Tax documents and how long to keep them
| Document | Minimum period | Starting from |
|---|---|---|
| Income tax return, tax notice, supporting documents (actual expenses…) | Until December 31 of the 2nd year after the tax was assessed | Date the tax was assessed for collection (on your tax notice) |
| Property tax, or taxe foncière (notice, return, supporting documents) | Until December 31 of the year after the tax was assessed | Date the tax was assessed for collection (on the notice) |
| Housing tax on a second home, tax on vacant homes | Until December 31 of the year after the tax was assessed | Date the tax was assessed for collection (on the notice) |
| Real estate wealth tax, or IFI (return, notice, supporting documents) | Until December 31 of the 2nd year after the tax was assessed | Date the tax was assessed for collection (on your tax notice) |
| Proof for the tax credit for employing someone at home | Until the end of the 3rd year after the year the tax is due for | Any date in the year of the income concerned |
| Inheritance tax return and supporting documents | Until December 31 of the 3rd year after it was filed | Date the return was filed |
Source: Service Public. These are minimum periods: nothing stops you from keeping a document longer, and anything related to an ongoing dispute should be kept.
Everything starts from the assessment date
For income tax as for local taxes, the period doesn’t start from the date of your return or of your payment. It starts from the year the tax was assessed for collection (the mise en recouvrement), shown on your tax notice. The period always ends on a December 31.
Service Public gives two examples. Income tax assessed in 2026 is kept until December 31, 2028: the notice, the return and its supporting documents can go on January 1, 2029. A property tax (taxe foncière) assessed in 2026 is kept until December 31, 2027.
Claim period, reassessment period
The periods in the table are claim periods: the time you have to dispute a tax or ask for a correction. The tax office has its own reassessment period (délai de reprise) to claim extra tax for a past year, for example if it made a mistake. For income tax, this period depends on your situation.
For local taxes, the reassessment period is 3 years if you had an exemption, a relief or an allowance that was later corrected: a property tax assessed in 2026 is then kept until December 31, 2029. For the real estate wealth tax (IFI, impôt sur la fortune immobilière), it is 6 years if no return was filed, and 10 years in some cases, for example when the tax office looks into assets held abroad. If one of these cases applies to you, keep your papers until the end of the longest period.
Supporting documents follow the return
Whatever backs up a line of your return is kept as long as the return. If you deduct your actual expenses (frais réels), these are for example invoices and restaurant bills. File them with that year’s return, so you can sort everything together when the time comes.
If you employ someone at home, the proof for the tax credit is kept a little longer: until the end of the 3rd year after the year the tax is due for. A household employer’s other papers, like copies of payslips, are on the page about work and payslips.
Inheritance: at least 3 years, and often for good
The inheritance tax return (déclaration de succession) and its supporting documents are kept until December 31 of the 3rd year after it was filed, so until the end of 2029 for a return filed in 2026. If no return was filed, the tax office can act until December 31 of the 6th year after the death.
Service Public considers it useful to keep all the papers of an inheritance permanently, with future inheritances in mind. The papers of the person who died keep their usual periods, since they can prove debts or claims passed on to the heirs.
A notice received online is kept online
Was your notice sent by email, or made available on a website? That’s the example Service Public uses: the original is then electronic, and Service Public advises keeping it in that form. A printed version is only a copy. The retention period doesn’t change with the medium.
Self-employed: 10 years for business papers
These periods are for an individual’s taxes. The papers of a business follow other rules: invoices and accounting books are kept for 10 years from the end of the financial year, and the law of June 25, 2026 raised the retention period for documents needed for a tax audit from 6 to 10 years, for those whose period ends after January 1, 2027. Service Public’s page for individuals, reviewed on October 13, 2026, doesn’t mention this law.
A business’s periods are in the full document retention table.
Frequently asked questions
How long should I keep a French tax notice?
Until December 31 of the 2nd year after the tax was assessed for collection, a year shown on your tax notice (avis d’imposition). Income tax assessed in 2026 is kept until December 31, 2028, along with the return and its supporting documents.
How long should I keep a property tax notice (taxe foncière)?
Until December 31 of the year after it was assessed, so until the end of 2027 for a tax assessed in 2026. If you had an exemption, a relief or an allowance that was later corrected, keep it for 3 years, until the end of 2029 in this example.
Should I keep receipts for actual expenses (frais réels)?
Yes, for as long as the return you deducted them on: invoices, restaurant bills and other receipts are kept until December 31 of the 2nd year after the tax was assessed.
My tax notice is online: should I print it?
There’s no need. For a notice sent by email or made available on a website, the original is electronic, and Service Public advises keeping it in that form. A printed version is only a copy.
How long should I keep a French inheritance tax return?
At least until December 31 of the 3rd year after it was filed. Service Public considers it useful to keep all the papers of an inheritance permanently, with future inheritances in mind.
Sources
Checked on October 24, 2026.
- Service Public, “Durée de conservation des papiers”, Impôts section (how long to keep documents, in French, reviewed on October 13, 2026)
- Service Public, “Faut-il conserver l’original papier ou électronique d’un document ?” (paper or electronic original, in French)
- Entreprendre Service Public, “Modification de la durée de conservation des documents fiscaux” (in French)