5/13/2026 8:04:34 AM | less than a minute read

Improvements for stepchildren in French succession law

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Jacques Cutting

Apprentice Solicitor

Get in touch

Jacques Cutting

Apprentice Solicitor

As you may be aware, French inheritance and taxation rules are very different if you leave assets to your children or stepchildren.

Until recently, each child was entitled to a tax-free allowance of €100,000 in France, whereas stepchildren were only entitled to €1,594. Furthermore, your children would be taxed at rates ranging from 5% to 45%, while your stepchildren would face a fixed tax rate of 60%.

The new rules improve stepchildren's situation slightly by increasing the tax-free allowance from €1,594 to €15,932.

However, these new rules only apply if your family situation meets certain criteria. If you have any questions about French inheritance, please feel free to contact Stone King.

The Assemblée nationale adopted an amendment to the 2026 budget’s projet de loi de finances (PLF) on November 3. It states that: Children of the surviving spouse or partner in a marriage or Pacs partnership can inherit a legacy left to them by their late step-parent to the new upper limit, tax-free. The pre-tax allowance is set at €15,932, the same as currently applicable to the deceased's siblings.

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