Making a gift: forms, conditions and formalities

A gift transfers ownership of an asset during your lifetime, without any compensation. It is made by notarial deed, the beneficiary must expressly accept it, and in principle, it cannot be subsequently revoked. Three limitations govern this process: your capacity to make a gift, the share reserved by law for your heirs, and the cost (notary fees, then gift tax beyond the allowances).

This page deals with simple gifts: their form, conditions, effects, and costs. It does not cover gifts with division of property, tax-exempt family gifts of money (790 G), gifts with reservation of usufruct, disguised or indirect gifts, land registration fees for real estate, the civil law treatment of gifts in the estate, or the situation of non-residents. Each of these points is addressed on another page or requires review of your specific case.

Forms: gift, manual gift, customary gift

Service-public distinguishes three concepts: "A gift is different from a manual gift and a customary present."«

The gift itself is made by notarial deed (Article 931 of the Civil Code). For a gift of money, the public service website indicates that the involvement of a notary is not mandatory; the gift is then declared to the administration by the recipient (see below).

The conditions to be met

The donor

You must be of sound mind, meaning you possess the mental capacity to make sound judgments. You must be of legal age or an emancipated minor, and have the capacity to manage your assets. Under guardianship, a gift is possible with the authorization of the judge or the family council. Under curatorship, it is possible with the assistance of the curator.

The beneficiary

The beneficiary can be a child, grandchild, spouse, partner, another family member, a third party, or certain associations. The beneficiary must expressly accept the gift for it to be valid. They may refuse it. For a minor, acceptance is given by their legal representatives.

The donated good

One cannot give away future property, except in a gift to the last surviving spouse.

The share you can give

You are free to give away the portion that exceeds the statutory reserve. The disposable portion depends on your family situation:

The public service website provides an example: with €200,000 and three children, €50,000 can be given as a gift. If the reserved portion is not respected, the heirs entitled to a reserved portion can challenge the gift through a claim for reduction during the settlement of the estate.

A presumptive legal heir of legal age can agree not to contest the inheritance. This agreement takes the form of a succession pact, an authentic instrument "signed before two notaries," with the donor also signing.

The return of donated goods

Two mechanisms exist if the beneficiary dies before you:

• The legal right of return. If your child who received the gift dies without descendants, the legal right of return is limited, according to service-public, to half of the deceased child's estate, i.e. a quarter of the estate for one parent and a quarter for the other parent.
• The conventional right of return. It is stipulated in the deed. It is not limited: you can stipulate that you will recover all of the donated property.

Irrevocability: what allows action to be taken regardless of everything

In principle, a gift cannot be revoked, that is, cancelled. Exceptions are limited:

The gift to the surviving spouse is an exception: you can cancel it at any time, unless it was made by marriage contract.

What a gift costs

Three items are added together: the notary's fees, the gift taxes, and, for a building, the land registration fees (not quantified here).

The notary's fees

The fee is proportional to the full ownership value of the donated assets. Service-public publishes two sliding scales per bracket (tariff decree, Commercial Code, article A444-67).

Gift taxes

The allowances apply to gifts made by the same donor to the same donee, over a period of 15 years.

A disabled person benefits from an additional specific allowance of €159,325. These allowances can be renewed after 15 years.

In direct line of descent, the portion exceeding the allowance is taxed in brackets: 5 % up to €8,072, 10 % up to €12,109, 15 % up to €15,932, 20 % up to €552,324, 30 % up to €902,838, 40 % up to €1,805,677, and 45 % above that. Tax brackets for spouses, siblings, and other relationships are available on the page dedicated to allowances.

According to impots.gouv.fr, payment of duties must be immediate.

The 15-year recall

Upon death, the notary will add any gifts you made during the previous 15 years. Gifts made before this date are excluded if they were declared to the tax authorities.

Formalities of a manual gift

A gift made by hand must be declared by the recipient, even if it does not give rise to any rights. The donor can only do so as the legal representative of a minor or a legally incapacitated adult.

Two reference points appear in the sources:

• impots.gouv.fr indicates that, starting January 1, 2026, online filing is mandatory, with some exceptions: the page on exempt gifts refers to "family gifts of money you receive," and the page on calculating and paying taxes refers to "gifts of money or cash." If you are exempt from filing online, form no. 2735 must be submitted. The exact scope should be verified with the tax authorities. ;
• service-public (sheet F1265) mentions, in case of non-compliance with the obligation to declare or pay online, a surcharge of 0.2 % of the amount of duties due, with a minimum of €60.

The value used is the higher of the value on the day of the declaration and the value on the day of the gift. The deadline for declaring the gift is not specified in a single official source: it depends on your individual circumstances and should be verified before making a decision.

Numerical example (fictitious profile)

Situation. Ms. Martin, 62, divorced, has two children. She wishes to give €250,000 to her daughter by notarial deed in 2026. She has not made any gifts to her daughter previously. Assumption: her estate allows her to make this gift without exceeding the disposable portion (1/3 with two children).

Issue. How much does the gift cost, and what difference does the schedule make?

Strategy. Apply the €100,000 allowance between a parent and their child, then the direct line scale to the taxable portion, and add the notary's fees (scale of sums of money, rate including all taxes).

Result.

If the same sum were given in two installments, €125,000 and then €125,000 more than 15 years apart, each gift would benefit from the allowance: the tax would be €3,194.35 per gift, totaling €6,388.70, excluding fees. If Ms. Martin were to die before the end of the 15-year period, the first gift would be subject to tax.

Assumptions of the hypothetical profile: amount, no prior gifts, disposable portion respected, constant tax rates, fees calculated on the value given using the VAT-inclusive rates of the "sums of money" scale (the rounding of the result varies by less than €0.50 depending on the method, hence "approximately"). The figures illustrate the calculation and do not reflect your specific situation.

What changes depending on your situation

• Your family The number of children and your marital status determine the available portion.
• The nature of the property : sum of money or other asset, therefore different fee schedule; for a building, additional fees are added.
• Your relationship with the beneficiary : it sets the allowance and the scale.
• Past gifts : those under 15 years of age for the benefit of the same beneficiary must be added together.
• The manual gift of money : a separate exemption scheme exists, which is discussed on another page.

These points are examined on a case-by-case basis. No results are promised.