We have seen recently a number of clients be caught out on the above ruling, including those who use an accountant.
If you are tax resident in France, you must declare each year your bank accounts, investment policies and insurance contracts. It does not concern accounts used to make payments for online purchases or deposits relating sales of goods that are less than €10,000 a year for all accounts combined.
You have an obligation to declare every account that was opened closed or used during the year. This will include ‘Assurance Vie’ policies that are not based in France, ie those in Luxembourg or Eire.
We have seen penalties imposed of €1500 per year per account and even taxation of presumed earnings of 40%!! Of course you should know that you need to declare your accounts, something that is often missed when you are busy preparing your tax returns. If you haven’t declared in the past then it is best to contact the tax office directly either through your online portal or at the office and explain that you made an error. These penalties are coming about due to information sharing between tax jurisdictions so if in doubt check with your tax office!
A useful link in English explains your obligations and there is a specific CERFA form 3916 which you can download from the French Impot website:
