EXPATRIATE RETIREES IN THE CROSSHAIRS
The LREM deputy, Sacha Houlié, denounces an inequality of treatment between retirees living in France and those living abroad who have been exempted from the CSG increase...
Go live in the sun, gain purchasing power and enjoy their retirement peacefully. Many French people have chosen to spend their old age abroad, such as in Morocco or Portugal. Another life, which sometimes has its advantages in terms of taxation, but perhaps not for much longer!
A real inequality!
According to Les Echos, the deputy of the majority Sacha Houlié would like to make them contribute. He points to "a real inequality between retirees in France who have suffered an increase in the CSG, which we assume and those who have not had it, non-tax residents. "Once we have decided to make everyone contribute, then everyone must contribute. It is a question of solidarity and equity", says the elected representative of Vienne...
In a memo sent to the Elysée and Bercy, he argues for an increase in contributions for retirees who go into tax exile.
Today, French citizens living abroad are not subject to the CSG on their pensions. Unlike those living in France, who have experienced an increase in this contribution of 1.7%.
Withholding tax
As Les Echos points out. A decree of December 2017 indicated that this increase should be reflected in their health contribution, but it was suspended because it would have affected all retirees. Regardless of their income. Without tax data, impossible to exempt small pensions...
For Sacha Houlié, everything changes with the introduction of the withholding tax. The French administration will be able to "know the amount of remuneration, salaries, pensions received and establish a threshold for increasing the contribution".
Small pensions exempted
The MP would even be in favour of a higher increase in countries where tax regimes are advantageous, such as Portugal... This is a further source of criticism of the government, which is accused of making pensioners pay.
But the LREM deputy defends himself: "We avoid touching the Algerian worker who receives a pension of 800 or 900 euros after a lifetime of work in France," he explains... "On the other hand, the one who had a good career in France with a good substitute income will contribute."
The proposal is far from unanimous within the majority ... The deputy LREM of the French abroad, Anne Genetet, has submitted a report to Edouard Philippe on mobility. According to her, "wanting to apply the same rate of CSG to retirees in France and abroad does not make sense. When you go abroad, you contribute to a protection system that may have other drawbacks."
