How your access to the French tax website is changing

France’s tax authority has changed how users access their personal space online since June 25 in a bid to strengthen security. 

Since the deadline for submission of the 2024 income tax return passed in June, users can no longer log on to impots.gouv.fr using just their tax number and password. 

When people receive their avis d’impôt sur les revenus (income tax notice) between July 25 and August 1 they will instead have to connect via the new two-factor authentication system. 

This means they will receive a security code to their email address after entering their 13-digit tax number and password.

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Security code

They must then enter the security code on the authentication screen to access their account. 

The code will be “one-time use only and may be requested again if it does not arrive in the email," the DGFiP said. 

This means users will have to go through the process every time they log on to their personal account. 

The DGFiP has advised people to open two tabs on their browser, using one to access impots.gouv.fr and the other to log into their email account to retrieve the authentication code.

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Check your spam folder

It also advises people to check their spam folder to ensure the code has not ended up there. If you do not receive the code within 30 minutes, you can generate a new one. 

The DGFiP has implemented the new system following an increase in fraudulent login attempts in recent years. A number of phishing scams have impersonated the DGFiP in a bid to gain users’ login details. 

One such scam involves sending users a text message promising a tax refund if they click on the link. When they do, and input their login details, the scammers steal the login information.

Two-factor authentications are increasingly common, often used to access bank accounts and personal spaces on sites such as SNCF. 

The system means that even if scammers have your login details, they will not be able to gain access to your account. 

The DGFiP has urged users to check that the email address associated with their account is up to date, and to increase the login security of that email account, for example by changing the password.

It said users could improve the security of their personal space by adding and validating their phone number 

Users will still be able to use FranceConnect to log into their tax account.