Antilles, Réunion, Guiana, what changes for a non-resident selling or buying in overseas France?
Guadeloupe, Martinique, Réunion, French Guiana and Mayotte are French départements, and the non-resident who sells or buys there follows the ordinary law described in this guide, 19 % levy on the gain, social levies, tax representative above 150,000 €, transfer duties, notaire and land registry. Three differences matter. The minimum tax rate on rent is lowered to 14.4 % and 20 % for overseas-source income. VAT on a new home is at the local rate of 8.5 % in Guadeloupe, Martinique and Réunion, and provisionally does not apply in French Guiana or Mayotte. And the risk statement weighs more, cyclones, earthquakes, coastal flooding, in a sale file that the seller abroad entrusts to an agent on the spot.
The same law as mainland France, the same notaire, the same levies
An owner settled in Paris, London or Montreal who sells their house in Le Lamentin or their flat in Saint-Denis de La Réunion is a non-resident for tax purposes if their domicile is not in France, and a resident if they live in mainland France, the overseas départements being part of the French tax territory. In the first case this whole guide applies as it stands, 19 % levy on the gain, holding-period allowances, social levies of 17.2 % or 7.5 %, accredited tax representative above 150,000 € outside the European Economic Area, exemptions of the former main residence and of article 150 U II 2°.
The sale goes through a notaire of the département, who notifies the pre-emption rights, the municipality's and, for farmland, the Safer's, and registers the deed at the local land registry. Transfer duties follow the same scale, and the overseas departmental councils, like the others, were able to raise their rate. The price per square metre and each municipality's market are read in the published sales, and BRIVEO publishes the pages of Fort-de-France, Pointe-à-Pitre, Saint-Denis or Cayenne like those of mainland France.
What changes, the minimum rate and VAT
The official tax bulletin specifies about article 197 A that the income tax owed by persons domiciled outside France on their French-source income may not be less than 20 % of taxable income, and that this rate is set at 14.4 % for all income arising in the overseas départements. Above the bracket threshold, the higher rates are 30 % in mainland France and 20 % overseas. Rent from a flat in Pointe-à-Pitre received by an owner living in Belgium is therefore taxed at least at 14.4 %, not 20 %.
For a purchase of a new build, impots.gouv.fr recalls that in Guadeloupe, Martinique and Réunion the standard VAT rate is set at 8.5 % and the reduced rate at 2.1 %, and that VAT provisionally does not apply in French Guiana or Mayotte. A new home bought in Fort-de-France therefore bears far lower VAT than in mainland France, and none in Cayenne, which weighs on the displayed price and on the comparison with older homes, whose transfer duties remain those of ordinary law.
| Point | Mainland France | Guadeloupe, Martinique, Réunion, French Guiana, Mayotte |
|---|---|---|
| Levy on the gain | 19 % | 19 %, identical |
| Minimum rate on rent | 20 % then 30 % | 14.4 % then 20 % |
| VAT on a new home | Mainland standard rate | 8.5 % in Guadeloupe, Martinique and Réunion, none in French Guiana and Mayotte |
| Tax representative | Above 150,000 € outside the EEA | Identical |
| Risk statement in the sale file | Depending on the municipality | Cyclones, earthquakes, coastal flooding, landslides, almost everywhere |
Mainland and overseas France, what differs for the non-resident
Selling or buying thousands of kilometres away
Distance here is counted in flight hours, and the sale is prepared as from abroad. The surveyor and the agent open the door, the risks and pollution statement is attached from the listing onwards, and signing is done by power of attorney or by remote appearance before the département's notaire. The time difference with Europe or North America is handled in the notaire's video call slots, and the price is wired to the seller's account wherever they are.
Co-ownerships are numerous, and the seller gathers the same documents as in mainland France, regulations, minutes, maintenance log, pre-dated statement. Land, in French Guiana and the Antilles, often falls under particular tenure regimes, old joint ownerships, the fifty geometric paces zone on the coast, which the notaire clears up before any sale.
Frequently asked questions
I live in mainland France and I am selling my house in Martinique, am I a non-resident?
No, you are domiciled in France, Martinique is part of it for tax purposes, and you follow the residents' rules, main residence exemption included if it was yours. This guide concerns those who live outside France.
Is my rent from Saint-Denis de La Réunion taxed at 20 % or 14.4 %?
At the minimum rate of 14.4 % up to the bracket threshold, then 20 %, because its source is overseas, with the option of requesting the average rate on your worldwide income if it is lower.
Buying off-plan in Cayenne, is there VAT?
No, VAT provisionally does not apply in French Guiana or Mayotte. In Guadeloupe, Martinique and Réunion it applies at the local rate, far below the mainland one.
Read next
- BOFiP, BOI-IR-DOMIC-10-20-10, non-résidents, base et calcul de l'impôt, taux minimum (6 avril 2017)
- impots.gouv.fr, « Impôts dus par les professionnels dans les DOM », taux de TVA (modifiée le 8 mars 2024)
- impots.gouv.fr, international, « Plus-values immobilières » (modifiée le 5 juillet 2022)
- Code général des impôts, articles 197 A, 244 bis A, 294 et 296
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