# Gift Tax from US to France



## morriswa (Apr 1, 2015)

Hi all,

Thought I'd throw this out there before consulting with an accountant...

My wife and I live in France for the past 2 years - she is American and I'm a Brit (for what it's worth!). Hypothetically, what are the tax implications if my wife is gifted, for example $500,000 towards a house purchase, from her 'alive' father (not inheritance), and that money is then transferred over to France?

Seems like the lifetime limit in the US is well into the millions so not a problem on that side, more regarding what the tax authorities in France would be trying to get their hands on.

Thanks,


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## MyExpatTaxes (10 mo ago)

Generally, if you inherit a property in the US, you might be subject to estate taxes. If you don't want to involve your non-US spouse to any US taxation matters, then it's better to name the property to your parents. But, you should consider of being subject to gift tax, in which you would be required to file a gift tax return.

It would be better as well to consult a tax accountant in France if you want to have a more comprehensive understanding of your tax implications on the France taxation side.

Hope that helps!


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## morriswa (Apr 1, 2015)

MyExpatTaxes said:


> Generally, if you inherit a property in the US, you might be subject to estate taxes. If you don't want to involve your non-US spouse to any US taxation matters, then it's better to name the property to your parents. But, you should consider of being subject to gift tax, in which you would be required to file a gift tax return.
> 
> It would be better as well to consult a tax accountant in France if you want to have a more comprehensive understanding of your tax implications on the France taxation side.
> 
> Hope that helps!


Hi,
She's not inheriting a property, her father would like to gift her some money towards buying a property in France. We need to know whether or not that gift will be hit with French taxes! We understand that the taxable lifetime gift limit in the US is $12.06m for 2022 so other than filing some paperwork with the IRS we should be fine. It's what the French tax office might do that concerns us! It seems like due to the treaty that exists between the two countries we should also be okay but we don't want any nasty surprises.

Thanks, Wayne


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## Chrissippus (Dec 16, 2021)

morriswa said:


> Hi,
> She's not inheriting a property, her father would like to gift her some money towards buying a property in France. We need to know whether or not that gift will be hit with French taxes! We understand that the taxable lifetime gift limit in the US is $12.06m for 2022 so other than filing some paperwork with the IRS we should be fine. It's what the French tax office might do that concerns us! It seems like due to the treaty that exists between the two countries we should also be okay but we don't want any nasty surprises.
> 
> Thanks, Wayne


The US gift tax is paid by the donor, not the recipient. However, with the lifetime exclusion of $11 million, basically no one ever pays the US gift tax. I don't know how the French fisc would regard a gift from a parent. My guess is no tax due, but that's just a guess.


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