The rise in French transfer tax to 5%: who applies it, what it costs, until when
A temporary option, voted by almost every département, that spares first-time buyers.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy
The 2025 Finance Act allowed French départements to raise their tax on property sales from 4.50% to 5% for deeds signed between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2028. As of 1 June 2026, according to the DGFiP table, 88 tax areas apply it, eleven départements have stayed at 4.50% and Indre at 3.80%. With the municipal surcharge and the collection fee, the overall rate goes from 5.807 % to 6.319 % of the price. In practice the increase adds €1,280 of tax on a €250,000 resale purchase. A first-time buyer purchasing a main home is exempt and keeps paying 4.50%, with no income condition. Anyone buying a second home in France, including from abroad, pays the full 5% where it applies.
What the rise to 5% costs
Extra cost of the rise
€1,280
| Overall rate applied | 6.319 % |
| Overall rate before the rise | 5.807 % |
| Rise voted? | yes |
What the law says
Article 116 of Law no. 2025-127 of 14 February 2025, the 2025 Finance Act, added an option to the General Tax Code: for deeds signed between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2028, a départemental council may raise its land publicity tax or registration duty to as much as 5%. The measure was designed to shore up départements’ finances after property sales slumped in 2023 and 2024. It leaves the municipal surcharge at 1.20 %, but the State’s collection fee, a percentage of the départemental tax, rises with it automatically.
The text includes one exception: the new rate does not apply when the buyer is a first-time buyer purchasing a main home. The 2026 Finance Act clarified its scope without changing it, and the tax administration published its guidance in June 2026. The definition is the one used for the zero-interest loan: not having owned your main home in the two years before the purchase.
The extra cost by price
| Resale price | Tax at 4.50% | Tax at 5% | Extra cost of the rise |
|---|---|---|---|
| €150,000 | €8,710 | €9,478 | €768 |
| €200,000 | €11,613 | €12,637 | €1,024 |
| €250,000 | €14,517 | €15,796 | €1,280 |
| €300,000 | €17,420 | €18,956 | €1,536 |
| €400,000 | €23,227 | €25,274 | €2,047 |
| €500,000 | €29,033 | €31,593 | €2,559 |
| €750,000 | €43,550 | €47,389 | €3,839 |
The extra cost is strictly proportional to the price: just over 51 euros per €10,000. In absolute terms it weighs more where prices are high, which explains why the big cities voted for it without hesitation. Relative to household savings, it weighs more on first-time buyers purchasing cheaper homes, which explains the exemption.
Those who did not vote for it
Eleven départements still apply 4.50%: Hautes-Alpes, Alpes-Maritimes, Ardèche, Charente, Drôme, Lozère, Oise, Hautes-Pyrénées, Saône-et-Loire, Guadeloupe, Mayotte. Their reasons vary: a stated wish to attract residents, refusal to raise local taxes, markets already under pressure in tourist areas. For a buyer hesitating between two neighbouring areas, the gap is not trivial. Between Alpes-Maritimes and Var, for instance, a €400,000 flat costs €2,047 less tax on the Alpes-Maritimes side. The comparison tool works out this kind of gap.
Before and after 31 March 2028
The window closes on 31 March 2028. From 1 April 2028, unless Parliament extends it, the ceiling goes back to 4.50%. A buyer who could sign either side of that date would save the amount in the table above, provided the market and interest rates stay the same in the meantime, which is a fragile assumption. The date that counts is always that of the final deed.
The first-time buyer exception in practice
The buyer states their situation in the deed: the notary inserts a clause in which you declare that you have not owned your main home in the past two years and undertake to live in the property as your main home. No income or price ceiling applies. Where two people buy together and only one meets the condition, ask the notary how the deed allocates the rate between the buyers. The first-time buyer guide covers these situations and the extra reduction voted by Savoie.