How much has the ‘rubbish bin’ tax for French homes risen this year?
In line with rises in the taxe foncière across France, the taxe sur les ordures ménagères , which pays for bin collection, has risen too. We look at how much it has risen and why.
The bin collection tax is not proportional to the waste collected, but to the value of the property.Krzysztof Pazdalski / Shutterstock
As French property taxes rise, so too does the bin collection tax. Here is our look at why this happens and how it affects you.
Bin collection in most of France is paid for by the taxe sur les ordures ménagères, which is levied by each commune along with the taxe fonciere. Some places, such as Besancon, use a different system based on a flat rate redevance.
This year has seen the taxe foncière rise across the board in France, in the biggest increase since 1986.
The theoretical rental value of properties is calculated using an index of the global value of consumer prices. Increases in these values over the past have led to a 7.1% increase in theoretical rental value.
In addition, the removal of the taxe d’habitation for first homes has meant that many communes have less money at their disposal.
This has driven some communes to increase their bin collection rate to keep up with expenses, particularly communes in urban areas where public utilities (and costs) are shared with other communes via an Établissement public de coopération intercommunale or EPCI.
This tax is not dependent on the service delivered or on the quantity of waste collected. So even if you do not use the service you must pay the tax.
However, if you are absent from your home for more than three consecutive months for reasons outside of your control, you can ask the local centre des finances publiques for a reduction.
