Renting out a furnished holiday let in France: what you need to declare

Reader question: If I choose to rent out my property in France as a furnished holiday letting do I need to let anyone know, as well as just declaring the additional income on my taxes?

Answer: There are some important steps required to declare a property as a furnished holiday let (meublé de tourisme).

As a reminder, a property of this type is a fully-furnished unit that is rented out exclusively for holiday lets (fewer than 90 days per renter at a time, to a person who is not planning to use it as their main home for the year). 

Note that tenants must obtain authorisation from their landlords to sublet a property as a holiday rental, and in any case where a building is in a coproprieté (typical for flats) it is also necessary to check it does not go against regulations for the copropriété (if in doubt, check with your syndic). 

Aside from this the first step is to inform the mairie about the letting. 

In many cases the request can be made and submitted online here otherwise the information can be printed out and sent in.

If you are renting out all or part of your own main home, you are mostly exempt from the declaration, but some mairies, especially certain large cities, still require a declaration in this scenario.

Several, such as Paris, have additional rules, so always check the full local rules in your area with the mairie. 

Limits on the number of days you can rent the property may be in place, and there is a maximum 120-day limit for renting your main home out this way. 

Another obligatory formality for those letting out a furnished rental is obtaining a Siret (système d'Identification du répertoire des établissements) number – a tax identification number for businesses – via the guichet des formalités des entreprises (GFE) website. 

In most cases people carrying out a moderate level of furnished rental activity are not seen as professionals in the field and do not have to pay business social charges, in which case you need to set up as loueur en meublé non-professionnel. 

This is a streamlined process to make it easier for holiday rental owners to start their business, that also allows them to declare what tax regime they plan to use. 

The micro-Bic system gives a flat allowance on taxable income for expenses, whereas the réel system involves keeping all receipts and declaring ‘real’ expenses. 

The latter must be used if certain micro-Bic income thresholds are passed.

It is your choice whether you also wish to apply for classification of the property under the star-rating system, although doing so can see taxable income exemptions increase and may bring more business to your rental.

Further information on holiday lets is available in our tax guide.