High-income top-up tax deadline for French households is December 15
Wealthy households must make advance payment before final amounts calculated via spring tax return
The tax is paid online through a person’s personal space on the French tax website
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High-income households in France impacted by a new tax have until December 15, 2025 to pay the majority of the expected amount online.
Households whose adjusted taxable income exceeds the high-income thresholds must pay an advance payment equaling an estimated 95% of the final tax amount, based on current and expected income from 2025 (including an estimation of income from December 2025).
The Contribution Différentielle sur les Hauts Revenus (CDHR) included in the delayed 2025 budget saw a new temporary rule to ensure households with annual income above a certain level faced a minimum overall income tax rate of 20%.
It applies to individuals with an expected net taxable income level (revenu fiscal de référence) of €250,000, or €500,000 for a joint-income household.
How is payment made?
The payment is made online via a user’s personal space on the French tax site impots.gouv.fr, in the ‘Prélèvement à la source’ section.
Households must also declare their estimated income for the year, separate from the full tax return for the 2025 tax year in spring 2026.
A link to an online government simulator to help estimate 2025 income can be found on the Finance Ministry press release about the tax.
This advance payment will be credited against the tax due for the 2025 tax year calculated during next spring’s income return.
If the advance payment exceeds the tax due next year, it will be proportionally refunded.
However, if there is still any amount left to pay, this difference will be included as part of the household’s 2025 income tax.
Despite the deadline of December 15, high-income households have only been able to submit the payment since December 1.
Authorities say that “no penalties will be applied to taxpayers acting in good faith”.
Anyone with questions is asked to direct their queries towards tax authorities via secure private messaging in their personal space on the French tax site, or to call 0 809 401 401 (from inside France only).
Original plans in the 2026 draft budget see the exceptional tax extended into next year.
