This page provides an English overview. The French calculator estimates ordinary unrealised gains for a 2026 departure, with an eligibility screen and separate entries for each holding. Deferred gains and earn-out claims require a separate calculation. Open the French calculator.
The architecture of the calculation
French exit tax is not a departure tax on the individual as such. It is a mechanism that crystallises certain unrealised capital gains and deferred gains when a taxpayer transfers tax residence outside France. The calculation starts with the assets falling within article 167 bis of the French Tax Code, then determines the taxable basis, the applicable tax treatment and the availability of a payment deferral.
Valuing shares and securities
Listed securities generally require a market reference. Unlisted companies require a documented valuation based on coherent methods: comparable transactions, multiples, net asset value, discounted cash flows or a combined approach. The valuation file is often the decisive point in a later tax audit.
Latent capital gain and deferred gain
The latent gain is the difference between the market value at the date of departure and the tax acquisition price. Deferred gains under French regimes such as contribution-deferral mechanisms must be analysed separately because leaving France can bring them within the exit tax perimeter.
Rates, allowances and practical computation
The amount is not assessed mechanically. The taxpayer must analyse the nature of the gain, the applicable income tax treatment, social surtaxes, historical allowances and the interaction with the payment deferral. A robust computation is not only arithmetic: it is also a legal qualification exercise.
Evidence to keep
The taxpayer should keep the departure date analysis, the shareholding threshold analysis, the valuation report, corporate documents, past acquisition documents and the forms filed with the French tax authorities.
Build the calculation asset by asset
An exit-tax estimate should not begin with a percentage applied to the taxpayer's total wealth. The statutory base can contain different components: latent gains on qualifying securities, earn-out receivables and gains already subject to a tax deferral. Each component has its own source documents and may react differently to a later sale, relief event or return to France.
Latent gain: value less tax basis
For a straightforward shareholding, the working formula is the market value at the supported residence-transfer date minus the tax basis determined under French rules. Purchase price may be evident for recently acquired shares, while inherited, gifted, option-derived or reorganised holdings require a chain of documents. Costs, prior adjustments and any historic holding-period relief should be treated only where the applicable legislation permits.
Listed securities require a consistent market-price method using the legally relevant date. Unquoted securities normally require a multicriteria valuation. Recent arm's-length transactions can be informative, but financing rights, preference shares, debt, surplus cash, profitability, growth prospects, key-person dependence and transfer restrictions may make a simple multiple misleading. The report should explain its methods, inputs, weightings and sensitivity, rather than present one unexplained number.
A calculation control list
- reconcile the taxpayer's direct and indirect ownership with company registers;
- separate ordinary shares, preferred instruments, options and contractual earn-outs;
- identify each contribution, exchange or earlier gain placed under deferral;
- document the transfer date and foreign-exchange rate for non-euro inputs;
- apply the income-tax and social-charge rules in force for the departure year;
- model immediate payment and each available deferral separately;
- retain a bridge from the valuation report to every figure reported on Form 2074-ETD.
Why a headline estimate is not a filing figure
A preliminary estimate can help with liquidity planning, but it may omit elections, historic basis adjustments, deferred gains or the effect of a partial ownership threshold. Tax rates also change. The final calculation should state its legal date, assumptions and unresolved items. If a sale is already contemplated, compare the exit-tax valuation with the transaction evidence and explain any difference before filing.
Primary references are the current Article 167 bis CGI, BOFiP guidance on the tax base and the official 2074-ETD materials. Any online calculator is illustrative only and cannot validate a private-company value or deferred-gain history.