You must file a tax return if:

• you live in France for more than six months per year
• your main professional activity is in France
• you turned 18 last year and you are no longer on your parents' declaration
• your economic activities are in France (investments or company headquarters)
• you live abroad, but your income comes from France.

The tax service (also called "tax administration", or "fisc") needs to calculate whether you have to pay taxes, and if so, how much you will pay. To do this, you must “declare” all the money you received in an official declaration.

• If you are married or in a civil partnership and/or if you have dependent children, all the money received must be in the same declaration: you must make only one income tax declaration per tax household.
• If you are cohabiting (you live together without being married or in a civil partnership), you must declare each one separately, in two separate declarations.

Every year the calendar is the same:

• In the spring, between April and June, you declare the income of the previous year (the year ended). This declaration allows you to calculate the taxes you will pay.
• In the summer, between July and August, you receive your income “tax notice”. This is "regularization": the calculation between what you have already paid (deducted at source) and what you still have to pay, or what will be reimbursed if you have paid too much.

You will receive the document in April by mail if you chose the paper declaration. You must then make the declaration online.

If this is the first time you declare your income on paper:

If you have not received a paper declaration by mail, you can download the form for the 2023 income tax return or take it from the Public Finance Center (personal tax service) near you.

• Check the “you are filing a declaration for the first time” box
• Fill in your details on page 1
• Specify your family situation and, if you have children, the year of birth with their first and last names on page 2
• If you had income in 2023 (salary, allowances, etc.), write the amount on page 3. If you received nothing, write "0".

To prove your address , you must send supporting documents depending on your situation:

• If you are a tenant, send a copy of the rental contract and a rent receipt (to be requested from the owner) for the months of December 2023 and January 2024.
• If you have a domiciliation address, send a domiciliation certificate which covers the year 2023 to today.
  > Read: the Réfugiés.info sheet “ Having a postal address ”
• If you are staying with someone, you must ask that person to complete the certificate on page 5 and give you a copy of their identity card and a copy of their rental contract or their title deed.

To check your administrative and family situation, you must attach a copy of your residence permit, that of your spouse and a copy of the family record book if you have one.

> To read: the Réfugiés.info sheet “ Having a family record book ”

If this is the first time you declare your income online:

You must first request a “ tax number ” at the counter of your public finance center . This tax number is a personal, unique number that you keep for the rest of your life.

• You must communicate this information:
  - Name, first name, postal address, email address
  - Copy of your identity document (receipt or valid residence permit)
• Once your identity has been verified, the administration will send you an email telling you that you can create your own space with your tax number and your date of birth on impots.gouv.fr
• You must then write your email address and choose a password. You then receive an email containing a link which you must click, within 8 hours, to activate your particular space.

Log in to your personal space on impots.gouv.fr and click on “Declare my income” :

• Check “you are filing a declaration for the first time”
• Fill in your details on page 1
• Specify your family situation and, if you have children, the year of birth with their first and last names on page 2
• If you had income in 2023 (salary, allowances, etc.), write the amount on page 3. If you received nothing, write "0".

To prove your address, you must send supporting documents depending on your situation:

• If you are a tenant, send a copy of the rental contract and a rent receipt (to be requested from the owner) for the months of December 2023 and January 2024.
• If you have a domiciliation address, send a domiciliation certificate which covers the year 2023 to today.
• If you are staying with someone, you must ask that person to complete the certificate on page 5 and give you a copy of their identity card and a copy of their rental contract or their title deed.

To check your administrative and family situation, you must attach a copy of your residence permit, that of your spouse and a copy of the family record book if you have one.

If you have already declared your income:

You can log in to impots.gouv.fr using your tax number or your France Connect account and fill in the requested information.

> To read: the Réfugiés.info sheet “ Connect to a site with France Connect ”

The declaration is generally already pre-filled, meaning that companies, temp agencies, France Travail (formerly Pôle Emploi), etc. have already sent the information directly to the tax service.

• Check if everything is correct: for employees and temporary workers, look at the “net taxable amount” at the bottom of the pay slip for December of the previous year (the year ended).
• Also check marital status information and dependent children.
• Add missing information if the administration has forgotten elements or if there are errors.
• Please note: if you have earned money from a self-employed activity, you must also complete income tax declaration no. 2042-C Pro ("micro-entrepreneur having opted for the withholding tax on the income” OR “professional industrial and commercial income / BIC micro regime” OR “professional non-commercial income / BNC micro regime” depending on your situation). Declare the amount written on the 2023 tax certificate available on your autoentrepreneur.urssaf account. Fr.
  
  > Read: the Réfugiés.info sheet “ Becoming self-employed ”, particularly the “Pay taxes” section at the bottom of the page.

• If everything is ok, you have two options:
  - Do nothing and wait to receive the declaratory situation notice in summer.
  - Complete and validate your declaration and at the end, you can download your declaration situation notice. During the reporting period, you can correct your tax return online as many times as you want, even after signing.

The deadline is different if you make your declaration on paper or online:

• The deadline for sending your declaration is written on the document, generally between the end of May and the beginning of June.
• You have more time if you complete the declaration online.

At the end of your 2023 income declaration, you will be able to know the withholding tax rate that will apply to your income from September 2024: that is to say the percentage of your salary that will be withheld.

You will receive a very important document called a "tax notice"  

• by mail if you sent the declaration in paper and do not have special space
• to download on your personal space if you made the declaration on the internet.

Many administrations and public services use this document to carry out procedures (CAF aid, bank account, social housing, etc.). Banks need it if you apply for credit.

If you are non-taxable (you do not pay taxes), you will need it to apply for social assistance.

Throughout the year, every month, taxes are deducted directly from the salary, before the money arrives in your bank account. The exact amount is indicated on the pay slip.

If you have to pay more, the tax notice specifies how much you have to pay and by what date.

The workers self-employed people (for example, self-employed people ) have several solutions to pay their taxes:

• If you have chosen the final payment of income tax, you pay taxes and social security contributions at the same time on your autoentrepreneur.urssaf.fr account.
• if you have not chosen the final payment of income tax, and if you are employed and self-employed at the same time, you pay your taxes by automatic debit from your bank account.

> Read: the Réfugiés.info sheet “ Becoming self-employed ”, particularly the “Pay taxes” section at the bottom of the page.

You must check your tax return each year and report any changes to:

• contact details (address, email, telephone number, RIB)
• family situation (marriage or PACS, divorce or end of PACS, death of husband/wife or PACS partner, birth of a child).

These changes may modify withholding taxes.

Connect to your particular space on impots.gouv , section “Manage my withholding tax” and “Report a change”.

The withholding tax rate is the percentage (%) of your income taken directly from your salary.
It is calculated by the tax department according to your situation and appears in your personal space on impots.gouv.fr , under the heading "Manage my withholding tax".

You have the possibility to change it with 2 options:

• If there is a big difference in income between the 2 people in a tax household, the withholding rate can be individualized (each person with a different rate) instead of the single rate (same rate for both people). The rates are calculated by the tax department.
• If you are an employee and you do not want to communicate your individualized deduction rate to your employer, you can choose a "neutral" rate (= not personalized). The tax department then calculates the difference during the adjustment.

Good to know: If you do not wish to change your direct debit rate, you have no action to take on your particular space.
The tax department will calculate and use it automatically.

If you have any questions, you can call the tax information service on 0809 401 401.
Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. (except during bank holidays).

Good to know: Before calling, take your tax number next to you. It will be asked to find your file and give you a precise answer.