You live in Australia — Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane or elsewhere — and you are selling a property located in France? The distance and the time difference add a practical challenge to your file, but the tax framework remains that of a standard non-EEA non-resident: mandatory accredited tax representative, capital gain taxed in France at 36.2% before allowances, then an Australian tax credit to avoid double taxation.

Australia is not part of the European Economic Area. Any Australian resident selling a property in France for more than €150,000 (or held for less than thirty years) must appoint a tax representative accredited by the French tax authority. Without this appointment, the signature cannot take place.

Identical to other non-EEA non-residents: sale price minus increased acquisition price (7.5% flat-rate acquisition costs, 15% flat-rate works after 5 years of ownership), application of holding period allowances, taxation at 19% income tax + 17.2% social levies + possible surcharge above €50,000 of taxable capital gain.

The France-Australia tax treaty, signed on 20 June 2006, grants France the right to tax capital gains on property located in France. Australia taxes its residents on their worldwide income, including capital gains, by integrating the French gain into taxable income at the marginal rate. Double taxation is eliminated through a foreign income tax offset granted by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), capped at the Australian tax due on the same gain.

For Australian residents who have held the property for more than one year, Australia applies a 50% discount on the taxable capital gain (CGT discount), which reduces the Australian base — and potentially the cap on the usable foreign income tax offset. A preliminary simulation with your Australian tax agent is recommended.

The main challenge of an Australia file is not fiscal but operational. The documents to be sent to the tax representative (purchase deed, renovation receipts, bank certificates) often have to be obtained from French institutions that operate on European hours. The time difference (8 to 11 hours depending on the season and the coast) makes synchronous video calls difficult.

ACCREDITAX systematically organises document collection ahead of the competitive tendering process to avoid back-and-forth, and prioritises tax representatives capable of processing a file remotely without synchronous video calls.

An expatriate living in Sydney for 8 years sells in 2026 a Lyon apartment bought for €290,000 in 2010. Sale price: €480,000. Holding period: 16 years. Flat-rate acquisition costs (+7.5%): €21,750. Flat-rate works (+15%): €43,500. Gross gain: €124,750. Income tax allowance (16 years, 12 × 6%): 72%. Social levies allowance (16 years, 12 × 1.65%): 19.8%. Income tax: €124,750 × 28% × 19% = €6,629. Social levies: €124,750 × 80.2% × 17.2% = €17,197. Total French tax: approximately €23,826. Then Australia credits the French tax against its own CGT assessment, with the 50% CGT discount applied to the Australian base.

For an Australia file, our value lies in three points. First, competitive tendering among accredited tax representatives experienced in handling remote files. Second, advance document coordination to minimise asynchronous exchanges. Third, liaison with your Australian tax agent to anticipate the effect of the CGT discount on the foreign income tax offset cap.

ACCREDITAX finds you the right accredited tax representative at the best rate. Free and no-obligation quote.