Declaring your investment income: boxes 2DC, 2TR, 2CK

Share dividends are declared in box 2DC. Interest and other fixed-income investment income are declared in box 2TR. The 12.8% withholding tax (%) that your bank has already paid to the Treasury is shown in box 2CK: this is an advance payment, which is deducted from your tax liability. These earnings are subject, with some exceptions, to the flat-rate withholding tax (PFU) of 12.8% (%) for income tax (impots.gouv.fr). An option allows you to choose the progressive tax scale (box 2OP).

This page follows the practical guide to income tax for 2026, for income received in 2025 and declared in 2026. It deals with French tax residents. It does not cover assurance-vie, which has its own dedicated page, nor the foreign income tax credit, nor non-residents. It does not provide campaign deadlines, tax brackets, or details of the single tax form (IFU). The boxes in the following tax return should be checked on the current year's form. Stock dividends and stock values fluctuate, and capital invested in stocks can be lost.

The boxes to know

Form 2042 K is pre-filled with information on investment income received in 2025 by you and your spouse (see brochure). The final tax calculation is done by filing the tax return the year following the year in which the income was received (impots.gouv.fr).

Case 2DC: Dividends

The brochure instructs you to declare the amount of dividends from shares and income from partnership interests on line 2DC. It also advises against declaring dividends received in a PEA (equity savings plan) that are exempt from income tax.

For unlisted securities in a PEA or PEA-PME, the portion of the proceeds exceeding 10 % of the registration value in the plan falls under line 2FU.

The 40% tax allowance on eligible dividends only applies if you opt for the tax scale (impots.gouv.fr). The criteria that distributing companies must meet are detailed in the brochure.

Case 2TR: Interest

Line 2TR receives interest and other fixed-income investment products: taxable bank savings accounts, term deposits, and bonds. Interest from loans between individuals is also included, subject to the exemption provided for family loans (see the brochure).

Some interests are not declared. The brochure specifically mentions sums recorded on:

• a savings account; ;
• a popular savings account (LEP); ;
• a sustainable and solidarity development booklet (LDDS); ;
• a home savings account (CEL) opened before January 1, 2018; ;
• a home savings plan (PEL) opened before January 1, 2018, less than 12 years old; ;
• a booklet for young people; ;
• a popular savings plan (PEP).

Interest from participatory loans and minibonds does not go into 2TR: it goes into 2TT.

Case 2TT: Participatory loans with a ceiling of €8,000

Interest received in 2025 on participatory loans is declared on line 2TT. Losses incurred due to non-repayment of a participatory loan granted from January 1, 2017, onwards can be offset, up to a limit of €8,000, against interest generated by participatory loans or minibonds. The offset can be made in the same year or over the following five years (see brochure).

Ordinance No. 2021-1735 of December 22, 2021, abolished the minibond scheme; the allocation remains applicable to those subscribed until November 10, 2023.

Case 2CK: the deduction already paid

At the time of payment, the paying institution deducts 12.8% of the tax due (%). This deduction is not final; it constitutes an advance payment of income tax (impots.gouv.fr). The rate is 12.8% of the tax due (%) for all payments made from 2018 onwards.

The brochure indicates that box 2CK is usually pre-filled; otherwise, it must be entered. It constitutes a refundable tax credit. According to the BOFiP (BOI-RPPM-RCM-30-20), it is deducted from the income tax due for the year in which it was claimed, and any excess is refunded.

The exemption

You can request an exemption from this 12.8% withholding tax if your reference tax income (RFR) for year N-2 is below a certain threshold (impots.gouv.fr, updated on 07/04/2026). On this page, N refers to the year the income is paid: for income paid in 2027, the RFR used is that of 2025.

The application must be made by sworn statement before November 30th of the year preceding the year in which the income is paid. For income paid in 2027, this November 30th is November 30th, 2026. For assurance-vie contracts and lump-sum withdrawals from a retirement savings plan, the application can be made no later than the date the income is received. The exemption does not apply to social security contributions.

Payer established abroad

When the payer is established abroad, the brochure indicates that the withholding tax is declared and paid by the taxpayer when filing form 2778, for households whose reference tax income (RFR) meets the thresholds. The brochure also refers to form 2047. For fixed-income investment products where the payer is established or domiciled in France and which are paid outside France in a non-cooperative state or territory, it mentions a mandatory flat-rate withholding tax of 75 %.

Social charges

Social security contributions are added to income tax. The "Investment Income" page on impots.gouv.fr (updated 08/04/2026) lists them as follows:

• From 1 January 2026, the rate of social security contributions increases to 18.6 %, except for certain products that it lists, which remain at 17.2 %; ;
• most of the income from movable capital received in 2025 was subject to 17.2 % when it was received; ;
• Products from 2025 that have not been subject to any deduction at the time of collection are subject to 18.6 % when processing the declaration.

The brochure also details the composition of these deductions. The rate applicable to your case can be found on your tax statement and your tax notice, and should be verified with the source before any calculation.

The option for the scale: box 2OP

You can opt to have all your investment income and capital gains from the sale of securities taxed according to the progressive income tax scale by checking box 2OP (brochure; impots.gouv.fr). This option is global: it cannot be chosen dividend by dividend.

Its effects, according to official documents:

• The 40 % allowance applies to eligible dividends; ;
• Deductible expenses paid during the year and losses from previous years are allowed as deductions; ;
• a portion of the CSG is deductible from the total income of the year in which it is paid; ;
• Without an option, the expenses related to these revenues are not deductible (impots.gouv.fr, modified on 17/07/2026).

If you checked box 2OP the previous year, the brochure indicates that it is pre-checked on the tax return: without any changes on your part, you retain this option. To deselect it, the brochure instructs you to check the box located below box 2OP on the paper return. For online returns, follow the on-screen instructions.

The "Investment Income" page indicates that, as of 2026, the irrevocable nature of the option has been removed. Other official documents may present the option differently: check the terms and conditions for reversing an option with the source before selecting it.

Numerical example (fictitious profile)

Situation. Sophie and Karim, a married couple and tax residents of France, expect to receive €4,000 in dividends from French shares and €1,500 in interest from a fixed-term deposit in 2027. Their reference tax income (RFR) for 2025 (year N-2, with N = 2027, the year of payment) is €60,000. Assumptions: no option for the progressive tax scale, no other investment income, payers established in France, the paying institution withholds 12.8% of the tax due on all income for which no exemption has been requested, social security contributions disregarded. The exemption thresholds are those published on impots.gouv.fr (page modified on 07/04/2026): to be verified for 2027.

Issue. How much income tax do they owe on this income, and what amount would appear in box 2CK on the 2027 income tax return?

Strategy. Apply the flat tax rate of 12.8% (%) to €5,500. Check for exemption: €60,000 is less than €75,000 (for a couple, dividends), so an exemption is possible for dividends. This is not the case for interest, for which the threshold for a couple is €50,000. Compare: exemption requested for dividends before November 30, 2026, or no request.

Result.

The total tax remains the same: €704. The exemption does not reduce the tax; it defers the payment of €512 to the next tax return. This profile is fictitious and does not reflect your actual situation.

What changes depending on your situation

• The RFR of year N-2 (N being the year of payment): it conditions the exemption, with different thresholds for interest and for dividends.
• The type of investment : PEA, savings account, participatory loan or PER do not have the same categories.
• Your other investment income : the option for the pricing scale applies to the whole.
• The date of collection : social security contributions differ for 2025 and from 2026 onwards.

The rule depends on your situation. No results are guaranteed.