner drivers.
Since 2019, apprentices over the age of 18 could receive state help to obtain their Category B driving licence.
However, the flat-rate grant was abolished in the 2026 budget.
Some financial assistance is still available to young learners through the 1jeune1permis service.
At the same time, the pricing model for a portal where employers can verify the status of their staff’s driving licence credentials is changing in April.
The Vérif Permis portal allows those employing people in driving roles to check the validity of their employees’ driving licences.
This platform, created by the interior ministry, will change its pricing model starting from April 1, with an annual subscription allowing an unlimited number of consultations of the national driving licence file available for €40.
Alimony for adult children and elderly relatives
Changes are being made to the level of deductions from your taxable income available for alimony paid for an adult child or an older relative.
For an adult child, the standard deduction is now between €4,039 and €13,710 per child, varying depending on whether the child lives at home, is also supported by their in-laws etc.
In the case of an elderly parent or grandparent, you can deduct a flat rate of €4,039 from your income for accommodation and food if the relative is living with you. Extra deductions may be available if the parent / grandparent is in financial need and you provide it.
Pioneering preventative HIV treatment
An innovative treatment that prevents HIV infection through regular injections will arrive in France, making it the first country in the EU to fully cover the treatment through national health insurance.
Known as injectable cabotegravir PrEP, the treatment will be marketed in France under the name Apretude, and is available to high-risk individuals as an alternative to oral PrEP, which is taken daily in tablet form.
The medicine is administered by intramuscular injection and provides protection for up to two months, meaning the dosing schedule consists of six injections per year.
Easter holiday dates
French schools will be off for two weeks for the Easter break, with the dates varying according to the academic zones.
There are three academic zones on mainland France, as well as Corsica.
Zone A includes Besançon, Bordeaux, Clermont-Ferrand, Dijon, Grenoble, Limoges, Lyon, and Poitiers, and schools will close for the spring holidays from April 4 to 19.
Zone B includes Aix-Marseille, Amiens, Lille, Nancy-Metz, Nantes, Nice, Normandy, Orléans-Tours, Reims, Rennes, and Strasbourg. Zone B schools will be closed from April 11 to 26.
Zone C schools will take their holidays from April 18 to May 3, and include the academies of Créteil, Montpellier, Paris, Toulouse, and Versailles.
Schools in Corsica will follow the same schedule as Zone B schools on the mainland.
