Can an unmarried British partner inherit a French home after Brexit? Yes, but not automatically. A long relationship, shared bills, living together in France or holding a British passport does not, by itself, make the surviving partner an heir under French law. The answer changes according to the title to the property, the existence and wording of a valid will, children or other protected heirs, any French civil partnership, and the separate tax rules of France and the United Kingdom.
This distinction matters where one partner owns the French house alone, where the couple owns it in unequal shares, or where the surviving partner is expecting a British will to transfer everything without a French notarial process. The French word concubinage describes stable unmarried cohabitation. A concubin (unmarried partner) is not placed in the same succession position as a spouse. A PACS (pacte civil de solidarité, the French civil solidarity pact) can improve the tax result, but even a PACS does not make the survivor an heir without a will.
The practical risk is financial as well as civil. If a valid legacy is made to an unmarried partner who is not covered by a French exemption, the rate for a person who is not related to the deceased can reach 60%. On a purely illustrative €300,000 taxable legacy, after the standard €1,594 allowance, that rate produces €179,043.60 before any other relief or deduction. A PACS combined with an effective will may remove French succession tax on the legacy, but it does not remove children’s protected rights, invalidate a jointly signed will, or settle a possible United Kingdom Inheritance Tax charge. This article focuses on the person and the estate, not the purchase of a French property.
I. Can an unmarried British partner inherit a French home without a will?
A. What happens to the house and the surviving partner’s share?
The first question is ownership, not nationality. A surviving partner keeps property that already belongs to them. If the couple bought the French home jointly, the survivor normally keeps their registered share, while the deceased’s share becomes part of the estate. If the deceased was the sole registered owner, the surviving partner does not acquire the house merely because they lived there, contributed to household expenses or helped with renovations. Those contributions can raise separate questions about reimbursement, an ownership claim or an evidential dispute, but they do not create an automatic succession right.
French law recognises unmarried cohabitation, but recognition is not inheritance. Article 515-8 of the French Civil Code begins its definition with the words: “Le concubinage est une union de fait, caractérisée par une vie commune”. In English, this is a factual union marked by shared life, stability and continuity. The provision describes the relationship; it does not appoint the concubin as a legal heir. An unmarried British couple should therefore avoid treating evidence of cohabitation as a substitute for a will.
In the absence of a will or another effective lifetime disposition, Article 721 of the Civil Code states: “Les successions sont dévolues selon la loi lorsque le défunt n’a pas disposé de ses biens par des libéralités.” The succession is then distributed under the statutory order of heirs. The second sentence of the same article adds that dispositions made by the deceased operate only insofar as they are compatible with the réserve héréditaire, the protected share that the law preserves for certain heirs. That is why the survivor’s personal situation and the deceased’s family tree must be established before anyone promises that the house can pass intact.
For a sole owner, the immediate consequence can be severe. The deceased’s children, spouse where relevant, or relatives called under the statutory order may take the estate or a share of it. The partner may have no proprietary right to remain. A family member can ask the notary to establish the title of the heirs, and the house may need to be sold or transferred against payment of a balancing sum. The partner’s emotional connection to the home is not the legal equivalent of a title deed, a legacy or a protected housing right.
Joint ownership creates a different but still difficult result. The survivor remains owner of their fraction, while the deceased’s fraction can pass to several heirs. That situation is called indivision, ownership in undivided shares. Article 815 of the Civil Code gives the central rule: “Nul ne peut être contraint à demeurer dans l’indivision et le partage peut toujours être provoqué”. Unless a court order or an agreement postpones partition, an heir may seek to end the indivision. The survivor cannot assume that being a co-owner gives them a permanent veto over a sale or a partition.
Occupation also needs to be documented. Article 815-9 of the Civil Code provides that each co-owner may use the undivided property consistently with its purpose and the rights of the others. It adds: “L’indivisaire qui use ou jouit privativement de la chose indivise est, sauf convention contraire, redevable d’une indemnité.” If the surviving partner occupies the whole home while the heirs cannot use it, an occupation indemnity may become a claim against them. A written agreement on occupation, expenses, insurance, maintenance and a timetable for a buy-out can prevent the dispute from becoming a second litigation track.
The position of an unmarried partner should not be confused with the statutory protection available to a spouse or, in some respects, to a PACS partner. Article 515-6 of the Civil Code allows a surviving PACS partner to rely on the first two paragraphs of Article 763. That cross-reference concerns temporary housing protection for a surviving PACS partner. The spouse’s protection under Article 763 is a statutory effect of marriage, not a general right created by cohabitation. An unmarried partner who is neither married nor pacsé should not present the one-year housing rule as an entitlement without checking a will, a title, the exact occupancy facts and the applicable conflict-of-laws rules.
This is also why a “common-law partner” label used in British documents may create confusion in France. It can prove the personal relationship for an administrative purpose, but it does not necessarily translate into the French status of spouse or PACS partner. The notary will examine civil-status records, the property deed, mortgage documents, family relationships and any testamentary document. If the survivor funded works or instalments, bank statements, invoices, messages and the original purchase arrangements should be preserved. They may support a claim, but they do not safely replace succession planning.
A French home can therefore produce three separate positions at death: the survivor’s existing ownership, the deceased’s estate rights and any personal claim based on expenditure or agreement. The first position may be secure, the second may pass to heirs, and the third may require proof. Combining them into the single statement “my partner inherits the house” is the first error to correct.
B. Can a will leave the French home to the partner?
A will can give the unmarried partner a much stronger position, but it must be drafted for the whole cross-border picture. A leg or legacy can concern the French property, a share of it, a right of use and habitation, the usufruit (the right to use the property and take its benefits) or the whole estate. The choice affects control, valuation, maintenance, sale and the claims of other heirs. The wording should identify the property by its legal description and say what happens if the property is sold, rebuilt, mortgaged or replaced before death.
Children remain the central limit where French protected-share rules apply. Article 912 of the Civil Code describes the réserve héréditaire as the part of the estate that the law guarantees to certain protected heirs, and the quotité disponible as the part that the deceased could freely give away. Article 913 sets the protected proportions where French law governs: one child protects one half of the estate, two children protect two thirds, and three or more children protect three quarters. The remaining share is the disposable portion that can be left to the partner.
These fractions are not a shortcut for every British family. In a cross-border succession, the applicable law must be identified first. The French rule may apply to the succession as a whole, or a law selected under the relevant conflict rules may govern the devolution of the estate. Article 913 also contains a specific compensatory mechanism tied to European Union nationality or habitual residence where a foreign law does not protect children. A British national should not assume that the post-Brexit position is identical to that of an EU national, nor should a family assume that a French property automatically resolves every question about the succession. The dates, nationalities, habitual residences and wording of the will matter.
France applies the EU Succession Regulation to the conflict-of-laws questions within its scope even though the United Kingdom is not a participating Member State in the Regulation. Article 22 of Regulation (EU) No 650/2012 allows a person to choose, in the permitted circumstances, the law of a state whose nationality they possess for their succession as a whole. Article 23 explains that the applicable law covers matters such as beneficiaries, their shares, the disposable part, reserved shares, legacies and partition. For a broader explanation of a British will, choice of law and French protected heirs, see Does a UK Will Work in France After Brexit? That does not mean that a British will is automatically effective in France. It means that the will and the surrounding facts must be analysed as an international succession instrument.
The choice of law should be express and coordinated with the substantive provisions. A British citizen may have a connection with England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, and the internal law is not interchangeable. A will that refers casually to “English law” may be inadequate for someone whose relevant nationality, domicile history or intended law is different. The same document may also contain provisions dealing with a UK account, a pension, a trust or a French house, each of which can trigger different tax and administrative treatment.
Form is a separate risk. Article 968 of the Civil Code says: “Un testament ne pourra être fait dans le même acte par deux ou plusieurs personnes”. France therefore prohibits a joint or mutual will in the same instrument. A couple should sign separate wills, even if the documents are designed to mirror one another. In Cass. 1re civ., 4 July 2018, no. 17-22.934, the Cour de cassation upheld the application of Article 968 to an instrument signed by two PACS partners. The Court recorded that the prohibition preserves the freedom to test and the ability to revoke a testamentary disposition unilaterally. The single document could not serve as the surviving partner’s sole title to the deceased’s property.
The exact form of each will must also be checked. Article 970 states: “Le testament olographe ne sera point valable s’il n’est écrit en entier, daté et signé de la main du testateur”. A testament olographe is therefore a handwritten will, not a typed document printed and signed at the bottom. An English-language document may require translation and careful review of its legal effect; translation alone does not cure a defect in form, capacity, revocation or choice of law. A testament authentique, a notarial will, can provide a more controlled route where the testator does not speak French fluently. The notary can arrange the necessary language safeguards rather than relying on an informal bilingual template.
Article 1007 of the Civil Code requires a handwritten or mystic will to be deposited with a notary before it is put into effect. In practice, the family should tell the French notary about every UK will, codicil, trust document and possible revocation. Hiding a later document or presenting only the French copy can create a dispute over which instrument governs. The survivor should keep an accessible file with the original, a certified copy where available, the notary’s details and a note explaining where other testamentary documents are held.
The legacy must also describe the right that the survivor is meant to receive. A full ownership legacy may collide with children’s protected shares or with a debt secured on the property. A legacy of usufruit may protect occupation and permit rental income but leave the heirs with bare ownership. A right of use and habitation can be narrower still. In Cass. 3e civ., 12 July 1983, no. 82-13.682, the Court accepted that a testament did not clearly explain the extent of the right of use and habitation, recording the words: “cet acte ne s’expliquait pas sur l’étendue du droit d’usage et d’habitation qu’il établissait”. The lesson is practical: state which rooms, outbuildings, land, furniture, duration and expenses are covered.
The same case also illustrates why a partner should not rely on a general phrase such as “my home” where the deed contains several parcels or a separate office. A French land register, cadastral references, annexes, parking spaces, shares in a residence and insurance rights may not all follow the same drafting logic. The notary should test the proposed legacy against the title and against the value of the protected and disposable portions. If the home is the only substantial asset, a cash reserve or life-insurance strategy may be needed to let the partner retain the property without depriving protected heirs of their rights.
A PACS is not a substitute for this drafting. Article 515-1 of the Civil Code defines it as “Un pacte civil de solidarité est un contrat conclu par deux personnes physiques majeures” to organise their common life. That contract changes several civil and tax consequences, but its existence does not silently rewrite an earlier will, transfer sole ownership or identify which British law applies. The registration certificate, the date of the PACS, any dissolution and any agreement concerning property must all be given to the notary.
II. How do a PACS and UK–France inheritance tax rules change the result?
A. Does a PACS remove the 60% French inheritance tax?
A PACS can remove French succession tax on a legacy to the surviving partner, but only if the civil entitlement is valid. Service-Public’s current guidance is explicit: when a PACS partner dies, “Vous n’êtes pas héritier” without a will. It also states that, in the absence of a will, the partners cannot inherit from one another and are treated as strangers for inheritance. The official guidance on the death of a PACS partner distinguishes the survivor’s own property and common share from the deceased’s estate. A British couple must therefore separate two questions: can the partner receive the property, and if so, what French tax is due?
With a valid legacy, the tax answer is materially better. Article 796-0 bis of the French General Tax Code provides: “Sont exonérés de droits de mutation par décès le conjoint survivant et le partenaire lié au défunt par un pacte civil de solidarité.” The surviving PACS partner is therefore exempt from French transfer duties on property received on death, subject to the PACS being valid at the relevant time and the legacy being effective. The exemption does not turn the partner into an heir when there is no will; it operates after the partner has a lawful entitlement to receive the property.
Without that status, the standard rule is punitive. Article 777 of the General Tax Code places transfers to people outside the listed family relationships in the “Tableau III”, with a rate of 60% for the share above the applicable allowance. Article 788 provides a €1,594 allowance where no other allowance applies. For a simple example, assume a sole owner leaves an unmarried partner a net French taxable legacy worth €300,000, with no children’s reduction, debt, prior gift, special exemption or other relief. The taxable base would be €298,406. At 60%, the estimated French succession tax would be €179,043.60. This is not a personalised assessment; it shows why a couple should obtain advice before signing a transfer or waiting for the estate to open.
The calculation changes if the partner receives only part of the house, if the legacy is an usufruit, if a mortgage or deductible liability reduces the taxable value, or if a child successfully brings a reduction claim. Property valuation is also a live issue: the tax base is not simply the price paid years earlier. A French notary will normally need a defensible market valuation at death, together with the ownership percentages, outstanding loan balance, works, insurance and any prior gifts.
The PACS must be real and current, not a label added after death. Two British citizens can enter a French PACS if they satisfy the legal conditions and produce the required civil-status and customary-law documents. The earlier British PACS registration guidance on this site addresses the document route in more detail. For the present question, the essential evidence is the PACS registration record, identity documents, birth certificates, any certificate of customary law requested by the registering authority, and proof that the PACS had not been dissolved before death.
A PACS also does not eliminate the rights of children. Service-Public explains that a will can give the PACS partner the disposable portion, while children receive their reserved share: one half for one child, two thirds for two children and three quarters for three or more children. Article 913 of the Civil Code is the primary text for those proportions. If the French home exceeds the disposable share, the partner may need to pay a soulte, a balancing payment, sell another asset or accept a division between usufruit and bare ownership. Tax exemption cannot enlarge the civil share that the will is allowed to give.
The partner’s housing position should be written into the plan as well. Article 515-6 links the surviving PACS partner to the temporary housing rules in Article 763, and Service-Public explains that the survivor may, in specified circumstances, remain free of rent for one year in the common principal home. That right is distinct from ownership and from the succession tax exemption. A will can also deal with preferential allocation or a right to use the home. If the couple remains unmarried and does not enter a PACS, they should not import these protections into their planning by analogy.
Lifetime gifts require a separate calculation. The exemption in Article 796-0 bis is expressly an exemption from transfer duties “par décès”, on death. A gift of the French home or a share in it during life is not automatically covered by that death exemption. It may trigger French gift tax, reporting, capital-gains or property consequences, and it can affect the calculation of protected shares at the later death. A notarial transfer should be priced and reviewed before it is signed, particularly where the couple expects the survivor to live in the home.
Finally, the PACS should be coordinated with any British pension nomination, life-insurance beneficiary clause or trust. A beneficiary nomination may pay outside the ordinary estate route, but it can still have French reporting and tax implications and may not solve the title to a French house. The survivor should not assume that a British executor, pension provider or bank will apply the French PACS exemption without the registration evidence and the French notary’s declaration.
B. How does the France–UK inheritance tax treaty affect a British partner’s French home?
The France–UK treaty and the civil succession rules answer different questions. The treaty addresses the allocation and relief of inheritance taxes; it does not decide whether an unmarried partner is an heir, create a PACS, validate a will or override a child’s reserved share. The official France–United Kingdom convention on inheritance taxes was signed on 21 June 1963, approved in France by Law no. 64-562 of 17 June 1964, entered into force on 30 June 1964 and published by Decree no. 64-789 of 27 July 1964.
For immovable property, the treaty starts from the place where the property is situated. The French tax administration’s BOFiP commentary on the elimination of double taxation explains that the convention uses rules on the location of assets and then a credit or reduction by the state of domicile. Its published analysis states that, where the deceased was domiciled in the United Kingdom, French succession tax is due on succession property situated in France under the convention’s rules. A French house is therefore not invisible to the French tax authorities merely because the deceased lived in Britain or the executor is British.
French domestic territorial rules point in the same direction. Article 750 ter of the General Tax Code includes French-situated movable and immovable property in the scope of transfer duties where the deceased or donor is not fiscally domiciled in France. The same provision has broader rules where the deceased or donor is fiscally domiciled in France. Its application must be tested against the deceased’s residence, the beneficiary’s residence history, the asset, the ownership vehicle and the treaty. The article should not be reduced to the slogan “France always taxes everything” or “the UK always taxes the estate”.
The United Kingdom’s domestic rules have also changed. From 6 April 2025, HM Revenue & Customs says that the former domicile and deemed-domicile rules were replaced by a long-term UK residence regime. Under the GOV.UK guidance, a person is broadly long-term UK resident where they have been UK tax resident for at least 10 of the previous 20 tax years, with rules that can keep overseas assets in scope after departure. The HMRC Inheritance Tax Manual, IHTM47020 gives the technical test and the possible tail of liability after leaving the United Kingdom.
That reform does not create a new inheritance right for the unmarried survivor. It may mean that the deceased’s worldwide estate, or the French house as an overseas asset for UK purposes, needs to be reviewed in the United Kingdom as well as in France. The 1963 treaty was drafted using the language of domicile and contains its own allocation rules. A current UK long-term-residence analysis and a French treaty analysis must therefore be put side by side; one must not be treated as an automatic translation of the other.
| Question | What it determines | Evidence to collect |
|---|---|---|
| Who owns the French home? | The survivor’s existing share and the part entering the estate. | Title deed, land-register details, purchase deed, mortgage and ownership percentages. |
| Who is entitled to receive the deceased’s share? | Heirs, legatee, protected shares and possible partition. | Separate wills, choice-of-law wording, birth certificates, children’s details and PACS record. |
| What French tax is due? | French scope, rate, allowance and any PACS exemption. | Valuation at death, debts, prior gifts, relationship status and tax residence facts. |
| What UK tax is due? | Whether UK Inheritance Tax includes the French asset and whether treaty relief is available. | UK residence history for the prior 20 years, domicile evidence, UK returns, estate valuation and tax paid in France. |
The notarial timetable is short enough to make early preparation worthwhile. The French tax administration states on its succession declaration page that the declaration is normally due within six months of a death in metropolitan France and within twelve months where the death occurred abroad. The same page explains that a French notary is required where the succession includes immovable property, and that the declaration is signed by the heirs, legatees or donees even where a notary assists with the process. A British executor should not wait for the UK grant of probate before asking how the French filing date is running.
If both countries tax the same value, relief is a technical exercise, not an assumption. The BOFiP commentary states that the state of domicile can grant a reduction corresponding to tax imposed by the other state on relevant property, subject to the convention’s limits. The French commentary also explains that a person domiciled in France may have to request a reduction for UK tax within the applicable period. In practice, retain the French declaration, proof of payment, the tax calculation, the UK account or clearance documents and correspondence showing the asset’s location. A treaty claim without the underlying figures can be rejected or delayed.
The treaty also does not repair a defective will. If an English document is a prohibited joint will under Article 968, an executor cannot cure that problem simply by showing that both partners signed it voluntarily. If the instrument fails the relevant form, capacity or choice-of-law test, the tax analysis starts from the statutory or other valid succession position. The separate wills should be reviewed before the death, not for the first time by the survivor after the French notary has asked for the originals.
A useful file for a British couple should contain: the full French title and cadastral references; the latest valuation; mortgage and renovation records; both partners’ passports and birth certificates; any marriage, divorce or PACS records; children’s details; every will and codicil; UK residence history; French tax-residence evidence; prior gifts; life-insurance and pension nominations; and a list of bank, trust and property accounts. If the couple has lived in several countries, add the dates and addresses rather than relying on a general statement that France is “home”.
The file should also identify the decisions that could be taken if a problem arises. The survivor may need to request a valuation, negotiate a buy-out with heirs, seek a declaration of rights, challenge an inaccurate tax assessment, request treaty relief or defend the validity of a will. The documents supporting each route are different. For example, bank transfers may help a reimbursement claim, while a PACS certificate proves civil-partner status, and a UK residence chronology informs the UK tax analysis. Sending an undifferentiated box of papers to the notary makes the first review slower.
A dispute can arise even where the survivor appears to have been protected. In Cass. 1re civ., 1 June 2016, no. 15-16.486, the judgment records the appellate reasoning that “l’existence de liens affectifs résultant d’un concubinage prolongé et la conclusion d’un pacte civil de solidarité n’emportent aucun droit”. That sentence appears in the account of the lower court’s reasoning, while the Cour de cassation ultimately dealt with the separate issue before it. It is still a useful warning: a PACS and emotional relationship cannot be treated as the legacy itself. The survivor’s entitlement must be proved by the title, a valid will or another legally effective instrument.
Conversely, a carefully drafted will can give an unmarried partner a meaningful property right. The 2018 witness decision is helpful for a different reason. In Cass. 1re civ., 28 February 2018, no. 17-10.876, the Court held that “la qualité de partenaire d’un pacte civil de solidarité n’emporte pas incapacité à être témoin” for the other partner’s authentic will. That decision concerns the capacity of a witness, not an automatic inheritance right. It shows why each legal question must be kept in its proper box: who may witness, who may inherit, what may be given, and what tax rate applies are not interchangeable questions.
Once the civil entitlement and tax scope are mapped, the partners can decide whether the practical objective is full ownership, protected occupation, income, a buy-out right or a staged transfer. They can also decide whether the PACS is appropriate for their personal circumstances. That choice should be made while both partners have capacity and while the property, family and residence facts are known. A last-minute document signed during illness or a rushed translation is more vulnerable to challenge and less likely to achieve the intended result.
Conclusion
An unmarried British partner can inherit a French home after Brexit, but only through a legally effective route. Cohabitation alone is not enough. If the property is jointly owned, the survivor keeps their own share but may become co-owner with the deceased’s heirs. If the deceased owns the home alone, the partner normally needs a valid will or another effective disposition. Children’s protected shares, the applicable succession law and the form of the will must be checked before the legacy is treated as secure.
A PACS can make the French tax result dramatically better: with a valid will, the surviving PACS partner is exempt from French succession duties under Article 796-0 bis, whereas an unmarried non-relative may face the 60% rate. The PACS does not itself make the survivor an heir, and it does not settle UK Inheritance Tax. The 1963 France–UK convention, the post-6 April 2025 UK long-term-residence rules and the French territorial rules must be calculated together. The safest first step is a coordinated review of the title, family tree, separate wills, PACS status, residence history and tax documents by the French notary and the advisers handling the UK position.
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