{"id":2109296,"date":"2026-08-27T08:03:25","date_gmt":"2026-08-27T06:03:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kohenavocats.fr\/2026\/08\/27\/french-inheritance-tax-payment-in-instalments-uk-heir-brexit\/"},"modified":"2026-08-27T08:11:46","modified_gmt":"2026-08-27T06:11:46","slug":"french-inheritance-tax-payment-in-instalments-uk-heir-brexit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kohenavocats.fr\/en\/2026\/08\/27\/french-inheritance-tax-payment-in-instalments-uk-heir-brexit\/","title":{"rendered":"Can a UK Heir Pay French Inheritance Tax in Instalments? Deadlines, Guarantees and Remedies After Brexit"},"content":{"rendered":"

For a British citizen inheriting a house in France, the hardest question is often not whether French inheritance tax exists, but how to pay it before the house can be sold. The French expression droits de succession<\/em> means inheritance tax charged on a transfer at death. The expression d\u00e9claration de succession<\/em> means the inheritance tax return. Both the return and the payment follow French deadlines, even when the beneficiary lives in the United Kingdom, the estate is being administered under a UK will, or the family expects a sale of the French property to provide the cash.<\/p>\n

Brexit has changed residence, immigration and cross-border administration for British families, but it has not created an automatic payment holiday for a French tax debt. A house that remains unsold may support a request for paiement fractionn\u00e9<\/em>, meaning payment by instalments, when the estate satisfies the statutory illiquidity test. That is different from paiement diff\u00e9r\u00e9<\/em>, meaning deferred payment until a later legal event. Full ownership of an ordinary house is not, by itself, a right to wait for completion.<\/p>\n

This article explains the decision in practical terms: which estate and tax facts must be established, when an unsold French property can support instalments, what guarantees the French tax authority may require, and what happens after refusal or a missed term. It also separates the French collection rules from possible United Kingdom inheritance-tax relief. The answer will usually turn on the asset mix and the filing date, not on the heir\u2019s nationality alone.<\/p>\n

I. Can a UK heir obtain French inheritance-tax instalments when the estate includes an unsold property?<\/h2>\n

A. What is due, who pays, and why an unsold house does not automatically defer tax<\/h3>\n

The first task is to map the estate before discussing a payment plan. That map should identify the deceased\u2019s tax residence at death, the place of death, the residence of each heir, the location of every asset, the wording of the will, any earlier gifts, and liabilities that can be deducted under French rules. For a British family, the map often contains a French home, UK bank accounts, an occupational pension, investments, life insurance and a UK probate document. Those items do not all receive the same treatment.<\/p>\n

French situs is important. Article 750 ter of the Code g\u00e9n\u00e9ral des imp\u00f4ts<\/em>, or CGI (the French General Tax Code), includes French-located immovable property in the French inheritance-tax base even where the deceased was not fiscally resident in France. The same article can also bring wider assets into the French base where an heir has been fiscally resident in France for at least six of the preceding ten years, subject to the applicable treaty rules. The official wording is available in the current L\u00e9gifrance section for CGI Article 750 ter<\/a>. A British passport does not remove a French tax charge on a French house.<\/p>\n

Article 1701 CGI sets the normal sequence. It provides: \u00ab Les droits des actes et ceux des mutations par d\u00e9c\u00e8s sont pay\u00e9s avant l’ex\u00e9cution de l’enregistrement, de la publicit\u00e9 fonci\u00e8re ou de la formalit\u00e9 fusionn\u00e9e, aux taux et quotit\u00e9s r\u00e9gl\u00e9s par le pr\u00e9sent code. \u00bb In English, the duties on death transfers are paid before the registration or land-formality process is completed. The full provision is on L\u00e9gifrance, CGI Article 1701<\/a>. The practical point is decisive: a planned sale of the property is a possible source of funds, but it does not normally postpone the return and the initial tax payment.<\/p>\n

Article 1709 CGI identifies the persons liable. It says: \u00ab Les droits des d\u00e9clarations des mutations par d\u00e9c\u00e8s sont pay\u00e9s par les h\u00e9ritiers, donataires ou l\u00e9gataires. Les coh\u00e9ritiers, \u00e0 l’exception de ceux exon\u00e9r\u00e9s de droits de mutation par d\u00e9c\u00e8s, sont solidaires. \u00bb An h\u00e9ritier<\/em> is an heir, a donataire<\/em> is a person who received a gift, and a l\u00e9gataire<\/em> is a beneficiary under a will. The words coh\u00e9ritiers sont solidaires<\/em> mean that co-heirs can be jointly pursued for the tax, within the statutory limits. The text is available at L\u00e9gifrance, CGI Article 1709<\/a>. An agreement between siblings about who will pay is useful internally, but it does not necessarily bind the French Treasury.<\/p>\n

The return deadline is also separate from the payment-plan question. Article 641 CGI provides a six-month period where the deceased died in metropolitan France and a one-year period in other cases, subject to particular rules for assets or deaths outside France. Its text states: \u00ab D’une ann\u00e9e, dans tous les autres cas. \u00bb The complete deadline rule is on L\u00e9gifrance, CGI Article 641<\/a>. A UK heir should therefore record the death date, the place of death and the date on which the declaration will be filed. Waiting for the French house to sell can consume the filing period while leaving the estate exposed to interest and penalties.<\/p>\n

The French tax authority\u2019s public guidance confirms the same logic: inheritance tax is normally paid with the declaration, while a taxpayer can request a deferred or fractioned facility under defined conditions. The practical overview is the official page How can I pay inheritance tax?<\/a> on impots.gouv.fr. It is useful for checking the current administrative presentation, but the legal basis remains the CGI and its implementing provisions.<\/p>\n

There is a further cross-border distinction. The United Kingdom and France have a convention concerning duties on estates of deceased persons. HM Revenue & Customs explains the French convention and its interaction with UK inheritance tax in its Inheritance Tax Manual guidance on France<\/a>. Depending on domicile, residence, asset situs and the convention\u2019s allocation rules, the same economic value may generate a credit, an exemption or a claim for relief in one country. That question can reduce double taxation, but it does not normally erase the French filing deadline or turn an unsold French property into an automatic instalment entitlement.<\/p>\n

That is why a UK heir should separate four questions in correspondence with the notaire, meaning the French civil-law notary, and the tax office:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Is the French property within the French inheritance-tax base?<\/li>\n
  2. What tax is payable after allowances, deductions, prior gifts and any treaty relief?<\/li>\n
  3. Does the composition of the estate meet the conditions for fractioned payment?<\/li>\n
  4. What security can be offered while the balance remains unpaid?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The word \u201cunsold\u201d answers none of those questions by itself. A property may be illiquid in an ordinary commercial sense and still be fully taxable. A buyer may be found quickly, or a sale may take years because of co-ownership, title defects, planning issues or a weak market. The French payment-credit rules use statutory categories and percentages; they do not promise relief merely because a family has listed a house with an estate agent.<\/p>\n

    B. When fractioning or genuine deferral is legally available<\/h3>\n

    The gateway provision is Article 1717 CGI. It states: \u00ab I. \u2014 Par d\u00e9rogation aux dispositions de l\u2019article 1701, le paiement des droits d\u2019enregistrement et de la taxe de publicit\u00e9 fonci\u00e8re peut \u00eatre fractionn\u00e9 ou diff\u00e9r\u00e9 selon des modalit\u00e9s fix\u00e9es par d\u00e9cret. \u00bb The provision therefore authorises a regulated exception to the ordinary immediate-payment rule; it does not grant an unconditional right. The current text is available on L\u00e9gifrance, CGI Article 1717<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    For a normal estate containing an unsold French house, the relevant route is usually fractioning. The French term cr\u00e9dit de paiement fractionn\u00e9<\/em> means that the tax remains due but is divided into scheduled payments. The implementing rules begin with Article 396 of Annex III to the CGI, which applies the credit to death transfers. The text is available at L\u00e9gifrance, Annex III Article 396<\/a>. The request must then fit the payment timetable and the illiquidity conditions in Article 404 A.<\/p>\n

    Article 404 A of Annex III provides a short general timetable: equal payments, at intervals of no more than six months, with no more than three payments in the ordinary case and a final payment no later than one year after the end of the ordinary filing period. Its text includes: \u00ab Les versements, \u00e0 intervalle de six mois au plus, ne peuvent \u00eatre sup\u00e9rieurs \u00e0 trois. \u00bb The article also extends the maximum period to three years and the number of payments to seven where at least 50 per cent of the hereditary assets consist of non-liquid property in the statutory sense. The full rule, including the reference to buildings, is on L\u00e9gifrance, Annex III Article 404 A<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    A building is one of the categories that can count as non-liquid property for that extended route. The threshold is measured against the hereditary assets, not against the family\u2019s emotional attachment to the home and not against the value of the French property alone. If the estate is made up of a French house, readily available cash and listed investments, the solicitor or notary should prepare a written valuation schedule. That schedule should show the numerator, the denominator and the valuation date used for the 50 per cent test. The tax office remains entitled to examine the classification and valuation.<\/p>\n

    Consider an example. The estate contains a French house valued at \u20ac600,000 and cash and investments worth \u20ac300,000, before the final tax computation. The house represents approximately 66.7 per cent of the listed assets. That fact may support the extended fractioning timetable, if the other legal conditions are met. It does not mean that the tax is \u20ac900,000, nor does it establish the amount of tax. The taxable base, allowances, debts, valuation evidence and treaty position must be calculated separately. The example only shows how an unsold building can matter to the liquidity threshold.<\/p>\n

    True deferral is narrower. Article 397 of Annex III deals with categories such as a transfer of bare ownership, preferential allocation arrangements and certain rights of a surviving spouse. Nue-propri\u00e9t\u00e9<\/em> means bare ownership: ownership without the present right to use or receive the income from the asset. Usufruit<\/em> means usufruct: the right to use property or receive its income while another person holds bare ownership. The implementing provisions are found in the current L\u00e9gifrance section on deferred-payment credits<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    Article 404 B explains the later event for a qualifying deferred credit. It provides: \u00ab Le paiement des droits peut \u00eatre diff\u00e9r\u00e9 jusqu’\u00e0 … six mois … de la date de la r\u00e9union de l’usufruit \u00e0 la nue-propri\u00e9t\u00e9 ou de la cession … \u00bb The complete provision is on L\u00e9gifrance, Annex III Article 404 B<\/a>. The omitted portions in that short quotation refer to the statutory situations and do not convert every unsold house into a deferred-payment case.<\/p>\n

    For that reason, a British heir who receives the entire French house in full ownership should normally analyse fractioning first. If the deceased gave the heir bare ownership and another person holds a qualifying usufruct, the deferral analysis may be different. If a farm or another specially regulated asset is involved, a separate regime may apply. The wording of the will, the deed prepared by the notary and the nature of the rights transferred must be read together. The family\u2019s intention to sell later is not a substitute for one of those legal categories.<\/p>\n

    Interest is part of the calculation. Article 401 of Annex III says: \u00ab Sous r\u00e9serve des dispositions de l’article 404 GC, les droits et taxes dont le paiement est fractionn\u00e9 ou diff\u00e9r\u00e9 donnent lieu au versement d’int\u00e9r\u00eats. \u00bb It also provides that, for fractioned payment, the interest is paid with each instalment. The rule is available at L\u00e9gifrance, Annex III Article 401<\/a>. The impots.gouv.fr guidance currently states a 2 per cent rate for requests made from 1 January 2026, but the rate and any special regime must be checked when the request is filed. A payment credit is therefore a financing mechanism with a public creditor, not a free extension.<\/p>\n

    Early payment can reduce that cost. Article 404 of Annex III states: \u00ab Les droits ayant fait l’objet de l’octroi du cr\u00e9dit peuvent \u00eatre acquitt\u00e9s par anticipation. Dans cette hypoth\u00e8se, les int\u00e9r\u00eats ne sont dus que jusqu’au jour du paiement des droits. \u00bb The official text is on L\u00e9gifrance, Annex III Article 404<\/a>. If the French house sells before the final term, the heirs should obtain a precise payoff figure and settle according to the tax office\u2019s instructions, rather than simply transferring an estimated amount.<\/p>\n

    The decision at the end of Part I is therefore practical. An unsold French building may help an estate reach the 50 per cent non-liquid-assets test for fractioning. It does not automatically create deferral, remove interest, postpone the declaration, or suspend liability between co-heirs. A UK heir should ask for the correct credit at the time the declaration is submitted, with a proposed schedule and a credible guarantee.<\/p>\n

    II. How should a UK heir apply, secure, and challenge the instalment plan?<\/h2>\n

    A. File the request correctly and offer acceptable guarantees<\/h3>\n

    The request should travel with the inheritance declaration, not as an afterthought when the first demand for payment arrives. Article 399 of Annex III says: \u00ab La demande de cr\u00e9dit doit \u00eatre soit formul\u00e9e au pied de l’acte ou de la d\u00e9claration soumis \u00e0 formalit\u00e9 soit jointe \u00e0 l’un ou l’autre de ces documents. \u00bb It adds: \u00ab Elle doit contenir une offre de garanties suffisantes. \u00bb The article is available at L\u00e9gifrance, Annex III Article 399<\/a>. For a UK heir, the written file should make clear whether the request is for fractioning or deferral and which statutory category is relied on.<\/p>\n

    The same provision gives the public accountant, meaning the competent French tax-collection officer, two months to decide. It also gives four months for the guarantees to be constituted after the relevant decision. Those periods are not a reason to submit an incomplete request. They are time windows in which the file should be capable of being assessed. If the French property is jointly owned, the file should identify every owner, every heir and any consent or power needed to create security.<\/p>\n

    Article 400 gives examples of security. It provides: \u00ab Les garanties peuvent notamment consister en des s\u00fbret\u00e9s r\u00e9elles d’une valeur au moins \u00e9gale au montant des sommes … ou en un engagement solidaire … \u00bb A s\u00fbret\u00e9 r\u00e9elle<\/em> is security attached to an asset, such as a mortgage or another real right. An engagement solidaire<\/em> is a binding joint guarantee under which the guarantor can be pursued according to its terms. The complete provision, including the power to request additional security, is on L\u00e9gifrance, Annex III Article 400<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    A French house may be offered as security, but its existence is not enough. The authority may examine the land-register position, ownership, valuation, prior mortgages, insurance, title restrictions, co-ownership and the likely realisable value. A UK bank guarantee, a French bank guarantee, another property or a portfolio may be considered depending on the circumstances and the officer\u2019s assessment. The request should contain valuation documents, title evidence and a clear explanation of how the security remains effective until the last instalment.<\/p>\n

    The first payment still matters. Article 402 of Annex III states: \u00ab Sous r\u00e9serve des dispositions de l’article 404 GB, le premier versement des droits dont le paiement fractionn\u00e9 est autoris\u00e9 doit \u00eatre effectu\u00e9 au moment de l’accomplissement de la formalit\u00e9 fusionn\u00e9e ou de l’enregistrement. \u00bb The next payments follow the approved schedule and must be made promptly after each due date. The full text is on L\u00e9gifrance, Annex III Article 402<\/a>. A request to pay later is not permission to pay nothing when the declaration is lodged.<\/p>\n

    For a family living in Britain, administration can be slowed by documents. The file may contain a UK death certificate, a will, a grant of probate or letters of administration, a family-record document, bank statements, pension information, property deeds, a recent valuation, evidence of debts, records of gifts made within the relevant period, and documents supporting a UK inheritance-tax calculation. French authorities may require translations or formal authentication. The notaire can identify the civil documents required for the succession, while the tax officer decides the payment credit. Those two roles should not be treated as interchangeable.<\/p>\n

    The official non-resident guidance on where succession duties are paid is available through the impots.gouv.fr page for taxpayers connected with a foreign country<\/a>. The exact service and filing route can depend on the deceased\u2019s domicile and the estate\u2019s assets. A British heir should ask for the correct office in writing, retain proof of delivery and keep a copy of the signed declaration and the credit request.<\/p>\n

    Cross-border relief should be prepared in parallel. HMRC explains that where France has a treaty claim over assets situated in France, the UK calculation may require a credit or an adjustment. Its guidance on the United Kingdom\u2013France estate-duty convention is at HMRC\u2019s France convention manual<\/a>. A separate HMRC page also explains the possibility of claiming double-tax relief under a convention at GOV.UK inheritance-tax double-taxation relief<\/a>. The French payment request should not be left waiting for HMRC to complete its own assessment. Instead, the file should identify the relief claimed, the evidence available and any amount still disputed.<\/p>\n

    The notaire\u2019s information duty can matter where a family was not told about the possibility of a credit. In a decision of 8 December 2009, First Civil Chamber, nos. 08-16.495 and 08-17.406, the Court of Cassation stated: \u00ab le notaire est tenu d’\u00e9clairer les parties et d’appeler leur attention sur la port\u00e9e, les effets et les risques des actes auxquels il pr\u00eate son concours \u00bb. The official decision is at L\u00e9gifrance, Cass. civ. 1, 8 December 2009, nos. 08-16.495 and 08-17.406<\/a>. That principle does not guarantee that a credit will be approved, but it supports a careful review of what the notary explained, what the heirs signed and when the liquidity problem became apparent.<\/p>\n

    A useful application pack should answer the following in a single document:<\/p>\n