Receiving Your Tax Assessment Notice: An Opportunity to Review and Correct It

Most taxpayers have now received their tax bills or can view them in their personal account on impots.gouv.fr. 

Since the introduction of withholding tax, paying taxes has become less of a burden, which discourages individuals from carefully reviewing the details of their tax returns. Although the procedures and formalities have been greatly simplified in recent years, the French tax system remains particularly complex.
 

Receiving this notice is a good opportunity to check whether any errors or omissions have slipped past your attention. If you forgot to report income or, conversely, forgot to fill out a line that entitles you to a tax deduction, you can correct your return.

The correction service is available in your personal account under the “Access Online Correction” section. It will remain open until December 4, 2024. A new tax assessment notice will be issued after the amended return has been processed.

The amendment process has been simplified because users are now presumed to be acting in good faith. If a user has made a mistake while completing an administrative procedure—including in the context of audit and collection activities—they can update their information without risking a penalty for the first oversight.

The right to make a mistake is part of the 2018 ESSOC Act (State in the Service of a Trust-Based Society), designed to strengthen the relationship of trust between the public (individuals and businesses) and the government. However, this right to make a mistake is not a license to make mistakes. The government specifies that it does not apply to repeat offenders or fraudsters. Nor is it a right to delay: late filings or omissions within the prescribed deadlines do not fall within its scope.
 

Please note that certain information cannot be modified through the online correction service. This includes changes to marital status (marriage, civil partnership, dissolution of a civil partnership, divorce, death), updates to civil status, changes to the designation of a trusted third party, changes of address, and the addition or modification of the student’s address.
 

If you filed a paper tax return, the process is more complicated because you cannot use the online correction service to amend it. The only option in that case is to file a claim, which can be done until December 31 of the second year following the year of assessment indicated on the tax notice. You can file this claim online through the secure messaging system in your “Individual” account or by mail addressed to your local tax office or the tax service counter.
 

Receiving your tax notice is a valuable opportunity to review and correct any errors or omissions. Thanks to the online correction service and the "right to make a mistake," taxpayers can update their information without fear of immediate penalties. For more information, visit your personal account on impots.gouv.fr or contact your local tax office.