French General Tax Code
In forceI.-Individuals domiciled in France for tax purposes within the meaning of l'article 4 B who benefit from interest, arrears and income of any kind from state funds, bonds, participating securities, bills and other debt securities, deposits, guarantees and current accounts, as well as interest paid in respect of sums made available to the company of which they are a partner or shareholder and held in an individual blocked account, are subject to a levy when the person who ensures the payment of this income is established in France, whether or not it is the debtor, the latter being established in France or outside France.
For the calculation of this levy, the income mentioned in the first paragraph is retained for its gross amount.
The levy is carried out by the debtor or by the person who ensures payment of the income.
However, natural persons belonging to a tax household whose reference tax income for the penultimate year, as defined in 1° of IV of article 1417, is less than €25,000 for single, divorced or widowed taxpayers and less than €50,000 for taxpayers subject to joint taxation may request exemption from this levy under the conditions provided for in article 242 quater.
I bis.-(Repealed).
II.-A levy is compulsorily applicable to income from savings products donated to an organisation mentioned in 1 of l'article 200 as part of a so-called "solidarity" mechanism of automatic payment to the beneficiary organisation by the savings fund manager.
The foreign-source income mentioned in the first paragraph is withheld for its gross amount. The tax withheld at source is deducted from the levy up to the limit of the tax credit to which it gives entitlement, under the conditions laid down by international agreements.
II bis.-(Repealed)
III.-A levy is compulsorily applicable to the income and products mentioned in I and II, whose debtor is established or domiciled in France and which are paid outside France, in a non-cooperative State or territory within the meaning of article 238-0 A other than those mentioned in 2° of 2 bis of the same article 238-0 A, unless the debtor demonstrates that the transactions to which this income and proceeds correspond mainly have a purpose and effect other than to allow the localisation of this income and proceeds in a non-cooperative State or territory.
The first paragraph of this III applies regardless of the status of the beneficiary of said income and proceeds and the place of his tax domicile or registered office.
The withholding tax applied in accordance with 1 of article 119 bis is, where applicable, deducted from the levy mentioned in the first paragraph.
III bis.-The rate of the levy is set at 12.8%.
However, this rate is set at:
1° 5% for income from savings products subject to compulsory levy pursuant to II;
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2° 75% for income and products compulsorily subject to the levy pursuant to III.
IV.-The levies provided for in I and II do not apply to interest and other income exempt from income tax pursuant to article 157.
V.-1. The levy provided for in I is not in full discharge of the income tax established under the conditions provided for in 1 or 2 of article 200 A or, where applicable, in accordance with the provisions specific to industrial and commercial profits, non-commercial profits and agricultural profits and due on the basis of the income to which this levy has been applied.
This levy is deducted from the income tax due for the year in which it was applied. If it exceeds the tax due, the excess is refunded.
2. The deductions provided for in II and III release the income to which they apply from income tax.
The nature of the deduction in full discharge of income tax is as follows The flat-rate nature of the levy cannot be invoked for products which are taken into account to determine the taxable profit of an industrial, commercial, craft or agricultural business, or a non-commercial profession.
VI.-The terms and conditions for the application of this article are set by decree.
