The short answer
- France: the cotisation foncière des entreprises (CFE) is due from almost every self-employed person, including micro-entrepreneurs working from home. It’s waived in the year you start, the base is halved the year after, and you’re exempt if your turnover two years earlier was €5,000 or less.
- The CFE notice is online only, in your professional account on impots.gouv.fr, and payment is due by 15 December, with a 5% surcharge if you’re late.
- England: business rates apply to non-domestic property such as shops, offices and workshops. Using a small part of your home as an office usually means no business rates.
- Small business rate relief removes the bill entirely if your only property has a rateable value of £12,000 or less, tapering to nothing at £15,000.
- From 1 April 2026, the multiplier for most small properties in England is 43.2p per pound of rateable value (38.2p for retail, hospitality and leisure).
Why a sole trader pays local tax at all
Local business taxes pay for the services of the area where a business operates. The two systems start from opposite ends:
| France: CFE | England: business rates | |
|---|---|---|
| Who pays | Almost anyone self-employed, premises or not | Occupiers of non-domestic property |
| Working from a spare room | Usually still pays, on a minimum base | Usually doesn’t pay |
| Based on | Rental value of premises, or a minimum base set by the commune | Rateable value set by the Valuation Office Agency |
| Main relief for tiny businesses | Exempt if turnover two years ago ≤ €5,000 | Small business rate relief up to £15,000 rateable value |
| When you pay | Once a year, by 15 December | Bill from your council for the year starting 1 April |
Who pays
France: CFEAlmost anyone self-employed, premises or not
England: business ratesOccupiers of non-domestic property
Working from a spare room
France: CFEUsually still pays, on a minimum base
England: business ratesUsually doesn’t pay
Based on
France: CFERental value of premises, or a minimum base set by the commune
England: business ratesRateable value set by the Valuation Office Agency
Main relief for tiny businesses
France: CFEExempt if turnover two years ago ≤ €5,000
England: business ratesSmall business rate relief up to £15,000 rateable value
When you pay
France: CFEOnce a year, by 15 December
England: business ratesBill from your council for the year starting 1 April
If you’re a British, American or other English-speaking freelancer in France, the CFE is the one that surprises people, because at home you might never have paid anything similar for working at your desk.
France’s CFE: who pays and the three exemptions to know
The CFE is owed by every business and every person carrying on a self-employed professional activity on 1 January of the tax year. Being a micro-entrepreneur doesn’t exempt you, and neither does working from home: if you have no business premises, the tax is calculated on a minimum base.
For most micro-entrepreneurs, three rules decide whether you pay:
- Year of creation: exempt. Start in March 2026 and you owe no CFE for 2026.
- Year after creation: base halved. The 2027 CFE is calculated on half the usual base.
- Low turnover: exempt. You don’t pay if your turnover (excluding VAT) in the year before last was €5,000 or less. For the 2026 CFE, that’s your 2024 turnover. If your business didn’t trade for that whole year, the turnover may be scaled up to twelve months, so check with your tax office if you’re close.
Some activities have their own exemptions, including certain craftspeople, some health professions and artists, each under strict conditions. Check the official list before counting on one.
New businesses also have a form to file: the 1447-C-SD, by 31 December of the year you started.
How much the CFE costs
Without premises, your CFE base is a minimum amount that your commune (the local council) chooses within a national range set by turnover. The 2026 ranges:
| Turnover (excluding VAT) | Minimum base, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Up to €10,000 | €250 to €597 |
| €10,001 to €32,600 | €250 to €1,194 |
| €32,601 to €100,000 | €250 to €2,509 |
| €100,001 to €250,000 | €250 to €4,183 |
| €250,001 to €500,000 | €250 to €5,974 |
| Over €500,000 | €250 to €7,769 |
Up to €10,000
Minimum base, 2026€250 to €597
€10,001 to €32,600
Minimum base, 2026€250 to €1,194
€32,601 to €100,000
Minimum base, 2026€250 to €2,509
€100,001 to €250,000
Minimum base, 2026€250 to €4,183
€250,001 to €500,000
Minimum base, 2026€250 to €5,974
Over €500,000
Minimum base, 2026€250 to €7,769
The base isn’t the bill. The commune’s CFE rate is applied to it, plus some additional charges. Illustration with hypothetical figures: a commune sets the base at €800 for the €10,001 to €32,600 band and applies a 25% rate. The CFE is €800 × 25% = €200 before extra charges, or €100 in the year after creation, when the base is halved. Your own notice is the only reliable source for your figures.
Paying. The notice is posted to your professional account on impots.gouv.fr, not sent by mail: in 2025, impots.gouv.fr announced the notices were online on 3 November. You pay online, by direct debit at the due date (in 2025 you had to sign up by 30 November) or by monthly direct debit. The deadline is 15 December; after that, a 5% surcharge applies. If you haven’t created your professional account yet, do it now, or you’ll never see the notice. The full French-language guide, with examples, is our article on the CFE for auto-entrepreneurs.
England’s business rates: do you pay at all?
Business rates are charged on most non-domestic properties: shops, offices, pubs, warehouses, factories, holiday lets and guest houses. For a home-based sole trader, GOV.UK’s guidance is the first thing to check.
You usually don’t pay business rates if you:
- use a small part of your home for your business, for example a bedroom as an office;
- sell goods by post.
You may need to pay if:
- your property is part business and part domestic, for example you live above your shop;
- you sell goods or services to people who visit your property;
- you employ other people to work at your property;
- you’ve made changes to your home for the business, such as converting a garage into a hairdresser’s.
If you’re unsure, the Valuation Office Agency can tell you. The figures below are England’s: Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own systems, and Wales sets its own multipliers and reliefs.
How the bill is worked out, and small business rate relief
The formula is simple: rateable value × multiplier, minus any relief. From 1 April 2026 in England:
| Property | Multiplier 2026 to 2027 |
|---|---|
| Rateable value under £51,000 | 43.2p |
| Rateable value under £51,000, retail, hospitality or leisure | 38.2p |
| £51,000 to £499,999 | 48p |
| £51,000 to £499,999, retail, hospitality or leisure | 43p |
| £500,000 or more | 50.8p |
Rateable value under £51,000
Multiplier 2026 to 202743.2p
Rateable value under £51,000, retail, hospitality or leisure
Multiplier 2026 to 202738.2p
£51,000 to £499,999
Multiplier 2026 to 202748p
£51,000 to £499,999, retail, hospitality or leisure
Multiplier 2026 to 202743p
£500,000 or more
Multiplier 2026 to 202750.8p
For comparison, the 2025 to 2026 multipliers were 49.9p for small businesses and 55.5p for the standard rate.
Small business rate relief applies if your property’s rateable value is under £15,000 and your business uses only one property. At £12,000 or less, you pay nothing. Between £12,001 and £15,000, the relief tapers from 100% to 0%: GOV.UK gives the examples of 50% relief at £13,500 and 33% at £14,000. If you take on a second property, you keep the relief on the first for 36 months if you got the second one on or after 27 November 2025.
Three sole traders, three bills:
| Business | Rateable value | Before relief | Relief | Bill |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kemi, graphic designer, small studio | £13,500 | £13,500 × 43.2p = £5,832 | 50% | £2,916 |
| Dan, small café | £10,000 | £10,000 × 38.2p = £3,820 | 100% | £0 |
| Rosa, deli | £20,000 | £20,000 × 38.2p = £7,640 | none | £7,640 |
Kemi, graphic designer, small studio
Rateable value£13,500
Before relief£13,500 × 43.2p = £5,832
Relief50%
Bill£2,916
Dan, small café
Rateable value£10,000
Before relief£10,000 × 38.2p = £3,820
Relief100%
Bill£0
Rosa, deli
Rateable value£20,000
Before relief£20,000 × 38.2p = £7,640
Reliefnone
Bill£7,640
Rosa might still qualify for other reliefs, such as the supporting small business relief for those who lost relief at the 1 April 2026 revaluation. Your council handles reliefs, so ask it directly.
Building the bill into your budget
Both taxes arrive on a schedule you can see a year ahead. The simplest method is the same in both countries: take last year’s bill, divide by 12, and move that amount each month into the pot where you already keep money for tax.
- France: professional account created on impots.gouv.fr
- France: 1447-C-SD filed by 31 December of your first year
- France: turnover from two years ago compared with €5,000
- England: checked whether your home or premises is liable
- England: small business rate relief applied for with your council
- Monthly amount set aside for next year’s bill
In Binome360 that’s one sentence for the savings goal and one for the reminder.
Remind me every year on 15 November to check my CFE notice on impots.gouv
Ready: a yearly reminder “Check CFE notice” on 15 November at 9 am. Save it?
Create a goal “CFE 2027”, €240 by 1 December 2027
Ready: goal “CFE 2027”, €240 by 01/12/2027, starting at €0. Save it?
€240 over twelve months is €20 a month. Binome360 reminds and records; the payment itself is made on impots.gouv.fr.
Try Binome360 for freeBinome360 doesn’t read your tax account or pay anything for you. For the other self-employed deadlines, see our guide to quarterly taxes and Self Assessment.
Frequently asked questions
Do micro-entrepreneurs have to pay the CFE?
Yes, unless an exemption applies. You’re exempt in the year you start, your base is halved the next year, and you’re exempt whenever your turnover from two years earlier was €5,000 or less.
Do I pay business rates if I work from home?
Usually not, if you use a small part of your home, such as a bedroom as an office. You may have to if clients visit, you employ people there, or you’ve converted part of your home for the business.
What is small business rate relief?
A relief in England for businesses using one property with a rateable value under £15,000. At £12,000 or less you pay nothing; between £12,001 and £15,000 the relief tapers down.
When is the CFE due?
By 15 December each year, online. After that date a 5% surcharge is added. The notice appears in your professional account on impots.gouv.fr in the autumn.
In short
In France, the CFE follows you even to your kitchen table, but new and very small businesses are exempt, and the bill is due by 15 December. In England, a home office usually escapes business rates, and small premises often qualify for full relief. First step: in France, create your professional account and find your turnover from two years ago; in England, check your rateable value on GOV.UK.
Sources
- Service-Public Entreprendre, “Cotisation foncière des entreprises (CFE)” (who pays, exemptions, 2026 minimum bases, payment, 1447-C-SD), checked 2 April 2026: entreprendre.service-public.gouv.fr/vosdroits/F23547.
- Service-Public Entreprendre, “Payment of the 2025 CFE by 15 December 2025” (5% surcharge, direct debit), 24 November 2025: entreprendre.service-public.gouv.fr/actualites/A17831.
- impots.gouv.fr, “CFE et/ou IFER 2025 – Mise en ligne des avis d’impôt dans l’espace professionnel”, 3 November 2025: impots.gouv.fr.
- GOV.UK, “Introduction to business rates” and “Working at home”: gov.uk/introduction-to-business-rates.
- GOV.UK, “Estimate your business rates” (2026 to 2027 multipliers): gov.uk/calculate-your-business-rates.
- GOV.UK, “Business rates relief: small business rate relief”: gov.uk/apply-for-business-rate-relief/small-business-rate-relief.
Also available in Français.