Income tax - How are deferred income taxed?
Verified 01 January 2025 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)
Income tax: 2025 income tax return for 2024
This page is up to date on 1er January 2025.
However, forms, online services and information materials are not yet available for the 2025 tax year of the 2024 tax return. They will be made available online as soon as they become available.
Moreover, the draft budget for 2025 could not be promulgated before 1er January 2025.
The law no. 2024-1188 of 20 december 2024 special allows the government to collect taxes, without changing the scales, until a 2025 budget law is passed.
If the 2025 budget changes the rules on this page, the content will be updated after the law is published in the Official Gazette.
Deferred income is income received one year for an activity carried out a previous year. They are taxed according to a particular system, the quotient system. It avoids excessive taxation. Here are the rules for deferred revenue collected in 2024 and 2025.
Collected in 2024
Deferred revenue is revenue you received in 2024, but that is the remuneration for activities you performed in 2023 or earlier (over one or more years).
The offset must not not be of your making.
For example: salary or promotion recall, pension recall, rent arrears.
These revenues have been subject to withholding tax like other income.
If you report your deferred income with other income, you may significantly increase your taxes.
You can request that this income be taxed on the basis of quotient system which limits that risk
The quotient system allows to avoid progressivity of the scale tax.
The calculation depends on the number of calendar years corresponding to the normal payment deadlines.
This number is then increased by 1.
Example :
In 2024, you received arrears rents for six monthly installments in 2021 (November, December) and 2022 (January, February, March, April).
The deadlines correspond to 2 calendar years (2021 and 2022).
The coefficient to be used is 3 (2+1).
The quotient system applies in 2 stages:
- Add one-third of the exceptional income to the usual income (the quotient thus determined is added to the total taxable net income)
- Multiply by 3 (the quotient thus determined) the corresponding tax supplement.
Please note
Deferred income tax is paid in one go.
To benefit from the quotient system, you do not report your deferred income with your business income on your 2025 income tax return for 2024.
So, for example, you should not report a wage recall with your other wages and salaries, or a rent arrears with your property income.
You must declare them as deferred income.
You must enter the total of these revenues within the planned framework on page 3 of declaration No 2042 C (line 0XX).
You must detail the amount and nature of income deferred to be imposed on the quotient, received by each member of the household by one of the following means:
- Within the framework of the declaration
- On free paper attached to Declaration No 2042.
For each amount, you must specify the year of its normal maturity.
The 2024 income tax return for 2023 is complete.
The 2025 2024 Income Tax Return will begin in april 2025.
Tax returns via Internet is required if your principal residence is equipped with internet access and you are able to file your return online.
Collected in 2025
Deferred revenue is revenue you received in 2025, but that is the remuneration for activities you performed in 2024 or earlier (over one or more years).
The offset must not not be of your making.
For example: salary or promotion recall, pension recall, rent arrears.
These revenues were subject to withholding tax like other revenues.
If you report your deferred income with other income, you may significantly increase your taxes.
You can ask that such income be taxed in accordance with quotient system which limits that risk
The quotient system allows to avoid progressivity of the scale tax.
The calculation depends on the number of calendar years corresponding to the normal payment deadlines.
This number is then increased by 1.
Example :
In 2025, you received arrears rents for six monthly installments in 2022 (November, December) and 2023 (January, February, March, April).
The deadlines correspond to 2 calendar years (2022 and 2023).
The coefficient to be used is 3 (2+1).
The quotient system applies in 2 stages:
- Add one-third of the exceptional income to the usual income (the quotient thus determined is added to the total taxable net income)
- Multiply by 3 (the quotient thus determined) the corresponding tax supplement.
Deferred income tax is paid in one go.
You will need to report deferred income received in 2024 in your 2026 income statement 2025 (spring 2026), regardless of the amount.
To benefit from the quotient system, you will not have to report your deferred income with your business income.
You will therefore not, for example, have to declare a wage recall with your other salaries and wages, or a rent arrears with your property income.
You have to report them as deferred income.
You must enter the total of these revenues within the planned framework of Declaration No 2042 C.
You will detail the amount and nature of income deferred to be imposed on the quotient, received by each member of the household by one of the following means:
- Within the framework of the declaration
- On free paper attached to Declaration No 2042
For each amount, you will have to specify the year of its normal maturity.
Who can help me?
Find who can answer your questions in your region
For general information
Tax Information Service
By telephone:
0809 401 401
Monday to Friday from 8:30 am to 7 pm, excluding public holidays.
Free service + call price
To contact the local service managing your folder
Department in charge of taxes (treasury, tax department...)
Quotient system (Article 163-0 A), imposition of compensatory allowance (Article 163d)
Online service
Simulator
Online service
FAQ
Service-Public.fr
Service-Public.fr
Service-Public.fr
Service-Public.fr
Service-Public.fr
Ministry of Finance
Ministry of Finance
Ministry of Finance
Ministry of Finance