The France-Hong Kong tax agreement, article by article

The French administration refers to this text as an "agreement": it was signed in Paris on October 21, 2010, with the government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It caps the tax levied by the source state on dividends and interest at 10,130 PT, subject to the exceptions outlined in the text: Article 11, paragraph 3, provides interest exemptions for certain public or designated beneficiaries. It makes pensions taxable in the source state. It does not include provisions regarding inheritance. This page presents the articles we have been able to confirm and explains what it does not cover.

A 2010 agreement, the MLI since 2023-2024

Signature and entry into force. The agreement was signed on October 21, 2010, authorized by Law No. 2011-1283 of October 13, 2011, and published by Decree No. 2011-1766 of December 5, 2011. According to the French Official Tax Bulletin (BOFiP), it entered into force on December 1, 2011. In France, it applies to amounts taxable from January 1, 2012, for withholding taxes, and to years or fiscal years beginning on or after that date for other income taxes. In Hong Kong, it covers any tax year beginning on or after April 1, 2012.

The MLI. The list of agreements modified by the multilateral convention (BOI-ANNX-000511, dated April 29, 2026) indicates, for Hong Kong, January 1, 2024 for taxes withheld at source and September 23, 2023 for other taxes. The BOFiP's commentary on the agreement (version of September 12, 2012) does not mention the MLI. The details of the selected options have not been reviewed here.

Taxes in question. The official list classifies the agreement as "IR – IF". Article 21 deals with wealth. The application of the agreement to the IFI (French Wealth Tax) is not addressed here.

Withholding limits and key rules

The royalties, public functions and exceptions of each article are not detailed here.

Who is a resident? Nationality on the French side, right of residence on the Hong Kong side.

Article 4, paragraph 2, governs the case of a natural person resident in both Parties, in this order: permanent home, then center of vital interests; failing that, habitual residence; failing that, nationality for France, or the right of residence in Hong Kong; finally, the agreement of the competent authorities. The text formulates the second criterion as follows: "they are considered a resident only of the Party where they habitually reside.".

For Hong Kong, the protocol (§ 5) clarifies the definition: a person is considered a resident if they reside in Hong Kong for more than 180 days during a tax year, or for more than 300 days over two consecutive tax years, including the year in question. The Hong Kong tax year begins on April 1st. The protocol forms an integral part of the agreement.

When the agreement applies, its definition of resident takes precedence over domestic tax domicile. French tax domicile is addressed on our page about leaving France.

Pensions: the source state imposes

Article 17, paragraph 1, stipulates that pensions and similar remuneration paid to a resident in respect of previous employment are taxable in the Contracting Party in which they arise. Paragraph 2 deems a pension paid directly, or by a pension fund or similar institution recognized or regulated by the legislation of a Contracting Party, to be of source in that Party. Article 18 deals separately with public pensions; it is not discussed in detail here.

Capital gains: three rules to distinguish

Capital gains on real estate are taxable where the property is located (Article 13, paragraph 1(a)). Capital gains on securities representing a substantial shareholding of 25% or more of a company's profits are taxable in the state of that company (paragraph 3). Capital gains on all other assets are taxable only in the state of which the transferor is resident (paragraph 5). Capital gains on securities of companies whose assets consist primarily of real estate (more than 50%, paragraph 1(b)) are subject to exclusions that are not detailed on this page.

Dividends: the 10% cap (%) and paragraph 5

Article 10, paragraph 1, makes dividends taxable in the recipient's state. Paragraph 2(a) also authorizes the state of the distributing company to tax them, but not exceeding 10% of the gross amount. Paragraph 5 contains a prohibition rule: "that other Party may not levy any tax on dividends paid by the company," with exceptions based on residence and permanent establishment. Its precise scope is explained in the text.

Elimination of double taxation

For France, Article 22 § 1 provides for a tax credit that can be offset against French tax, up to the amount of the corresponding French tax. Details of the ceiling and specific conditions for certain types of income are detailed in the text.

Exchange of information, free trade zones

Article 25 governs the exchange of information "likely to be relevant" (§ 1) and excludes banking secrecy (§ 5): a Party may not refuse to disclose information solely because it is held by a bank. The protocol (§ 10) prohibits transmission to a third jurisdiction and does not mandate either spontaneous or automatic exchange. The protocol (§ 1) stipulates that a resident who conducts business in a free zone or benefits from an offshore regime is not eligible for the agreement. Article 24 sets the time limit for the mutual agreement procedure at three years from the first notification.

Inheritance and gifts: no special section

The official list of conventions does not mention any inheritance provisions for Hong Kong, and Article 2 of the agreement does not address inheritance tax. Inheritance tax in Hong Kong is explained on our page about living in Hong Kong.

Dividend of €80,000: numerical example (fictitious profile)

Situation. A Hong Kong resident, a fictitious profile, holds shares in a French company. The company pays him a gross dividend of €80,000.

Issue. He wants to know the maximum amount of withholding tax that France can collect under the agreement.

Strategy. He reads Article 10 § 2 a): the tax of the State of source may not exceed 10 % of the gross amount.

Result. The withholding tax ceiling is €8,000. Therefore, the net dividend cannot be less than €72,000 due to this withholding tax. This ceiling does not replace the examination of the domestic tax rate, nor the conditions of Article 10 § 5 and the anti-abuse clauses, which must be verified before any payment is made.

What this page does not cover

Royalties, services, public functions, artists, students, Article 27 on combating tax evasion, the anti-abuse clauses of Articles 10, 11, 12 and 13, the scope of the MLI and the application of the agreement to the IFI are not detailed. They can be found in the official text.

What changes depending on your situation

• Your residence as defined in the agreement, and the number of days spent in Hong Kong.
• The nature of the income: dividend, interest, pension, salary, capital gain.
• The percentage of your ownership stake in a company, for capital gains on securities.
• The location of the goods, real estate or otherwise.
• The effects of MLI on your situation.

An article should be read in light of the facts in your case. No outcome is guaranteed.