TVA in France: What It Means and Every 2026 Rate
TVA — Taxe sur la Valeur Ajoutée — is France's VAT, and France is where VAT was invented. This guide covers all four French rates, what each applies to, HT vs TTC pricing, the Corsica and overseas exceptions, and how to read the TVA lines on a French receipt or invoice.
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Quick answer: TVA (Taxe sur la Valeur Ajoutée) is French VAT. The standard rate is 20%; reduced rates of 10% (restaurants, transport, renovation), 5.5% (most food, books, energy) and 2.1% (reimbursable medicines, press) cover specific categories. Prices shown to consumers are TTC (tax included); business quotes are HT (tax excluded). To convert either way, use our France VAT calculator.
TVA is VAT — and France invented it
If you're reading a French invoice, price tag or contract, every mention of TVA is simply value-added tax. The acronym stands for Taxe sur la Valeur Ajoutée — tax on the added value — and the concept itself is a French export: tax engineer Maurice Lauré designed the system and France applied it first in 1954, decades before the EU made VAT mandatory for every member state. Today the French TVA is the state's single largest source of tax revenue — well ahead of income tax.
Mechanically, TVA works like VAT everywhere: each business in the chain charges TVA on its sales (output tax), deducts the TVA it paid on purchases (input tax), and remits the difference to the DGFiP (Direction générale des Finances publiques). The full cost lands on the final consumer.
The four French TVA rates in 2026
| Rate | French name | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| 20% | Taux normal | The default: electronics, clothing, vehicles, alcohol, most services, furniture, cosmetics — anything without a specific reduced-rate rule. |
| 10% | Taux intermédiaire | Restaurant and café food, hotel stays, passenger transport, home renovation and improvement works, non-reimbursable medicines, admission to museums and zoos, firewood. |
| 5.5% | Taux réduit | Most food and non-alcoholic drinks sold in shops, water, books (paper and digital), school canteens, tickets to live performances and cinemas, gas and electricity subscriptions, equipment for disabled people, energy-renovation works. |
| 2.1% | Taux particulier | Medicines reimbursed by social security, newspapers and periodical press (print and online), licence fees, the first 140 performances of certain new shows. |
Two habits of the French system are worth memorising. First, food changes rate with context: the same sandwich is 5.5% in a supermarket but 10% eaten in a café. Second, alcohol is always 20%, even served with a 10% restaurant meal — which is why French restaurant bills often carry two TVA lines.
HT vs TTC: reading French prices
French pricing lives in two worlds. TTC (toutes taxes comprises) is the tax-included price — mandatory for anything shown to consumers. HT (hors taxes) is the net price before TVA — the standard basis for B2B quotes, because businesses recover the TVA anyway. The conversion is one multiplication:
| Rate | HT → TTC | TTC → HT |
|---|---|---|
| 20% | × 1.20 | ÷ 1.20 |
| 10% | × 1.10 | ÷ 1.10 |
| 5.5% | × 1.055 | ÷ 1.055 |
| 2.1% | × 1.021 | ÷ 1.021 |
Example: a freelancer quotes €1,000 HT for a project. The invoice adds 20% TVA (€200) for a total of €1,200 TTC. The business client pays €1,200 but reclaims the €200, so the real cost is the HT figure. A consumer would simply pay €1,200. Our France VAT calculator does the conversion in either direction, at any of the four rates; if you only have receipts and need the tax backed out, the reverse VAT calculator is built for exactly that.
Corsica and the overseas departments: different rules
The four headline rates apply to mainland France, but the Republic taxes its islands differently:
| Territory | Standard | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Mainland France | 20% | 10% / 5.5% / 2.1% reduced rates |
| Corsica | 20% | Special reduced rates on many categories: e.g. 10% on construction works and agricultural equipment, 13% on petroleum products, down to 0.9% for certain live performances |
| Guadeloupe, Martinique, Réunion | 8.5% | Reduced rate 2.1% |
| French Guiana, Mayotte | — | TVA not applicable |
How French TVA rates got here
France has adjusted the standard rate only a handful of times in the modern era — useful to know when you're checking an old invoice:
| Period | Standard rate | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 1954 | — | TVA invented and first applied in France (initially for large businesses) |
| 1982 – Jul 1995 | 18.6% | The long-running modern baseline |
| Aug 1995 – Mar 2000 | 20.6% | Raised for deficit reduction |
| Apr 2000 – Dec 2013 | 19.6% | Cut by the Jospin government |
| Since Jan 2014 | 20% | Current rate — also when the 10% intermediate rate replaced 7% |
Reading a French receipt or invoice
A compliant French facture breaks the total down by rate: one block per TVA rate showing the HT base, the rate, and the tax amount, then the TTC total. Three details worth knowing:
- Two TVA lines are normal on restaurant and mixed bills (10% food + 20% alcohol, or 5.5% + 20% in a supermarket).
- "TVA non applicable, art. 293 B du CGI" means the seller is under the franchise en base small-business scheme (2026 thresholds: €85,000 for goods, €37,500 for services) — no TVA is charged and none can be deducted.
- The TVA number on B2B invoices is FR + 2-key characters + the 9-digit SIREN. Verify it in the EU VIES database before zero-rating an intra-EU sale.
What's changing: e-invoicing from September 2026
France's next big TVA shift is administrative, not a rate change: mandatory electronic invoicing (facturation électronique) starts rolling out on 1 September 2026, when all French businesses must be able to receive structured e-invoices and large/mid-size companies must begin issuing them, with smaller businesses following in 2027. For foreign sellers, nothing changes about the rates — but French B2B customers will increasingly insist on compliant invoice formats.
Frequently asked questions
Quick answers to the most common questions users ask.
What does TVA stand for?
TVA stands for Taxe sur la Valeur Ajoutée — literally 'tax on the added value'. It is France's value-added tax, the exact equivalent of VAT in the UK, IVA in Spain and Italy, or MwSt in Germany. If a French price or invoice mentions TVA, it means VAT.
How much is TVA in France in 2026?
The standard TVA rate is 20% and applies to most goods and services. France also uses three reduced rates: 10% (restaurants, transport, home renovation), 5.5% (most food, books, energy subscriptions) and 2.1% (reimbursable medicines and newspapers). The rates are unchanged for 2026.
Is TVA the same as VAT?
Yes. TVA is simply the French name for value-added tax. The mechanics are identical to VAT anywhere in the EU: businesses charge it on sales, reclaim it on purchases, and remit the difference to the tax authority (the DGFiP in France).
What is the TVA rate in French restaurants?
Food and non-alcoholic drinks served in restaurants and cafés carry 10% TVA. Alcoholic drinks are taxed at the standard 20% even when served with a meal — which is why a French restaurant bill often shows two TVA lines.
What do HT and TTC mean on French prices?
HT (hors taxes) is the price before TVA — the net amount, used in B2B quotes. TTC (toutes taxes comprises) is the final price including TVA — what consumers pay. Converting between them is a one-step calculation: TTC = HT × 1.20 at the standard rate.
Why does a French invoice say 'TVA non applicable, art. 293 B du CGI'?
That line means the seller is a micro-entrepreneur (or other small business) under France's franchise en base scheme: their turnover is below the VAT registration threshold, so they charge no TVA — and you cannot deduct any. It is a legally required mention, not an error.
Can tourists get TVA refunded in France?
Yes. Non-EU residents can reclaim TVA on shopping through the détaxe scheme if they meet the minimum purchase amount in one store and validate their tax-free forms electronically (PABLO kiosks) before leaving the EU. Refund operators keep a fee, so the actual refund is below the full 20%. Our France VAT refund calculator estimates what you'll actually get back.
What is a French TVA number and how do I check one?
A French VAT number ('numéro de TVA intracommunautaire') is FR + a 2-character key + the company's 9-digit SIREN, e.g. FR12345678901. You can verify any EU VAT number, including French ones, in the EU's VIES database before zero-rating a B2B sale.
Are TVA rates different in Corsica and the French overseas departments?
Yes. Guadeloupe, Martinique and Réunion apply 8.5% standard and 2.1% reduced TVA; French Guiana and Mayotte apply no TVA at all. Corsica keeps the mainland's 20% standard rate but taxes several categories at special reduced rates (for example construction works at 10% and certain supplies as low as 0.9%).
Who invented VAT?
France did. The TVA was designed by French tax official Maurice Lauré and first applied in 1954, making France the first country in the world to operate a value-added tax. The model was later adopted across Europe and today runs in more than 170 countries.
Work with French TVA
Convert HT ↔ TTC at 20%, 10%, 5.5% or 2.1% — or back the TVA out of any receipt.
🇫🇷 The complete France VAT toolkit
Every France VAT task on one site — calculator, rates reference, and reverse tool.
Related guides
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All rates, thresholds, and regulatory guidance cited on this page are sourced from official government publications and non-partisan research institutions.
Government & Tax Authority Sources
impots.gouv.fr — TVA
The official French tax administration portal for TVA rates, registration, and filing.
impots.gouv.frInternational Tax Bodies
European Commission — VAT Guide
Comprehensive portal for VAT rates and rules across all 27 EU member states, including B2B/B2C regulations.
ec.europa.euOECD — Consumption Tax Database
Global comparative data on VAT/GST structures and consumption tax trends across OECD member nations.
oecd.orgTaxesLedger is an independent educational tool. We are not affiliated with any government agency. Rate records include source metadata and verification status; always confirm with your jurisdiction's official Department of Revenue before filing. Last registry update: September 11, 2026.
· Rate source metadata is tracked in the TaxesLedger tax data registry.
