Since 2023, the French taxe d'habitation applies only to second homes. An apartment in a ski resort that you keep for your own use, even if it is let part of the year, remains liable, wherever you live, and some municipalities vote a surcharge of between 5% and 60%. Here is who pays, how it is calculated, and what changes depending on how you let.
A tax that survives only on second homes
The taxe d'habitation on main residences was phased out for all households by 2023. It survives in a single form: the tax on second homes, known in French as the THRS.
It covers furnished dwellings that are not the main residence of their occupant, together with their outbuildings. According to the French tax administration, the DGFiP, around 3 million properties were taxed on this basis in 2024.
Living abroad changes nothing here: the tax attaches to the property, not to the owner's country of residence.
Who pays, and on what date
The tax is due by the person who has the use or enjoyment of the dwelling on 1 January of the tax year. For a resort apartment, that is in practice the owner, as long as the owner is able to occupy the property.
The situation is assessed on 1 January. Whatever changes during the year counts for the following year.
How it is calculated
The tax is based on the cadastral rental value of the dwelling and its outbuildings, multiplied by the rates voted by the local authorities.
No allowance applies to second homes. The payment deadline appears on your notice, which is made available online in your personal account on impots.gouv.fr at the end of the year.
The surcharge: 5% to 60% depending on the municipality
In municipalities located in designated high-pressure housing zones, the municipal council can vote a surcharge on the municipal share of the tax, of between 5% and 60%. Article 1407 ter of the French tax code allows it.
According to the DGFiP, 1,666 municipalities apply a surcharge in 2026, out of 3,689 municipalities eligible for the scheme.
We do not publish the position of each Tarentaise municipality here: the decision belongs to each municipal council and can change from one year to the next. The reliable reflex is to read your notice, where the surcharge appears when it exists, and to check the municipality's zoning with the simulator on service-public.fr.
Holiday letting: the question that decides everything
Does an apartment let as a furnished holiday rental remain liable to the taxe d'habitation? The answer turns on one notion: the personal use you reserve for yourself.
If the property is let all year round, with no personal use at all, you are not liable for the taxe d'habitation. The furnished letting activity then falls under the business property tax, the CFE.
If you reserve the property for part of the year, to stay in it or lend it, the taxe d'habitation remains due. It is due even if the property happens to be let on 1 January: the Conseil d'État ruled so in 2007, and the tax administration's published doctrine expressly restates it.
The two can therefore add up. A furnished-rental owner who keeps the use of the property can receive, in the same year, a CFE notice and a taxe d'habitation notice.
The occupancy declaration, a habit to keep
Owners declare the occupancy of their French properties in the online service called Gérer mes biens immobiliers, available from their account on impots.gouv.fr. Every change of occupant is reported as it happens.
This declaration is what allows the administration to establish the tax correctly. For an owner abroad, it is also the simplest way to keep the French tax file accurate without paperwork by post.
Relief from the surcharge: narrow cases
Three situations allow you to ask to be relieved of the surcharge: a professional activity close to the dwelling that compels you to live there, long-term accommodation in a care institution when the dwelling was your main residence, and a property that cannot be used as a main residence for a reason beyond your control.
The claim goes to the tax office of the place where the property is located, with supporting documents.
Frequently asked questions
I let my apartment for the whole winter season and never stay there: am I liable? If you reserve the possibility of occupying the property for part of the year, the taxe d'habitation remains due. Only letting all year round, with no personal use, takes the property out of the taxe d'habitation and into the CFE.
How do I know whether my municipality applies the surcharge? Your notice mentions it when it exists. You can also check whether the municipality is classified as a high-pressure zone with the simulator on service-public.fr, the decision itself remaining with the municipal council.
Can the taxe d'habitation and the CFE both apply? Yes, that is possible. A furnished-rental owner who keeps the use of the property for part of the year can be liable for both, each following its own rules.
I live outside France: does that change the tax? No. The tax attaches to the property. What matters for a non-resident owner is practical: an up-to-date occupancy declaration, access to the online account where notices appear, and attention to the payment deadline.
What if the notice does not match my situation? First check your occupancy declaration in Gérer mes biens immobiliers, then send a claim to the tax office of the place where the property is located, with supporting documents.
Sources
- "Taxe d'habitation sur une résidence secondaire", fiche F42, service-public.gouv.fr, page verified on 24 August 2026, consulted on 5 October 2026.
- "Comment est calculée la taxe d'habitation pour ma résidence secondaire ?", impots.gouv.fr, page updated on 6 July 2026, consulted on 5 October 2026.
- "Je loue en meublé et j'ai payé la CFE. Vais-je aussi recevoir un avis de taxe d'habitation ?", impots.gouv.fr, page updated on 8 July 2026, consulted on 5 October 2026.
- BOI-IF-TH-10-20-20 of 22 December 2020, bofip.impots.gouv.fr, consulted on 5 October 2026, and Conseil d'État, 30 November 2007, no. 291252, cited by that doctrine.
- "Majoration de taxe d'habitation sur les résidences secondaires 2026", municipal decisions, DGFiP, impots.gouv.fr, consulted on 5 October 2026.
- DGFiP Statistiques no. 40, October 2025, study on the taxe d'habitation on second homes, impots.gouv.fr, consulted on 5 October 2026.
- "Vous êtes propriétaire ? Remplissez vos obligations déclaratives avec le service Gérer mes biens immobiliers", impots.gouv.fr, published on 9 April 2026, consulted on 5 October 2026.
This article is general information, current as of 5 October 2026. It is not personal tax advice: your precise situation should be checked with your adviser, in France or in your country of residence, or with the French tax office.