Draft: this guide must be reviewed and approved before publication.

Rules guide for France and Belgium

The essential rules for earning a little extra money: when to declare, thresholds and possible statuses. Every figure links to its official source.

General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change: always check the official source before deciding. Sources checked on 24 Oct 2026.

Recently changed The rule changed recently or is about to change. To be confirmed The official text is ambiguous or not yet final.

France

Side income: the basic rule

In France there is no general tax-free amount: side income is in principle taxable from the first euro, unless the law provides an exemption.

Income from an occasional activity (small services, assignments, selling things you make or buy to resell) is taxable whatever the amount, unless exempt.
A regular, organised activity needs a status, often the micro-enterprise: see the next section.
A salaried job (temping, seasonal contract, Cesu) is declared by the employer: you don't need to set up any status.

What to declare

Taxable income is declared each year in your income tax return (online on impots.gouv.fr).

Source: Service-Public.fr: income from occasional activities and online sales

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France

Online platforms: what they report

Platforms (Leboncoin, Vinted, Airbnb, service sites…) send the tax office a yearly summary of what you earned through them, except below certain thresholds.

Being reported by a platform does not mean you owe tax: for example, selling your own second-hand belongings is in principle still not taxable.
The platform also sends you this summary: keep it with your records.

Key figures

Thresholds below which the platform does not report you (sales of goods)

Fewer than 30 transactions, under €2,000 of takings in the year To be confirmed

The official page links the two thresholds with “or”; the EU rule (DAC7) only exempts you if both are met. If in doubt, assume your data may be reported.

Source: Service-Public.fr: income from occasional activities and online sales · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

What to declare

Declare taxable income yourself, even if the platform did not report you.

Source: Service-Public.fr: income from occasional activities and online sales

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France

Occasionally selling your own things

Selling your own second-hand belongings (car-boot sales, Leboncoin, Vinted) is in principle not taxable. Buying or making things in order to resell them is.

Furniture, household appliances and your own car: always exempt.
Items you make or buy in order to resell: taxable (often an activity to register, see micro-enterprise).

Key figures

Jewellery, art, collectibles: sale price above which a tax applies

Over €5,000 per item: 6% flat tax

Source: Service-Public.fr: income from occasional activities and online sales · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

Precious metals

11% flat tax

Source: Service-Public.fr: income from occasional activities and online sales · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

Other items sold for over €5,000 at a gain

Capital gains tax (19%), exempt after 22 years of ownership

Source: Service-Public.fr: income from occasional activities and online sales · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

What to declare

Nothing to declare for personal belongings sold without a gain or under the thresholds below.

Sources: Service-Public.fr: income from occasional activities and online sales · Service-Public.fr: selling second-hand items between individuals, what to declare

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France

Micro-entrepreneur: up to what amount?

For a regular activity (services, reselling, making things), the micro-enterprise is the simplest status. It applies as long as turnover stays under certain ceilings.

You only leave the scheme after exceeding the ceiling two calendar years in a row.
VAT thresholds (basic exemption) are different: check them separately on the official websites.

Key figures

2026 ceiling: selling goods, food service, accommodation

€203,100 turnover a year Recently changed

Raised in 2026 (€188,700 in 2025).

Source: Service-Public.fr: micro-enterprise turnover thresholds · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 21 Feb 2026

2026 ceiling: services, long-term furnished rental

€83,600 turnover a year Recently changed

Raised in 2026 (€77,700 in 2025).

Source: Service-Public.fr: micro-enterprise turnover thresholds · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 21 Feb 2026

2026 ceiling: unclassified holiday let

€15,000 a year

Source: Service-Public.fr: micro-enterprise turnover thresholds · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 21 Feb 2026

What to declare

Registration on the business formalities portal, then a monthly or quarterly turnover return to Urssaf.

Source: Service-Public.fr: micro-enterprise turnover thresholds

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France

Furnished rentals and Airbnb

Renting out a furnished room or home, even occasionally, creates income to declare, with exemptions for some cases of renting a room in your own home.

You must register the start of the activity within 15 days (SIRET number, via the formalities portal).
Main home let as holiday accommodation: the home you live in at least 8 months a year. Tenants need the landlord's written consent.
No more than 90 consecutive days for the same guest.
Registration number to show on every listing where the town requires it; registration compulsory everywhere by 20 May 2026 at the latest (Le Meur law).

Key figures

Room let occasionally to passing guests

Exempt up to €760 incl. VAT a year

Source: Service-Public.fr: furnished rentals, how income is taxed · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 15 Apr 2026

Room let all year as the tenant's main home: “reasonable” rent exempt (2026)

Up to €215 per m² per year in Île-de-France, €159 elsewhere To be confirmed

Scheme runs until 31 December 2026: check again for 2027.

Source: Service-Public.fr: furnished rentals, how income is taxed · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 15 Apr 2026

Non-professional landlord status (LMNP)

Takings under €23,000 a year or under your other earned income

Source: Service-Public.fr: furnished rentals, how income is taxed · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 15 Apr 2026

Micro-BIC 2026: long-term rental, classified holiday let

50% allowance, up to €83,600 of takings Recently changed

Source: Service-Public.fr: furnished rentals, how income is taxed · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 15 Apr 2026

Micro-BIC 2026: unclassified holiday let

30% allowance, up to €15,000 of takings Recently changed

Source: Service-Public.fr: furnished rentals, how income is taxed · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 15 Apr 2026

Main home as a holiday let: maximum duration

120 days a year, or fewer (down to 90) if the town decides so Recently changed

Source: Economie.gouv.fr: renting out your main home as a holiday let · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

Fines in towns that require a declaration

Up to €5,000 without a declaration, €10,000 for exceeding the allowed days

Source: Service-Public.fr: renting out your main home as a holiday let · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 21 May 2026

New national registration online service

Announced for November 2026, exact date not published To be confirmed

Source: Service-Public.fr: holiday lets, formalities · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

What to declare

Rent received in 2026 is declared in spring 2027, usually under the micro-BIC scheme (flat-rate allowance).

Related ideas

Rent out a room

Sources: Service-Public.fr: furnished rentals, how income is taxed · Service-Public.fr: renting out your main home as a holiday let · Economie.gouv.fr: renting out your main home as a holiday let · Service-Public.fr: holiday lets, formalities

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France

Cesu: being paid by a private household

For cleaning, gardening, childcare, tutoring or small DIY jobs at someone's home, Cesu lets you be declared simply as an employee. The household gets a tax credit, which helps you find clients.

For you it is a declared salaried job: no status to set up, at least the hourly minimum wage (Smic).
Amounts paid through Cesu or Pajemploi are pre-filled in the household's tax return; “avance immédiate” (Cesu+) lets them pay only half straight away.

Key figures

Tax credit for the household employer

50% of the cost, up to €12,000 a year (+€1,500 per dependent child or household member over 65, up to €15,000)

Source: Service-Public.fr: tax credit for employing someone at home · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 15 Apr 2026

Specific caps

Small DIY €500, computer help €3,000, gardening €5,000 a year

Source: Service-Public.fr: tax credit for employing someone at home · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 15 Apr 2026

What to declare

Your wages usually already appear in your pre-filled tax return: check them.

Sources: Service-Public.fr: tax credit for employing someone at home · Service-Public.fr: minimum wage (Smic)

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Belgium

Sharing economy (approved platforms)

In Belgium, small services between individuals provided through a platform approved by FPS Finance benefit from a light tax regime, up to a yearly ceiling.

Services only (not selling or renting out goods), between individuals, outside your professional activity, and only through an approved platform.
Above the ceiling, the income can be reclassified as professional income (self-employed status).
The ceiling is shared with associative work.
The former, broader regime of tax-free “complementary activities” (2018 law) was annulled by the Constitutional Court; its effects were kept until 31 December 2020. Only the approved-platform route remains.

Key figures

Yearly ceiling, 2026 income

€7,890 Recently changed

€7,700 for 2025 income.

Source: FPS Finance: sharing economy · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

Tax

50% flat-rate costs, then 20% tax on the rest (official example: €2,000 received, €200 tax)

Source: FPS Finance: sharing economy · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

What to declare

The platform gives you a 281.29 form; the amounts go under codes 1460/2460 and 1461/2461 of the tax return.

Sources: FPS Finance: sharing economy · Constitutional Court: judgment 53/2020 of 23 April 2020

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Belgium

Volunteering: expense allowances

A volunteer can receive a flat-rate allowance, free of tax and contributions, as long as it stays under daily and yearly ceilings.

These are maximum amounts: the organisation may pay less.
Both ceilings (day and year) apply together.

Key figures

2026 ceilings

€44.02 a day and €1,760.83 a year Recently changed

Indexed every year (2025: €42.31 and €1,692.51).

Source: High Council for Volunteers: indexed allowance ceilings · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

2026 yearly ceiling for some activities (sports coaches, referees and trainers, night care, non-urgent patient transport)

€3,233.91 a year

Source: High Council for Volunteers: indexed allowance ceilings · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

What to declare

Within the limits, nothing to declare. Above them, the whole allowance may be treated as pay.

Source: High Council for Volunteers: indexed allowance ceilings

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Belgium

Flexi-job

A flexi-job is a complementary job with low deductions, open to people already working at least 4/5 time or to pensioners, in the sectors allowed.

Condition: at least 80% (4/5) employment with one or more other employers, or being a pensioner.
No personal contributions; the employer pays a 28% contribution.
Sectors excluded since 1 July 2026: domestic staff, agriculture, horticulture (except parks and gardens), sea fishing and part of the funeral sector.

Key figures

Tax-free flexi income, non-pensioners (2026)

€18,440 a year; no ceiling for pensioners Recently changed

€18,000 in 2025.

Source: FPS Finance: flexi-jobs, tax return · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

List of sectors allowed

Changed on 1 July 2026; withdrawals remain possible each quarter in 2026, then each year from 2027 Recently changed

Source: Social security (NSSO): flexi-jobs · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

What to declare

Flexi income appears on the tax form; it goes under code 262 (exempt amount).

Sources: Social security (NSSO): flexi-jobs · FPS Finance: flexi-jobs, tax return · NSSO: flexi-jobs, conditions and figures

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Belgium

Student job: 650 hours

A student can work 650 hours a year with reduced social contributions. Above that, ordinary contributions apply.

Remaining hours can be checked in My Student at work or the Student at work app.
Associative work: maximum 190 hours a year, deducted from the quota if exceeded.
Family allowances from age 18: the limit depends on the region (Wallonia: 650 h + 240 h per quarter; Brussels: 240 h per quarter, except July to September; Flanders: 650 h + 80 h per month).

Key figures

Yearly quota with reduced contributions

650 hours (since 1 January 2025) Recently changed

Source: Student at work (NSSO): hour quota and family allowances · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

Associative work

190 hours a year maximum

Source: Student at work (NSSO): hour quota and family allowances · Checked on 24 Oct 2026

What to declare

The employer declares the contract; check your tax form and tax return (or your parents').

Source: Student at work (NSSO): hour quota and family allowances

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Belgium

Self-employed as a side activity

For a regular activity alongside a salaried job, the complementary self-employed status applies. Contributions stay at zero under a small yearly income.

Main condition: a salaried job of at least half-time (or a replacement income, depending on the case).
You must join a social insurance fund before starting (otherwise a €500 to €2,000 fine).
The fund's management fees come on top of the contributions.

Key figures

Professional income below which no contribution is due (2026)

€1,922.16 a year

Source: INASTI: 2026 social contributions (leaflet, January 2026) · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 1 Jan 2026

Rate above that (2026)

20.50% up to €75,024.54 of income

Source: INASTI: 2026 social contributions (leaflet, January 2026) · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 1 Jan 2026

Provisional starting contribution (first 3 calendar years)

€98.51 per quarter

Source: INASTI: 2026 social contributions (leaflet, January 2026) · Checked on 24 Oct 2026 · Page updated on 1 Jan 2026

What to declare

The income is declared as self-employed professional income in the annual tax return.

Sources: INASTI: self-employed as a side activity · INASTI: 2026 social contributions (leaflet, January 2026) · INASTI: joining a social insurance fund

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