French Tax Amnesty Deadline Looms

The French Government has warned taxpayers that they have until the end of this year to disclose undeclared assets under its tax amnesty scheme, which as been running for more than four years.

The Processing of Corrective Declarations (STDR) scheme was introduced by a circular dated June 21, 2013, and allows taxpayers to disclose undeclared foreign income and assets in return for reduced penalties.

According to a statement issued by Minister of Public Accounts Garald Darmanin, the scheme will close on December 31, 2017. Declarations made before January 1, 2018, and processed after that date will still qualify for the terms of the scheme, the statement added.

More than 50,000 applicants have used the STDR since its creation, declaring in excess of EUR32bn (USD38bn) in undisclosed assets. This led to the collection by the Government of an additional EUR7.8bn in tax.

The statement said that the Government intends to fight tax fraud “with the utmost firmness.” However, it added that it will in future rely on automatic information exchanges under the Common Reporting Standard, which begin this month in around 50 jurisdictions, to counter tax evasion.