Wealth management in Ireland

“Alexis, I moved to Dublin four years ago to work in tech. I'm starting to build up some wealth here. Do I need to plan for anything, or does everything sort itself out between European countries?”

Ireland is home to 11,932 French nationals on the consular register at 31 December 2025 (+1.53% over one year). It is a young community, concentrated in Dublin and closely linked to the European headquarters of large technology and pharmaceutical companies.

This youth explains why wealth questions are often raised there too late. At thirty, retirement and passing on wealth seem far off; yet this is precisely the period when choices of investment vehicle and residence have their most lasting effects — not least because the Franco-Irish treaty dates from 1968 and covers only income tax.

At Balmont Conseil, we approach Irish files through what is decided early and costs dearly later: investment vehicles, pension rights, and passing on wealth between two countries that nothing links on this front.

1. Why seek expert wealth management in Ireland?

Three European advantages, one shortcoming, and one Irish peculiarity.

• Social charges. Someone affiliated to the Irish scheme is exempt from CSG and CRDS on French-source investment income: 7.5% instead of 17.2%.
• The exit tax. Deferral of payment is automatic and requires no guarantee for a move to a Member State. The constraint comes down to formalities.
• No estate tax treaty. Nothing allocates the right to tax on death between France and Ireland. It is the blind spot of the file.
• The “company shares” component. Irish technology careers often come with share and option grants. Their tax treatment depends on the place of employment, the timing of acquisition, and residence at the time of disposal — three variables that can be managed.

2. The France ↔ Ireland framework in five verified points

Here is the applicable framework, checked against official sources as at 15 September 2026. The treaty is old and its scope is narrow.

France has concluded estate tax treaties with only eight of the twenty-seven Member States — Germany, Austria, Belgium, Spain, Finland, Italy, Portugal and Sweden. Ireland is not one of them. Shared membership of the European Union changes nothing in this area, which remains a national competence.

Consequence. Article 750 ter of the French Tax Code applies with no treaty corrective. Its 3° makes taxable in France all assets received by an heir domiciled in France for at least six of the last ten years. Only Article 784 A of the French Tax Code allows foreign tax paid to be credited, up to the French tax on assets located outside France.

This point is particularly relevant to young expatriates. Many will inherit from parents who stayed in France before they have anything to pass on themselves. In that direction, it is 1° of Article 750 ter that applies: as the deceased was domiciled in France, France taxes their entire worldwide estate, whatever the heir's residence.

3. Our services: 360° support for expatriates and investors

Three workstreams, calibrated for an early- or mid-career move abroad.

Investment vehicles, company shares and timing of disposals

We review your employee share schemes: the nature of the instruments, the vesting schedule, where you worked during the reference period, and your residence at the time of disposal. These four parameters determine which State taxes, and at what rate.

We then examine your French investment vehicles—assurance-vie, equity savings plans, employee savings plans—and what happens to each one. Some remain unaffected, while others lose their appeal and warrant rebalancing.

• Analysis of share instruments and their tax timeline.
• What happens to each French investment vehicle after departure.
• Reallocations to make before your French tax residence ends.

Activation of the CSG and CRDS exemption

We verify that your Irish affiliation entitles you to the exemption, that boxes 8SH or 8SI are completed, and that the supporting documentation is up to date. If necessary, we will review a claim for the years not yet time-barred.

Many European expatriates pay 17.2% instead of 7.5% because they have not taken this step, which does not happen automatically.

Preparing transfers of wealth in both directions

With no treaty, we model both scenarios: what you will receive from France, and what you will pass on from Ireland. The applicable paragraphs of Article 750 ter are not the same.

Finally, we look at how portable your investments are. A Luxembourg assurance-vie contract falls under the European freedom to provide services and stays with a policyholder who moves to another Member State without interruption — an asset while a career is still mobile.

4. Methodology: our way of working

We work in four stages, and at each stage you know where you stand.

1. The initial review. We establish your actual situation: the make-up of your wealth, the project timeline, the situation of each member of the household, and the tax domicile of your heirs — because it is theirs that counts, not yours.
2. The applicable framework. We set out, source by source and with its date, the framework that applies to you. What we do not know, we mark “to be confirmed” — never anything else.
3. The choices. We present the options with figures and their respective consequences, and you decide. Wealth structuring comes after the decision, not before.
4. Ongoing monitoring. An annual review, free of charge, to check that the framework has not moved — treaties are amended, incentive regimes are abolished, thresholds change.

5. What the firm offers you

What concretely sets our work apart.

• Sources, not claims. Every item in your file carries its reference and its date. You can check. It is the only way to work on a subject where most of the information available online is out of date.
• A single point of contact in France. We coordinate your local advisers; we do not replace them: the host country's domestic tax rules are handled with a qualified professional on the ground. Our role is to keep the whole picture consistent and to defend the French side of the file.
• Fees that are easy to understand. Fees disclosed before any commitment: fixed-price reviews, tailor-made engagements at €500 incl. VAT per hour, insurers' commissions on contracts taken out. The annual review is free of charge.

Frequently asked questions: Ireland

Is there an estate tax treaty between France and Ireland?

No. The Franco-Irish treaty of 21 March 1968 covers only income tax. No text governs inheritance or gifts between the two countries.

Shared membership of the European Union changes nothing: gift and inheritance taxes are a matter for each State, and France has concluded estate tax treaties with only eight of the twenty-seven Member States.

If I inherit from my parents who remained in France, am I affected?

Yes. 1° of Article 750 ter of the French Tax Code makes taxable in France all the assets of a deceased person domiciled in France, located in France or abroad, whatever the heir's residence.

Your move to Dublin therefore does not change the French taxation of this estate. It may, however, change your own position in Ireland, a point to check with a qualified adviser locally.

Will my company shares be taxed in France or Ireland?

This depends on the nature of the instrument, where you worked during the vesting period, and your residence at the time of disposal.

The 1968 treaty provides the framework for allocation, but it is old and does not explicitly deal with all modern instruments. This is typically an area where a written position, argued in advance, is worth far more than an explanation improvised three years later.

How do I obtain the CSG exemption on my French property income?

By being affiliated to a compulsory Irish social security scheme, and declaring it: boxes 8SH or 8SI of form 2042 C, keeping proof of affiliation.

Your French-source property income and property capital gains then bear only the 7.5% solidarity levy, instead of 17.2%.

When should I deal with all this?

Sooner than you think. Reallocations between investment vehicles are decided before your French tax residence ends, and the treatment of company shares is prepared during the vesting period, not at the time of sale.

An early-career move abroad is also the one where decisions have the longest-lasting effect. That is a reason to deal with it, not to wait.

In summary

Ireland offers the usual European advantages — CSG exemption, automatic exit tax deferral — and an old treaty that covers only income.

Most of the work therefore concerns two subjects that this community's youth often leads it to neglect: share instruments, and passing on wealth from France to Ireland.

Firm's fees: €500 incl. VAT per hour. Annual follow-up is free of charge.

Let's review your situation

A thirty-minute conversation is enough to check your CSG exemption and the treatment of your company shares. You can also start with a free contract X-ray.

Other destinations

United States · Canada · Germany · Israel · Morocco · Algeria · Netherlands · Australia · Lebanon · Côte d'Ivoire · Greece · Monaco · Andorra · Cyprus · Jordan · Brazil · Mexico · Senegal · Tunisia — or return to all of our expatriation destinations.