Financial News
- 6 July 2012, 9:21
French Government Plans Holiday Homes Tax
Ministers are poised to challenge a tax grab on British owners of holiday homes in France, it has emerged.
President Francois Hollande wants to hike taxes on foreign-owned second homes as part of his plans to kickstart the nation's faltering economy.
It follows similar proposals, which Britain opposed, made under former president Nicolas Sarkozy, The Daily Telegraph claims.
Tax on rental income would rise from 20% to 35.5%, applied retrospectively from January 1, and capital gains tax on property sales would rise from 19% to 34.5% from the end of this month, it reported.
The Treasury said it had only seen the details of the plan on Wednesday but would challenge it if it was found to go against EU rules.
"We will need to study the details," a source said. "But we will of course challenge any proposal which breaches European single market laws and anti-discrimination rules."
what do you think?
Allan Evans
Isn't it amazing....The French can increase taxes on the well-heeled British second home owners while our goverment reduce their tax bill! Just to rub salt in the wound, our treasury are going to challenge it.....I assume on behalf of these Tory voters.
bobh_385
Not everyone with a home in France is well heeled.I know of people that have bought derelict buildings,renovated them and made them habitable much to the improvement of the French countryside.They bought these buildings for about the same price as a garden shed.It looks to me that the French are making the same mistake as the Spanish and will destroy their property market
Ben Ralph
bravo to the French for implementing an idea I have said should of been done over here years ago. Why allow people second homes that rarely get used when people who grew up in those communities can't afford to live there coz of prices being artificially lifted. Increase council tax on second homes, too.
jimmyjedi1979
Tax the rich and our government won't stand for it!
Chris Robinson
Good. Why shouldn't those who have more money, pay more tax? The Tories will try and portray this as discrimination and drum up a head of steam about the French having a go at the British - I don't think so.
David Wragg
I am a Tory, but I will simply say that what the French do in their own country is entirely up to them. I also accept that second home owners should pay their share of taxes in our own country rather than getting a discount on council tax. I also agree that many second home purchases do force up the price of property out of reach of the locals, and one solution is to do as they do in Guernsey and have 'local' and 'open' market properties. Obviously those who have restored run-down properties should be treated more favourably.
Windows Live User
Good accountants will soon come up with a scheme that neatly avoids paying such tax
happymike CHESTER
I am sure the farming labourers and families in our villages who have being shoved out by the yuppy second home brigade will welcome this move .The taxes should be double for part time villagers.
stephen
well done France
Chloe Williams
A British citizen who currently brings BACK to the UK 80 out of every 100 euros received in rent will soon only be able to bring back 65. That's nearly 20% less cash coming back to the UK to spend in our shops and on our services. I think the British government would be remiss NOT to see if it can legally challenge this for everyone's benefit
Stephen Deal
6:42am on 5/7/2012
How can our, totally inept, government try and interfere with another country's taxation system? If the French had said any British owners of second homes would face the tax hike but noone else, they maybe some justification but that's not what has been proposed. Maybe we should look into how many of our MP's have homes in France, then there maybe an answer as to why our government are interfering.