Verified 3 October 2026, updated 23 October 2026 for Nice, income tax, the energy rating, co-ownership and the tourist tax, and 24 October 2026 for the seven towns that were missing, the national online service, the duties of intermediaries, social security contributions and owners who live abroad. The rules for short-term letting in France have moved a great deal since the law of 19 November 2024, known as the “Le Meur law”, and each town on the Côte d’Azur has taken it up in its own way. This note gathers what we check before putting a home online, with the texts and official pages that say so. It replaces neither the town hall nor legal advice: the formalities remain the owner’s, but the law also places duties on an intermediary such as a management company, which we set out below. See also our FAQ.
What is true everywhere in France since the law of 19 November 2024
A meublé de tourisme is a furnished home let to passing guests by the night, week or month, who do not make it their residence. That definition (tourism code, article L. 324-1-1, I) triggers everything else. The same guest cannot stay more than 90 consecutive days, the maximum length of a seasonal let (law no. 70-9 of 2 January 1970, article 1-1).
Declaration and registration number. A tourist rental, classified or not, that is not your main residence must be declared to the town before the first stay; a main residence must be declared too in the towns that have set up a registration number. The 2024 law extends declaration with a registration number to the whole of France, through a national online service, by 20 May 2026 at the latest (tourism code, article L. 324-1-1, III). As at 24 October 2026, that service is not open yet: the French state announces its launch for the fourth quarter of 2026, with no precise date published. Until then, each town keeps its own procedure, and the numbers it has issued remain valid. Once it opens, “all hosts, without exception” will have to request a number from the national service: those who already hold a town number will have “several months” to renew it, after which the old numbers will no longer be valid (Directorate-General for Enterprise). The new number will start with FRA and the town’s INSEE code; its final format has not been fixed yet. The number must appear on every listing, and the platforms remove listings without one.
Main residence: 120 days, or 90. A home you occupy at least eight months a year may be let as a tourist rental without a change-of-use authorisation, up to 120 days per calendar year. Since the 2024 law, a town may lower that ceiling to 90 days by a reasoned council decision; Villeneuve-Loubet has done so, and Antibes according to local professionals (to be confirmed with the town hall). Nice did so from 1 January 2026, then returned to 120 days on 1 September 2026 (see below).
Second home: change of use. In towns that have introduced it, letting a home that is not your main residence as a tourist rental requires a change-of-use authorisation (construction and housing code, article L. 631-7). It is usually temporary and personal, sometimes conditional on “compensation” — turning commercial premises into housing — or on an annual quota. Since the 2024 law, a home rated F or G on the energy certificate can no longer obtain it.
The energy certificate (DPE). A tourist rental subject to change of use must show an energy rating between A and E; from 1 January 2034, class D will be required of tourist rentals, as for any decent home, unless the rental is the owner’s main residence (tourism code, article L. 324-2-2). A home rated F or G therefore has a few seasons left to do the work.
The co-ownership. Read the building’s rules first: a “bourgeois occupancy” clause or a ban on any commercial activity can close the door. Since 21 November 2024, new co-ownership rules must state explicitly whether tourist rentals are allowed, and a general meeting may ban tourist lets of the lots that are not a main residence, by the majority of article 26 (a majority of co-owners holding at least two thirds of the votes), in buildings whose rules already prohibit any commercial activity in lots not intended for business (law of 10 July 1965, article 26 d). A co-owner who declares a tourist rental must inform the managing agent, and the subject goes on the agenda of the next meeting.
Tourist tax. It is owed by the guest and paid over to the town or the intercommunal body. Airbnb, Booking and the other platforms that take the payment collect and remit it for non-professional hosts; for other channels, the host collects it and declares it on the town’s portal. Even when the platform collects it, a return may still be due, depending on the town: in the Métropole Nice Côte d’Azur, every host must file an online return of bookings every four months, Airbnb or Booking stays included, and even with no stays; in Villeneuve-Loubet, a platform that collects the tax declares its own nights, and the host declares each month the nights sold directly. Rates depend on the rental’s star classification; an unclassified rental pays a capped percentage of the nightly price.
Income tax. The income is taxed as commercial profits (BIC). For income received in 2025, the simplified “micro-BIC” regime applies up to €15,000 of receipts with a 30% flat allowance for an unclassified tourist rental, and up to €77,700 with a 50% allowance for a classified one (1 to 5 stars, valid five years). For income received in 2026, declared in 2027, the threshold for a classified rental rises to €83,600; the unclassified one stays at €15,000. Beyond that, or by option, the actual-cost regime. Social security contributions. When the furnished-letting receipts of the whole tax household exceed €23,000 a year, letting a tourist rental is subject to social security contributions, and the activity must be registered with the single business formalities portal (social security code, article L. 611-1, 6°, which refers to the threshold in article 155 of the general tax code; service-public.fr sheet F34102). The 2027 finance bill, under debate in Parliament, would limit the depreciation that furnished-letting hosts deduct under the actual-cost regime; nothing has been voted as at 24 October 2026, and we will update this paragraph after the vote. We do not give tax advice; your accountant does.
Also: a smoke detector, insurance that covers short-term letting, a rental contract with an inventory, and a listing that tells the truth about the home.
The penalties set by law
| Breach | Penalty |
|---|---|
| No declaration with registration | Administrative fine up to €10,000 (€5,000 before May 2026) |
| False declaration or false registration number | Administrative fine up to €20,000 |
| Main residence let beyond the ceiling (120 or 90 days) | Civil fine up to €15,000 |
| Change of use without authorisation | Civil fine up to €100,000 per home, plus a penalty of up to €1,000 per day and per m² for as long as the breach lasts |
| Non-compliant energy rating (from 2034, main residence excepted) | Administrative fine up to €5,000 |
| Intermediary (management company, agency, platform) that does not inform the host of their obligations, does not obtain their sworn statement before the listing goes live, or does not publish the number | Civil fine up to €12,500 per rental (tourism code, article L. 324-2-1) |
| Intermediary that does not pass on the information requested by the town, or keeps offering a main residence beyond the ceiling | Civil fine up to €50,000 per rental, or per listing for exceeding the ceiling (same article) |
| Helping a change of use without authorisation (brokering or providing services, platforms excepted) | Civil fine up to €100,000 per property (construction and housing code, article L. 651-2-1) |
Town by town, from Nice to Cannes
The table sums up what we verified; the details and links follow. “Métropole” means the Métropole Nice Côte d’Azur, which handles the tourist tax and the registration numbers of its towns on a single portal.
| Town | Declaration and number | Main residence | Second home |
|---|---|---|---|
| Villeneuve-Loubet | declaloc.fr, number starting with 06161 | 90 days a year | Change of use required from the first day |
| Cagnes-sur-Mer | Métropole portal | 120 days (national rule) | No change-of-use regulation published, as far as we know |
| Saint-Laurent-du-Var | Métropole portal | 120 days (national rule) | No change-of-use regulation published, as far as we know |
| Nice | Métropole portal | 120 days a year since 1 September 2026 (90 days from 1 January to 31 August 2026) | Temporary 5-year authorisation, one per tax household; energy rating A to E; quotas in four districts |
| Antibes Juan-les-Pins | The town’s tourist-tax portal | 90 days a year (to be confirmed with the town hall) | Change-of-use authorisation (to be confirmed with the town hall) |
| Vallauris Golfe-Juan | Declaration at the town hall | 120 days (national rule) | No change-of-use regulation published, as far as we know |
| Cannes | The town’s tourist-tax portal, 13-digit number | 120 days a year | Change of use, with compensation in some districts (to be confirmed with the town hall) |
| Le Cannet | The town’s portal, number issued at once | 120 days (national rule) | Ask the town hall |
| Mandelieu-la-Napoule | The town’s portal, 13-character number | 120 days a year | Change of use from the first night (council decision of 10 July 2020) |
| Mougins | Declaration at the town hall, receipt without a number | Not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall | Not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall |
| Valbonne Sophia Antipolis | Declaration at the town hall (Cerfa 14004), receipt | 90 days a year | Temporary change-of-use authorisation (regulation of 19 June 2025) |
| Biot | The town’s portal, 13-character number | Not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall | Not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall |
| La Colle-sur-Loup | The town’s portal, number issued at once | Not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall | Not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall |
| Saint-Paul-de-Vence | The town’s portal, 13-character number | Not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall | Not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall |
| Vence | Métropole portal | Not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall | No change of use: the Métropole requires it only in Nice and Villefranche-sur-Mer |
Villeneuve-Loubet
Our own town, and one of the clearest. The declaration is made online on declaloc.fr, which issues a 13-character registration number starting with 06161, to be shown on every listing. For a second home, change of use is required from the first day of letting and is requested on the same service; for a main residence, the town lowered the ceiling to 90 days a year by its decision of 20 March 2025, beyond which change of use also applies. The tourist tax is declared monthly and paid quarterly on villeneuveloubet.taxesejour.fr. Source: the tourist office’s “Réglementation d’un meublé de tourisme” sheet (7 May 2025) and the town’s portal.
Cagnes-sur-Mer and Saint-Laurent-du-Var
Both belong to the Métropole Nice Côte d’Azur. The declaration and the registration number go through the Métropole’s tourist-tax portal, taxedesejour.ofeaweb.fr/ts/metropole-nca (“My accommodation”, then “Create a number”), which also serves the three yearly tourist-tax declarations. The Métropole’s change-of-use regulation applies “to the whole territory of the city of Nice”: as at 3 October 2026 we found neither a change-of-use regulation nor a lowered ceiling for Cagnes-sur-Mer and Saint-Laurent-du-Var, where the national 120-day rule therefore applies to main residences. Council decisions change: we check at every property study.
Nice
The most regulated town on the coast. A main residence may be let 120 days a year at most since 1 September 2026, without change of use: city council decision no. 5.2 of 19 June 2026 raised the ceiling, which had been lowered to 90 days from 1 January to 31 August 2026 (decision no. 1.6 of 23 May 2025). How 2026 is counted is to be checked with the town. For a second home, a temporary change-of-use authorisation is issued by the Métropole: one per owner and per tax household, valid five years, non-renewable and non-transferable to another property; beyond that, compensation or the “mixed letting” scheme. The file requires an energy certificate less than ten years old, issued after 30 June 2021, rated A to E (A to D from 2034). Under the 2026 regulation (decision no. 2.1 of 22 June 2026), four districts are under quota — Vieux-Nice, Riquier – Port – Mont Boron, Centre-Ville and Ouest — with 691 authorisations for 2026 and first applications accepted only from 1 September to 31 December 2026. The registration number, distinct from the authorisation, is obtained on the Métropole portal (step by step in our note on the registration number in Nice). Sources: Métropole Nice Côte d’Azur, procedure for individuals and the decision of 19 June 2026.
Antibes Juan-les-Pins
The declaration is made on the town’s tourist-tax portal, taxe.3douest.com/antibes.php: an account, the pre-filled Cerfa 14004 form, then a receipt by e-mail once the services have validated it (official page). For the rest, the town does not publish its rules online: according to local professionals, a main residence is limited to 90 days a year since 1 July 2025, and a second home needs a temporary, personal change-of-use authorisation, with compensation from the second property. We present both points as to be confirmed with the town hall before any file, and we do so for every home entrusted to us in Antibes.
Vallauris Golfe-Juan
No dedicated portal found as at 3 October 2026: the declaration is made with the town hall, using Cerfa form 14004, which gives a receipt; the registration number will become compulsory everywhere once the national online service opens. The national 120-day rule applies to main residences, and we found no change-of-use regulation for second homes. The tourist tax follows the town’s own arrangements (the town belongs to the Sophia Antipolis agglomeration). Check with the town hall, especially for Golfe-Juan where supply is dense.
Cannes
“Everyone letting a tourist rental, professionally or not, must declare the accommodation” and obtain “a 13-digit reference, unique to each accommodation”, online on the town’s portal or by Cerfa form with the finance department; the number must appear in every listing, and the platforms have removed listings without one since 2018. Main residences may not be let more than 120 days a year. For a second home, Cannes applies the change-of-use authorisation, with compensation required in the tightest districts and quotas announced for 2026; the official declaration page does not detail those conditions, which are to be confirmed with the planning department. Source: City of Cannes, declaring a tourist rental.
Le Cannet
The town offers a free online declaration, open at all times, which issues the declaration number at once: lecannet.taxesejour.fr, also used for the tourist tax. For a second home, the portal refers to the town hall for any change-of-use request. The national 120-day rule applies to main residences, unless the council decides otherwise.
Mandelieu-la-Napoule
The declaration is made online on the town’s portal, taxedesejour.ofeaweb.fr/ts/mandelieu, which issues “a 13-character registration number” (our translation). The official page sets the letting of a main residence at “120 days a year”. The town introduced prior change-of-use authorisation by a council decision of 10 July 2020: it is required “from the first night for second homes”, and, for a main residence, from the 121st day, in cases of force majeure only (work obligations, health reasons). The application form is online. The tourist tax is declared and paid quarterly, before the 20th of the following month. Sources: Town of Mandelieu-la-Napoule, declaring tourist rentals, change of use and tourist tax, consulted on 24 October 2026.
Mougins
Mougins does not apply the registration-number procedure for now: its portal states that “the registration number does not currently apply to tourist rentals in your town” (our translation). The declaration is made at the town hall with Cerfa form 14004, or online on mougins.taxesejour.fr, and gives a receipt. Main-residence ceiling and change of use: not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall; we found neither a council decision lowering the 120-day ceiling nor a change-of-use regulation. The tourist tax is declared monthly, before the 15th, on the same portal. Source: Mougins tourist-tax portal, consulted on 24 October 2026.
Valbonne Sophia Antipolis
The declaration is made with the town hall, using Cerfa form 14004, offered pre-filled on the tourist-tax portal, taxe.3douest.com/valbonnesophiaantipolis.php: it gives a receipt, and we found no registration-number procedure of the town’s own. On 19 June 2025 Valbonne adopted a regulation on prior change-of-use authorisation: the authorisation is temporary, personal and non-transferable, valid one year and renewable five times. Its form states that a main residence is exempt “if the letting does not exceed 90 days a year” (our translation). The area where the authorisation applies is to be confirmed with the town hall. The tourist tax is declared and paid quarterly. Sources: Town of Valbonne Sophia Antipolis, regulations and tourist-rental declaration and change-of-use application form, consulted on 24 October 2026 (in French).
Biot
The declaration is made online on the town’s DéclaLoc portal, biot.taxesejour.fr, which assigns “a 13-character registration number to show on all your rental offers” (our translation). Main-residence ceiling and change of use: not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall; we found neither a council decision lowering the 120-day ceiling nor a change-of-use regulation, and the portal refers any change-of-use request to the town hall. The tourist tax is declared monthly, before the 15th. Source: Biot tourist-tax portal, consulted on 24 October 2026.
La Colle-sur-Loup
La Colle-sur-Loup belongs to the Sophia Antipolis agglomeration, not to the Métropole. The town hall offers an online declaration, lacollesurloup.taxesejour.fr, to “receive your declaration number immediately” (our translation). Main-residence ceiling and change of use: not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall; for a change of use (other than a main residence), the portal itself invites hosts to ask the town hall. The tourist tax is declared monthly, before the 15th. Source: La Colle-sur-Loup tourist-tax portal, consulted on 24 October 2026.
Saint-Paul-de-Vence
Saint-Paul-de-Vence also belongs to the Sophia Antipolis agglomeration. The declaration is made online on the town’s DéclaLoc portal, stpauldevence.taxesejour.fr, which assigns a 13-character registration number, to be shown on listings. Main-residence ceiling and change of use: not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall; we found neither a council decision lowering the 120-day ceiling nor a change-of-use regulation. The tourist tax is declared monthly, before the 15th. Source: Saint-Paul-de-Vence tourist-tax portal, consulted on 24 October 2026.
Vence
Vence is part of the Métropole Nice Côte d’Azur: the declaration and the tourist tax go through the Métropole’s portal, taxedesejour.ofeaweb.fr/ts/metropole-nca, with an online return every four months. That portal mentions prior change-of-use authorisation only for Nice and Villefranche-sur-Mer: not for Vence, as at 24 October 2026. Main-residence ceiling and whether a registration number is issued in Vence: not verified as at 24/10/2026: ask the town hall. Source: the Métropole’s tourist-tax portal, consulted on 24 October 2026.
What we do, and what we do not do
Before going live, we check these four points with you — the co-ownership rules, the declaration and the number, the day ceiling or the change of use, the energy certificate — and we tell you whom to ask. We put the registration number on every listing, Airbnb collects and pays over the tourist tax itself, and for other platforms your monthly statement shows the amount to pay over to the town, and we keep the calendar so that a main residence stays within its ceiling. When the national online service opens, we will put the new number on every listing. We do not file change-of-use applications on your behalf and we do not give legal or tax advice. The formalities are yours; the law also requires us to inform you of your obligations and to ask you, before any listing goes live, for a sworn statement saying whether the home is your main residence and giving its declaration number (tourism code, article L. 324-2-1). It is also the fourth of the four things we look at before signing.
Sources
- Law no. 2024-1039 of 19 November 2024 on the local regulation of tourist rentals (Légifrance, in French).
- Service-public.fr, turning a second home into a holiday let, checked 21 May 2026.
- Directorate-General for Enterprise, “L’API meublés, guichet unique de centralisation”, updated 23 July 2026 (national online service, renewal of town numbers; in French).
- Service-public.fr, sheet F32744 (micro-BIC thresholds, 2025 and 2026 income), checked 15 April 2026, and sheet F34102 (social security contributions above €23,000), checked 20 February 2026.
- Practical guide 2025 to tourist-rental regulation, Housing ministry, September 2025.
- Service-public.fr, the 2026 changes to letting your home, news of 27 July 2026 (micro-BIC thresholds, 2025 and 2026 income).
- Texts cited: tourism code, article L. 324-2-2 (energy rating from 2034); law no. 70-9 of 2 January 1970, article 1-1 (90 consecutive days); Constitutional Council, decision no. 2025-1186 QPC of 19 March 2026 (co-ownership, article 26 of the law of 10 July 1965); Directorate-General for Enterprise, tourist rentals; tourism code, article L. 324-1-1 (national online service) and article L. 324-2-1 (intermediaries); construction and housing code, article L. 651-2-1 (helping a change of use); social security code, article L. 611-1 and general tax code, article 155 (€23,000 threshold); National Assembly, debate on the 2027 finance bill (in French).
- Owners living abroad: the “international-particulier” pages of impots.gouv.fr cited in the box.
- Métropole Nice Côte d’Azur: tourist rentals, 2026 regulation and decision of 19 June 2026 (120-day ceiling); tourist-tax portal.
- Villeneuve-Loubet: town portal and the tourist office sheet of 7 May 2025.
- Antibes Juan-les-Pins: declare your rental.
- Cannes: declaring a tourist rental and tourist-tax portal.
- Le Cannet: town portal.
- Mandelieu-la-Napoule, Mougins, Valbonne Sophia Antipolis, Biot, La Colle-sur-Loup, Saint-Paul-de-Vence and Vence: the official pages and portals cited in their sections, consulted on 24 October 2026.
Further reading: the towns where we work · what your home could earn · preparing a residence before the season.
This note describes the rules as we verified them on the date given, from the sources cited. It is not legal or tax advice; council decisions change, and every home must be checked with its town hall before it is let.