Spouse remaining in France: what is their tax residence?

When one spouse leaves France and the other remains, tax residence is determined for each member of the household. If you leave and your family stays, the first question concerns you: the French tax authorities (BOFiP) maintain the tax residence in France when your profession requires you to live elsewhere and your family continues to reside there. If you are no longer domiciled in France, you constitute a "mixed couple" as defined on the impots.gouv.fr website (non-resident status is also assessed in light of the tax treaty): according to the BOFiP, household taxation applies to the worldwide income of the spouse domiciled in France and to the French-source income of the other spouse, subject to the applicable tax treaties. This page is limited to the information provided by the BOFiP and impots.gouv.fr.

The home is valued by each spouse

The BOFiP BOI-IR-CHAMP-10 states that, since the concept of head of household has been removed from the French General Tax Code (CGI), spouses are placed on a strictly equal footing. The "Resident of France" page on impots.gouv.fr (updated on 27/01/2026) specifies that tax residence is determined for each member of the household. The cases it describes concern couples where one spouse is a resident of France for tax purposes and the other is not, according to a tax treaty: this is what the page calls a mixed couple. One spouse can then be considered a tax resident of France, the other a non-resident, and they are taxed differently.

The BOFiP (Official Bulletin of Public Finances) reminds us that only one criterion is sufficient to be considered domiciled in France. The three categories of criteria are detailed in French tax residence: the three criteria of Article 4 B.

Your own home when your spouse and children stay

The BOFiP (§ 110) states that a residence remains the taxpayer's home even if, due to professional requirements, they are required to reside elsewhere temporarily or for most of the year, provided that, normally, the family continues to live there and all its members can be seen there. It adds that employees temporarily seconded abroad by their company are normally considered to be tax residents of France if they have left their families in the country.

For the main residence, the BOFiP (§ 120) considers personal and actual presence, regardless of the family's location and living conditions. Your family counts towards the household, but not for this second definition. Details are in Tax domicile: home or main place of residence.

This page does not address the case of a non-posted employee or a manager whose spouse remains in France: the BOFiP (Official Bulletin of Public Finances) describes the posted employee, and we do not extend the rule to other situations. It also does not address spouses who live separately, except in the cases described below.

If you are no longer domiciled in France: what France requires of the household

The BOFiP (§ 90) states that if one spouse or partner does not meet the criteria, the household's tax liability only applies to the combined income of the spouse or partner domiciled in France, and to the French-source income of the other spouse or partner (subject to tax treaties). The same principle applies to children and dependents: only their French-source income is subject to joint taxation, but it is taken into account for the family quotient calculation. The impots.gouv.fr website confirms that individuals who are tax residents outside of France are included in the calculation of the family quotient.

According to this page, the method of declaration depends on the couple's situation:

The page associates separation of property with separation of body: do not extend this line to a separation of property alone without examination.

Minimum and average rates for the non-resident spouse

Non-residents are taxed only on their French-source income, subject to tax treaties. According to economie.gouv.fr (page dated 24/04/2026), non-residents are subject to the progressive tax scale with minimum rates: 20% of income up to €29,579 and 30% of income above that, for income received in 2025. They can request the average tax rate if it is more favorable, provided they declare all French and foreign-source income of the members of their tax household.

In the online tax return for a mixed-nationality couple, impots.gouv.fr requires that this option be explicitly indicated in the "Information" section before the signature page, and advises against correcting the online return if it has been omitted: it recommends filing a complaint. The economie.gouv.fr website, on the other hand, mentions a request made by checking a box in the online return: the two formulations are reproduced without being reconciled, and should be verified with the source. The mechanism is detailed in Average rate: non-resident option.

The year following the departure

The impots.gouv.fr website specifies that, in the year following departure, the spouse who has become a non-resident declares their income online to the tax office of their former residence, indicating any French-source income still taxable in France. To report a foreign address, see Foreign address: inform the tax authorities of your departure.

Mixed couple: numerical example (fictitious profile)

Situation. A married couple living in Lyon, under a community property regime, remains in France with their children and earns €62,000. He goes abroad to work, earning €80,000, and retains €10,000 in rental income from a property in France. His income is fictitious.

Issue. They want to know what portion of their income France would tax depending on whether or not they remain domiciled in France.

Strategy. They compare two situations: him domiciled in France, then him non-resident, assuming that the convention assigns the taxation of rents to France.

Result. If he remains domiciled in France, the tax base is that of worldwide income: €62,000 + €80,000 + €10,000 = €152,000. If he is no longer domiciled, it is €62,000 (spouse's income) + €10,000 (his French-source income) = €72,000. The €80,000 of foreign salary is excluded from the tax base, representing 52.6% of the base in the first case. This calculation compares tax bases, not taxes: it does not determine whether the spouse is actually a non-resident. This status depends on the criteria of Article 4 B, and in particular on the household, which includes the family remaining in France.

Spouse remaining in France: what changes depending on your situation

• Your employment status (secondment or departure on your own initiative) changes the BOFiP text that applies to your household.
• Your matrimonial regime determines, according to impots.gouv.fr, how to declare: joint declaration of the tax base or separate taxations.
• Your tax treaty with the host country may allocate certain income to France or the other state.
• The situation of your children and dependents affects the family quotient.

These points are examined on a case-by-case basis.