The Finance Law for 2024 modified the tax regime for seasonal furniture rentals. If it is accepted that taxpayers will be able to continue to apply the old formula to their 2023 income, owners must think now about the benefit of changing the regime for next year.
Thunderbolt for some, confusion for others… At the end of December, while the National Assembly was discussing the 2024 Finance Bill, one article in particular was the talk of the town. Its object: reduce the tax deduction on rentals of tourist furniture.
Previously, the micro-BIC regime for short-term rentals provided for reductions ranging from 50% to 71%, recalls Baptiste Bochart, lawyer at Jedclaremonmeubl.com. In addition, the micro BIC ceiling was 77,700 euros, and even 188,700 euros for a classified property.
Already at the end of November, a bill planned to align the 40% reduction for all types of accommodation, with the exception of guest houses, rural lodges or even accommodation in ski resorts. But the text ultimately retained in the 2024 Finance Bill ultimately went even further: With this law, the reduction rate for the micro-BIC has increased to 30% for all furnished tourist accommodation, regardless of the category. In the same way, the maximum threshold for the micro-BIC for short-term rental, which was previously 77,700 euros or 188,700 euros, has fallen to 15,000 euros for all housing, develops Baptiste Bochart.
However, there is a very specific scenario in which it will be possible to benefit from a reduction of 51%. For this to happen, it must be a classified property, located outside the extended zone and only if the owner withdraws less than 15,000 euros per year from his entire furnished rental activity.
May 2024, deadline for changing tax regime
The difference is felt by the owners. For example, a person who rents unclassified furniture and who could previously claim the 50% reduction with a threshold of 77,700 euros, this means today with the new law around 40% more tax on rental income, calculates the lawyer. However, let owners be reassured: a note from the Official Bulletin of Public Finances dedicated to taxes, published Wednesday February 14, specifies that it will be accepted that taxpayers can continue to apply the previous provisions (…) to 2023 income. Clearly, for the 2024 declaration on 2023 income, nothing changes: it is still possible to apply the thresholds and reductions from previous years.
However, it is better not to be satisfied with this news, even if discussions are currently underway to return once again to this provision. Indeed, the Minister of the Economy and Finance Bruno Le Maire recognized at the end of the year an error which will be corrected in the next finance law.
Faced with the new rules, certain owners could choose the real tax regime. As a reminder, in the real regime, the taxpayer determines his own net property income. It will be equal to the gross land income by subtracting the charges actually borne and justified.
Taxation of property income: what taxes in 2024?
But for rental companies who would like to move to the real tax regime due to the reform of the micro-BIC regime, we must not forget that the deadline for exercising the option for the real regime for income received in 2024 is set for May 2024, alerts Baptiste Bochart. And if this date is passed, they will have to undergo the micro-BIC thresholds, regardless of their progress. Even if the fiscal impact will only be visible next year, we must think about it now.
Furthermore, according to the lawyer from Jedclaremonmeubl.com, among the owners who plan to switch to the real tax regime, a number of them might be in for a nice surprise. Indeed, those who move to the real regime because they have exceeded the micro-BIC thresholds or because they consider the micro-BIC reductions less advantageous today, could realize that, in their situation, the regime rel is very interesting and that they would have benefited from going there much earlier.
To help owners see things more clearly, the site Jedclaremonmeubl.com set up a simulator available for free. By providing some information such as the value of the property, the amount of income received or the annual amount of charges, it is possible to find out which regime is best suited to your situation.