Capital gains tax in France 2026: shares, crypto and property

Last reviewed: November 2026 · Reviewed by Stéphane Gombauld, tax expert, technologist and digital nomad

You hold shares, ETFs, crypto or property, and you live in France or plan to. After this guide, you will know what each sale costs in 2026, which exemptions apply and where the traps sit for people who move.

France capital gains tax in 2026: the key figures

What changed for 2026

• Social levies rose to 18.6% on investment income received in 2026, up from 17.2% for 2025 income. The flat tax on share gains is therefore 31.4%, not 30% (Service-Public F2329). Property gains, life insurance and home-savings plans stay at 17.2%.
• You can now withdraw the progressive-scale option. From 2026 income (return filed in 2027), you can renounce the option if it turns out worse, within the reassessment period (Service-Public F21618).
• Crypto rules aligned with MiCA. Art. 150 VH bis CGI now refers to crypto-assets under EU Regulation 2023/1114, in a version in force since 1 July 2026. A new art. 150 VH ter taxes unique NFTs like the asset they represent, for sales from 1 January 2026.

Is this guide for you?

Read on if you…

• are French tax resident and sell shares, ETFs or crypto;
• own French property, as a resident or from abroad;
• plan to move to or leave France with an investment portfolio.

Probably not your case if you…

• only hold a French life insurance policy (assurance vie), which has its own withdrawal rules;
• trade professionally, so your gains are business profits rather than private gains.

How are shares, funds and ETFs taxed in France?

French residents pay the prélèvement forfaitaire unique (PFU, single flat-rate levy) on investment income. For 2026 it totals 31.4%: 12.8% income tax and 18.6% social levies, as confirmed on Service-Public.

Your gain is the sale price minus the purchase price and fees. Here's the catch: losses never reduce your salary or other income. They offset gains of the same type in the same year. The excess carries forward for the following 10 years.

Should you opt for the progressive scale?

You can tick one box to tax all your investment income at the progressive income tax scale instead. The option is global for the year: dividends, interest and gains all follow it.

In practice, it pays off when your marginal rate is 0% or 11%. It can also help if you hold shares bought before 1 January 2018, which keep a holding-period allowance under the scale. Social levies of 18.6% stay due on the full gain either way.

Good news for 2026: if the option backfires, you can now withdraw it after filing.

What about the PEA?

The plan d'épargne en actions (PEA, equity savings plan) caps deposits at EUR 150,000, per Service-Public F2385. With a PEA-PME-ETI on top, the two plans together cap at EUR 225,000. Withdrawals after the fifth year are free of income tax. Social levies remain due on the gains.

A withdrawal before five years generally closes the plan, with limited exceptions such as dismissal or disability. The PEA holds European shares and funds invested mainly in European equities.

How is crypto taxed in France?

Occasional investors fall under art. 150 VH bis CGI. The gain is taxed at a flat 12.8% under art. 200 C CGI, plus social levies. You can instead make an express and irrevocable option for the progressive scale on your return.

Three rules decide your bill:

1. Taxable event. A sale for euros or another fiat currency, or a payment for goods and services, is taxable.
2. Swaps are deferred. Exchanges between crypto-assets without a cash balance are not taxed in the year of the swap.
3. Portfolio formula. The gain is the sale price minus a share of your total purchase cost. That share equals the sale's weight in the whole portfolio's value.

If your total crypto sales stay at or below EUR 305 in the year, you are exempt. Crypto losses only offset crypto gains of the same year. Professional-scale trading is taxed as business income instead.

How are property gains taxed?

A second home or rental sold by an individual bears 19% income tax plus 17.2% social levies. The notary computes the gain, files the return and pays the tax at closing (Service-Public F10864).

Holding-period relief reduces the taxable gain:

A surtax of 2% to 6% applies when the taxable gain exceeds EUR 50,000. It does not hit building land or exempt sales. Your main residence on the day of sale is fully exempt, including cellars, garages and parking spaces.

What changes if you are not a French resident?

French property

Non-residents pay 19% on French property gains, wherever they live, per impots.gouv.fr. Social levies are 17.2%. People insured in an EEA country, Switzerland or the UK pay only the 7.5% solidarity levy.

Two reliefs help former residents:

• Former main home. Fully exempt under art. 244 bis A I CGI if you sell by 31 December of the year after you leave. The home must have stayed free for your use, and you must live in an EU state or a country with a tax assistance agreement with France.
• EUR 150,000 relief. EU or EEA nationals who were French tax resident for at least two continuous years can exempt up to EUR 150,000 of net gain on one home (art. 150 U II 2° CGI). Sell by 31 December of the tenth year after leaving, or at any time if you have had free use of it since 1 January of the year before the sale. The two reliefs cannot be combined.

French shares

Non-residents are taxed in France only on substantial holdings. Under art. 244 bis B CGI, that means the family held more than 25% of the company's profits within the last five years. The rate is 12.8% for individuals. Residents of a non-cooperative state pay 75% regardless of stake.

Treaties often shift the right to tax to your new country. Check France's international tax treaties before selling.

Moving in and moving out

Gains you realise before your French residence starts are outside French tax. Leaving is different. The exit tax taxes unrealised gains when you were resident at least six of the last ten years and hold at least EUR 800,000 of shares, or 50% of a company's profits. You report it on form 2074-ETD. Our guide to ceasing your tax residency in France walks through the deferral options.

Comparing destinations? See capital gains taxation in Malta and capital gains tax in Austria.

How can you pay less, legally?

1. Use a PEA for European shares and funds, and leave it untouched past five years.
2. Realise losses before 31 December to offset same-year gains, then carry the rest forward.
3. Watch the property calendar. Income tax ends after 22 years, social levies after 30.
4. Time your arrival. Sell appreciated assets before your French residence starts.
5. Test the progressive option if your marginal rate is low, knowing you can now withdraw it.
6. Check the impatriate regime. Newly recruited employees may exempt 50% of certain foreign gains, see our guide to tax incentives for expats and digital nomads in France.

Common mistakes (and what they cost)

• Forgetting foreign broker or exchange accounts. Each undeclared foreign account costs EUR 1,500, and EUR 10,000 in a country without a tax-fraud assistance agreement with France (Service-Public F31443).
• Ticking the progressive option by reflex. It applies to all investment income of the year and can cost far more at a 30% or 41% marginal rate.
• Assuming every crypto swap is taxed, or none is. Swaps are deferred, but any sale into euros triggers tax on the portfolio formula.
• Renting out your former home before selling. It stops being your main residence, so the gain loses the full exemption.
• Leaving France without checking the exit tax. Large holdings trigger tax on gains you never cashed, plus filing duties for years.

Frequently asked questions

What is the capital gains tax rate in France in 2026?

For shares, bonds and funds held by residents, the rate is 31.4%: 12.8% income tax plus 18.6% social levies. Property gains bear 19% income tax plus 17.2% levies, reduced by holding-period relief, with a 2% to 6% surtax above EUR 50,000. Crypto gains bear 12.8% income tax plus social levies. You can opt for the progressive scale instead.

Is the sale of my main home taxed in France?

No. The gain on the home that is your main residence on the day of sale is fully exempt, whatever the amount. The exemption also covers attached cellars, garages and parking spaces. Second homes and rentals are taxed. Non-residents selling a former main home have their own exemption if they sell by 31 December of the year after leaving.

How long do I need to own property to avoid French capital gains tax?

Income tax disappears after 22 years of ownership and social levies after 30 years. Relief starts in the sixth year: 6% per year for income tax and 1.65% per year for levies. Between years 23 and 30, the levy relief accelerates to 9% per year. Before six years, there is no relief at all.

Do I pay French tax when I swap one crypto for another?

Not in the year of the swap. Exchanges between crypto-assets without a cash balance are deferred under art. 150 VH bis CGI. Tax arises when you sell for fiat currency or pay for goods and services. The gain uses a portfolio formula. If your total yearly sales stay at or below EUR 305, you owe nothing.

Do non-residents pay capital gains tax in France?

On French property, yes: 19% income tax plus 17.2% levies, or a 7.5% solidarity levy if you are insured in the EEA, Switzerland or the UK. On French shares, only substantial holdings above 25% are taxed, at 12.8%, and treaties may override this. Gains on foreign assets are outside French tax.

Can I cut French capital gains tax by moving abroad?

For most financial assets, future gains leave French tax once you are non-resident. Check the exit tax first if you hold EUR 800,000 of shares or 50% of a company. French property stays taxable in France wherever you live. Your new country may also tax the gain, so model both sides before moving.

Related guides

• How to become French tax resident: your move plan
• How to cease French tax residency and handle the exit tax
• Specific taxes in France: IFI, property and transfer taxes
• Tax incentives for expats and digital nomads in France
• France's international tax treaties
• France tax landscape overview
• All country tax guides

Sources

• Plus-values de cession de valeurs mobilières – Service-Public.fr (French administration)
• Prélèvements sociaux sur les revenus du patrimoine et de placement – Service-Public.fr
• Plus-value immobilière – Service-Public.fr
• Plan d'épargne en actions (PEA) – Service-Public.fr
• Plus-values immobilières des non-résidents – impots.gouv.fr (DGFiP)
• Exit tax – impots.gouv.fr (DGFiP)
• Article 150 VH bis CGI – Légifrance
• Article 244 bis B CGI – Légifrance

This guide is general information, not personalised tax advice. See how we research and review.