France Law and Practice

A Bare Summary, as at 1 January 2026

This document is provided for general guidance only and does not constitute legal, tax or fiduciary advice. Estate planning is bespoke to each individual, and professional advice tailored to your specific circumstances and relevant jurisdictions should always be obtained. Laws and regulations may change from time to time, and reliance should not be placed on this document without appropriate professional confirmation.

1. In Case of Mental and/or Physical Incapacity

In France you may choose to establish a “future protection mandate” (un mandat de protection future). This is a legal document which allows you to designate a trusted individual such as a family member or friend, or a registered professional (such as a notary or lawyer), who will represent your interests if you lose the capacity to do so yourself. If such a time comes, a medical certificate will be submitted to the Court, which will endorse the mandate allowing your chosen representative(s) to take charge of your financial affairs and/or personal welfare. You may select separate representatives for these respective responsibilities. The mandate is to be drawn up while you are in good health and can be signed either privately (sous seing privé) or in front of a notary
(acte notarié).

Separately, you could prepare a document to record advance care instructions (directives anticipées), setting out your wishes for medical treatment under various possible circumstances. These instructions should clearly be approved by your doctor and can also be registered in your online health system account (https://www.monespacesante.fr/).

Templates for a future protection mandate (form Cerfa 13592*04) and an advance care plan are available online (https://www.service-public.fr).

2. Death/Estate Taxes

It should be noted that a system of forced heirship (réserve héréditaire) applies under French law and takes precedence over a will. This means that a portion of the death estate must be shared equally between the children of the deceased: 1/2 of the estate if there is one child, 2/3 if there are
two children, and 3/4 in the case of three or more children. Only the remaining portion of the estate (known as the quotité disponible) can be bequeathed to other beneficiaries.

In France, death taxes are levied on the beneficiaries of the estate, not upon the estate itself. The rate of tax applied (droits de succession) depends on the relationship between the beneficiary and the deceased, as do any tax-free allowances. For example, spouses and civil partners benefit from a 100% exemption, ie. they are not liable to any death tax on the first to die. An allowance of €100,000 per parent per child is available; € 15,932 to siblings; € 7,967 to nieces and nephews; and € 1,594 to other beneficiaries.

Above any allowances or exemptions, direct line heirs are taxed on a sliding scale, the first € 8,072 being taxed at 5% which increases in stages up to everything above € 1,805,677 being taxed at the highest applicable rate of 45%. Siblings are subject to 35% on inheritance up to € 24,430 and 45%
thereafter, while relatives such as grandchildren/cousins/nieces/nephews are subject to a flat rate of 55%. Beneficiaries who do not fall under these categories, including long-term partners who are not married or in a civil partnership, are taxed at a punitive rate of 60%.

Lifetime gifts made within 15 years of a death use up the recipient’s tax-free allowance and the lower tax brackets, so that the death estate is taxed at the rates applicable to the total value of gifts and inheritances received.

France has a very widely used system of life insurance policies (assurance-vie). These form an important element of estate planning. Life insurance payouts are not treated as part of the death estate and benefit from favourable allowances and tax rates. In particular, where premiums are paid before the age of 70, payouts exceeding a generous tax-free allowance of € 152,500 are taxed at a flat rate of 20% (31.25% above € 700,000).

3. The Probate Procedure

It is common practice for wills, which are traditionally handwritten, to be lodged at the central registry of wills during the lifetime of the testator. This is a means of avoiding disputes after his death.

Prior to initiating the probate process (known as the homologation in France), the death must be registered at the local town hall (mairie) within 24 hours, and a death certificate issued. A notary will usually (note, not obligatorily) then be appointed to identify the assets and liabilities, establish
the legal heirs and manage the division of the estate.

A déclaration de succession”, i.e. the equivalent of UK inheritance tax account must be submitted, and the tax paid simultaneously, no later than six months after the death (twelve months if the death occurred outside France).

A return may not be required in some cases e.g. when the estate is small (less than € 5,000) or does not include any real estate.

4. Landed Property Law

In France, land can be owned outright (pleine propriété) meaning the owner enjoys the rights to use, collect revenue from, mortgage and sell the property.

Land can also be held under a so-called dismemberment arrangement (a usufruct) whereby a distinction is made in law between the person who owns the freehold and the person who has the right to enjoyment of the property during their lifetime.

Joint ownership in France is also possible (known as en indivision), whereby two or more individuals each own a specified proportion of the property.

For succession purposes, a property owned outright by an individual, or the deceased’s share of a property owned jointly, forms part of his or her estate and is distributed to heirs in accordance with French forced heirship law. Where there is a surviving spouse occupying the property as their main home, and where the deceased individually or the spouses jointly were the sole owners, and all surviving children are from within the marriage, the surviving spouse may choose between taking a usufruct over the property or full ownership in 1/4 of the property. Where the deceased leaves children from outside the marriage, only the latter option is available.

An alternative joint ownership structure is referred to as “en tontine”, under which the surviving co-owner(s) automatically acquire full ownership of the property upon the first death. Such an arrangement must be explicitly established in the purchase deed.

A property may also be owned via a Société Civile Immobilière (SCI), a civil company designed to hold real estate as an alternative to direct ownership. An SCI must draw up statutes and keep accounting records, but provided it does not engage in commercial activity such as furnished letting, it is transparent for French tax purposes and not subject to corporation tax. It is therefore a suitable structure for private or family use.

1 January 2026