Bank account – Taxes

It is very difficult to open a bank account in France from abroad. You can ask your usual bank if they have a branch or partner bank in France and start the procedure.

Otherwise, once you have arrived, we will give you our local contacts in different banks that can welcome you in English.

HOW TO HANDLE TAX INCOME IN FRANCE ?

In France, income tax is usually deducted from your salary each month according to a personalised rate (the PAS-prélèvement à la source).
However all incomes must be declared once a year in May to the fiscal administration so they check your global tax situation and if your PAS rate is well adjusted.

We inform/remind you sometime in April about submitting your tax report with an updated guide (see below). If needed, we can also help you filling it in, in the limit of our knowledge.

Remain vigilant when the period of incomes declaration starts in May, as it ‘s a mandatory administrative step.

-> IF YOU ARRIVED IN FRANCE IN 2024 or BEFORE : you must do a tax declaration in May 2025.

Here is what you need to read if you have earned French income in 2024 (salary, unemployement benefit, grants..).

• If in April-May 2025 you are about to fill your FIRST tax declaration : download the form “Formulaire 2042: Déclaration de revenus” (MILLESIME 2025) available here. THE APPROPRIATE FORM 2042 WILL BE AVAILABLE ON APRIL 22ND ! Do not download the 2024 Millesime form, it is done to calculate the 2023 incomes. So it would be the wrong form !
  
  Fill your form on its PAPER version, and according to informations presented in the PDF document above.
  YOUR PAPER DECLARATION MUST BE SENT by post BY MAY 2Oth 2025 at the latest !
  
  
• If in April-May 2025, you are about to fill a tax declaration for the second time or more: you can not submit a paper version, it’s an online process. Go to your personal account on the tax website here , check the online form that the fiscal administration has already prepared for you based on your employer’s declaration, confirm by a click that the pre-filled document is correct, and that’s it !
  DEADLINE FOR ONLINE DECLARATION CHECKING IS MAY 28th 2025
  
  

-> IF YOU ARRIVED IN FRANCE IN 2025:

The only formality you need to take care by the end of the year is to request the creation of your personal tax number to the Tax Administration. To do so, you need to fill in the Cerfa form N°2043 and go to the local Nantes tax office to ask for the creation of your tax number. Go with your residence permit, your passport, proof of housing, work contract and last payslip.

Creation of your tax number is useful to :

– ask for a personalized withholding tax rate (PAS), to avoid overpayment or lack of payment from your salary each month by the tax Office.

– open your personal account online on the official page here, in order to manage your taxes and declare your incomes online in May each year, from the 2nd year (first declaration has to be done paper version).

However, we recommend you’d rater wait to do your first declaration to have this number created then. Fill up the 2043 form and go to the tax office only if the tax number creation is absolutely necessary.

More information about income tax here (in French).