The deadline for tax refunds has passed for many French people. For the rest, be careful, you’ll have to act fast.
If you wanted to report your income for 2023 in paper form, unfortunately it is too late. The deadline was Tuesday, May 21, 2024 at midnight, and a postmark is taken as proof, including taxpayers residing abroad. Therefore, you have no other choice but to switch to online declaration.
The countdown has begun for online registration with deadlines that vary depending on the number of departments:
- Thursday, May 23, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. for departments 01 to 19, as well as for French residents not subject to foreign tax
- Thursday, May 30, 2024 at 23:59 for departments 20 to 54
- Thursday, June 6, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. for departments 55 to 974/976
But what happens if you exceed those deadlines? The penalties start with a 10% increase in your tax amount if you file your return a little late. However, they can disappear quickly if you do not follow the warnings of the tax authorities.
When you receive the official notice, after the silence after the first reminder letter, the increase rises to 20%. Then you have another 30 days to match. Otherwise, expect the penalty to reach 40%. And it’s not over: the tax administration can go so far as to apply an increase of 80%, especially if it discovers an undeclared activity.
In addition to these increases, you will have to pay default interest of 0.20% per month of delay or 2.40% over a year. Even if you are not a taxpayer, failure to report within the prescribed period is severely punished: you risk losing certain tax benefits and social assistance.
So, a tip: don’t wait any longer to report your income for 2023! If you miss the deadlines, your pre-filled declaration will remain available online until the end of June for you to make changes. In addition, it will be necessary to prepare a correct declaration in paper form. The only exception: in the case of bona fide and justified delay, the tax authorities can sometimes be lenient. But it is better not to play with fire and settle your tax obligations on time.
One last important point to make: If you’re one of the millions of tax households who qualify for automatic income reporting, you don’t need to do anything as long as the pre-filled information is correct. This way you avoid any risk of penalty. On the other hand, if you apply after the deadline for changing elements, you will go to the correct declaration, not the late declaration. Here again, edit your file as soon as possible and sleep well!