Making an application for equitable relief (remise gracieuse)

Where do I send my application to?

The provisions of Article R*.247-1 of the French Book of Tax Procedures (L PF) stipulate that applications for equitable relief (settlements, reductions, limitations) should be sent to the tax department covering the place of taxation which is usually your Centre des Finances Publiques (Tax Office).

These applications may concern all or part of direct taxes and penalties irrespective of the disputed tax.
For relief on the 10% surcharge following late payment, proceeding costs and interest on arrears owed pursuant to Article L.209 of the LPF, applications should be sent to the Individual Tax Department (SIP) or trésorerie (tax collection office) having issued the payment notice.

An application for equitable relief does not provide entitlement to a stay of payment. The tax collection officer is therefore authorised to institute proceedings to claim payment of the taxes from you.

How do I send my application?

You should submit an application providing the information required to identify both you and the relevant tax. As regards the taxes themselves, relief can only be granted on direct taxes such as income tax and local taxes. Registration duties (death duties, etc.) and property wealth tax (IFI) cannot be subject to relief.

There is no mandatory form for your application which can be made either by email from the secure messaging system in your personal account or by ordinary letter.

So that the tax department is able to assess your circumstances, you are advised to send questionnaire form 4805-AP-SD, which is accessible via the search engine and the corresponding supporting documents together with your application.

How is my application processed?

Applications are assessed in light of your personal circumstances which may have resulted from:

a timelag in the tax payment period
an unforeseen loss of income (unemployment)
extraordinary circumstances (death of a partner, separation, disability) or those having given rise to abnormally high expenses (illness)
the disproportionate level of the tax debt compared to your income (build-up of arrears or reassessments following a tax audit)

The assessment always adopts a personalised approach that factors in all the specific features of your case and your usual behaviour as regards filing tax returns and paying taxes, compliance with commitments made and the efforts you have already made to settle your debt.

In reality, your actual payment capabilities are examined using the following criteria:

Taking account of your assets and all the resources of the people currently living with you that are taxable or not, permanent or temporary (welfare benefits, municipal grants, social inclusion benefit (RSA), etc.)
Taking into consideration expenditure that is essential for the daily life of the family home such as food, healthcare, insurance, housing (rent or equivalent if you have a bank loan, heating, lighting), commuting expenses. This expenditure must be justified or actually proven.
By ensuring that your expenditure is aligned with your resources and the composition of your household. The reasons why expenses exceed financial resources are analysed (special events or lifestyle choices, with the latter reason excluding any deduction or limitation)
By assessing the extent of your tax debt: the tax authorities check that granting payment extensions would be insufficient to enable the debt to be settled. Where necessary, they take account of the origin and nature of debts other than tax debts, in particular in the event of over-indebtedness.

How long will it take to process my application?

The tax authorities endeavour to respond to all applications as soon as reasonably possible. If they have not replied within two months, your application will be deemed to have been rejected. This timeframe may be exceptionally increased to four months if the complexity of the application so warrants. In this case, the authorities must inform you of this extension prior to the end of the initial two-month period.

What decisions can the tax authorities make concerning my application?

Once the various assessment criteria have been examined, the application may lead to:

a rejection decision
an unconditional reduction or limitation decision
a conditional reduction or limitation decision

Decisions on equitable relief are not justified. This means that the authorities do not have to explain the reasons for their choice to you. This principle applies regardless of the sense and scope of the decision.

Granting a reduction or limitation may be subject:

to prior payment of the taxes you owe
to filing a return if you are not fully up-to-date with your reporting obligations
the abandonment of any challenge to the taxes that are the subject of the application

UPDATED DINR PART on AUGUST 25, 2021