France
In France, tax on gold resale depends first on your paperwork, not on ownership itself, it's your ability to prove the purchase that determines which regime applies. Understanding the VAT rules on import, the customs declaration threshold, and the two competing resale regimes is what determines your real net proceeds.
VAT and import to France
Investment gold, bars and ingots of at least 995‰ purity, and coins meeting the criteria set out in EU Directive 98/80/EC, is exempt from VAT when brought into France, including from Switzerland. This exemption is transposed into French law at CGI Art. 298 sexdecies A. In practice, no VAT is charged at the border on qualifying gold: the exemption follows the metal, not the seller's location, so gold purchased from a Swiss dealer enters France with the same VAT-free treatment as gold bought domestically, provided it meets the investment-gold criteria. This article was repealed by Ordinance no. 2025-1247 of 17 December 2025 and will be recodified within the Code des impositions sur les biens et services (CIBS) from 1 September 2026; the reference to the CGI nonetheless remains valid until 31 December 2027.
Customs declaration
France applies the EU's capital-transfer rule at the Franco-Swiss border. Gold is treated as cash for these purposes when it meets a purity threshold, coins at least 90% pure, bars at least 99.5% pure, so the reporting obligation is triggered by value, not by declaring gold specifically as a special category.
| Amount | Requirement | Form |
|---|---|---|
| Under €10,000 | No declaration required | — |
| €10,000 or more | Mandatory declaration before crossing the border | DALIA (online) / Cerfa form no. 13426 ↗ |
Resale
Selling gold in France triggers one of two tax regimes, and which one applies is your choice, but only if you kept the paperwork. Without proof of purchase, the default 11.5% flat tax on the full sale price applies automatically, regardless of what you actually paid. With a purchase invoice showing price and date, you can instead opt for the capital gains regime on movable property, which taxes only the gain and includes a holding-period allowance that reduces the taxable amount the longer you've owned the gold. Under the flat tax, payment is generally made by the professional (dealer counter, licensed intermediary) directly at the time of sale, on your behalf, so you typically have no separate filing to do yourself. This is not the case for the capital gains option, which you must declare yourself.
| Scenario | Tax treatment |
|---|---|
| No proof of purchase | 11.5% flat tax on the full sale price, applies automatically, no exceptions |
| Unsealed or damaged item | If breaking the seal or damage makes it impossible to prove the item is the one originally purchased, the capital gains option is lost and the 11.5% flat tax applies by default |
| With proof of purchase | Choice between the 11.5% flat tax on the full sale price, or 37.6% on the capital gain (19% income tax + 18.6% social contributions, as of 1 January 2026), reduced by a 5% allowance per year of holding beyond year 2, with full exemption after 22 years. If you opt for the capital gains regime, it is declared using Cerfa form no. 2074. |
What is investment gold?
"Investment gold" is a defined legal category, not just a description of purity. Under EU Directive 98/80/EC, it covers gold bars and ingots of at least 995‰ purity produced by an accredited refiner, and gold coins that are at least 900‰ pure, minted after 1800, are or have been legal tender in their country of origin, and are normally sold at no more than 80% above the value of the gold they contain. The European Commission publishes an annual list of coins meeting this last condition, common examples include the Swiss Vreneli, the Krugerrand, the American Eagle, and the Napoléon. Only gold that fits this definition qualifies for the VAT exemption and the import treatment described below; jewelry, numismatic coins outside the published list, and bars below 995‰ do not.