An amendment to the 2024 budget plans to extend the VAT exemption enjoyed by Airbnb rentals, denounced Thursday the communist senator of Paris Ian Brossat and the EELV deputy Julien Bayou, deploring the “gifts” given to the specialist in furnished tourist accommodation.
Instead of regulating tourist accommodation as requested by parliamentarians and mayors from all sides and all territories, the government took advantage of 49-3 to offer two big Airbnb gifts, declared Julien Bayou in a press release, citing the extension of the VAT exemption and the inclusion of the Airbnb tax loophole.
On July 5, 2023, the Council of State ruled that the VAT exemption for rentals of furnished tourist accommodation created a situation of unfair competition towards hotels, in contradiction with European directives, explains Senator Ian Brossat. .
Bercy has chosen to create a legal subterfuge
Bercy has chosen to create a legal subterfuge by extending the VAT exemption to hotels which do not provide para-hotel services (reception, breakfast, bathroom linen, regular cleaning of rooms, or three out of four of these criteria). ), a proposal which according to Ian Brossat eliminates unfair competition but will have no effect because almost no hotel in France is concerned.
Questioned by AFP, Bercy explained that it had acted in consultation with tourism stakeholders, in particular the AToP, an association for professional tourism.
Being subject to VAT implies being able to deduct from this VAT in particular the fitting out of the furniture, which ultimately constitutes an advantage, according to Bercy which specifies: Hotel professionals have well understood the issue of not giving rights the deduction for furniture rental companies.
A scoop describes
Another amendment to the 2024 draft budget aims to reduce the tax advantages currently enjoyed by tourist accommodation such as Airbnb, Abritel or Booking, by increasing the reduction on rental income from 71% to 50%.
But according to Julien Bayou, this only concerns a tiny portion of rentals on Airbnb, even in stretched areas. The environmentalist deputy believes that this measure leaves the field open for the multiplication of tourist furniture to the detriment of long-term housing.
According to Bercy, there are currently 500,000 non-professional furnished accommodations covered by the 50% reduction and 100,000 classified tourist accommodations benefiting from a 71% reduction.
The federation of Airbnb-type furniture rentals, the National Union for the Promotion of Vacation Rentals (UNPLV), is opposed to this reduction, estimating in a press release that lowering the increased flat-rate deduction in this way would be a hard blow for the purchasing power of many small owners in a context of rising prices.
Overseas elected officials also opposed this amendment, believing that it would threaten activity and employment in their territories.
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