Artist-author: taxation (tax return, VAT and CFE)

Verified 30 May 2024 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

As an artist-author, you receive artistic revenues associated with the creation of works of the mind, whether in the writing, music, graphic and plastic arts, film and audiovisual, photography or even software industries.

Such income shall be reported either in non-commercial profits (NBC), or in salaries and wages (TS). This statement will determine your tax system.

You have declared your activity as an artist-author. Thus, you are subject toincome tax (IR) and must report your income to taxes on the tax administration website, via your Special area.

Taxes: access your Special Space

Copyright is taxable in the category of wages and salaries when they fully declared by third parties (e.g. publishers, producers, collective management organizations, local authorities, companies).

Please note

You can opt out of the salary and wage plan and report all your income in BNC. This option is valid for the year in which it is exercised and for the following 2 years.

The other artistic income the artist-author (e.g. sales of works, award of a prize, award of a scholarship, ancillary income) are taxable in the class of non-commercial profits (NBC).

Your tax system depends on your 2023 revenue (CA) reported in 2024 (threshold set at €77,700).

CA less than €77,700

You can choose one of the 2 tax systems following:

  • Micro-BNC speed : This is a simplified reporting method, you only report your gross revenue (excluding VAT) and the tax administration calculates your taxable income by applying a abatement of 34% for business expenses.
  • Arrangements for the controlled declaration : this system requires a detailed accounting of your expenses and your professional income. Your taxable profit (or deficit) is the net profit realized during calendar year taking into account actual revenue and charges paid in the same year. This scheme is compulsory above €77,700 VAT of revenue.
Revenue over €77,700

Above €77,700 HT of revenue per year, you are obligatorily subject to controlled declaration procedure.

This plan requires you to keep detailed accounts of your business expenses and revenues. Your taxable profit (or deficit) is the net profit realized during calendar year taking into account actual revenue and charges paid in the same year.

Applicable VAT rates

The VAT rate to be applied varies depending on the nature of the operation :

  • Sale of an original work by the author or his successors in title: 5.5%
  • Assignment of copyright (right of representation, reproduction, adaptation, exploitation and interpretation): 10%
  • For all other operations : 20%

The start-up aid or grants paid by various public or private bodies are exempt from VAT. Thus, the VAT rate is 0% except where they are consideration for a supply of goods or services or where they are additional to the price of a taxable transaction.

VAT rates for ancillary income depend on the service concerned. For example, when they are paid directly by the students, course given in the artist-author's studio or studio and the workshops artistic or writing practices, are exempt from VAT.

VAT exemption

The exemption from VAT you exempt from VAT declaration and payment on your artistic recipes (copyright, sales of works...).

Your right to benefit depends on the turnover (CA) from your artistic activities in the previous year (N-1)

CA less than €47,700

You benefit from a exemption from VAT on your artistic recipes. In this context, you must deliver your tax-free invoices to your customers with the words “ VAT not applicable - Article 293b of the CGI ”.

However, if your current year revenue (N) exceeds the " tolerance threshold ' fixed at €58,600, you are no longer entitled to the VAT exemption starting on 1er day of the month in which the overrun occurred.

Revenue over €47,700

When you cross the €47,700 in a given year, you no longer benefit from the VAT exemption starting on 1er January of the following year.

Also, if your current year revenue (N) exceeds the " tolerance threshold ' fixed at €58,600, you are no longer entitled to the VAT exemption starting on 1er day of the month in which the overrun occurred.

The withdrawal of the exemption from VAT shall have the following effects:

  • VAT assessment of transactions made on or after 1er the day of the month on which the overrun occurred. You have to declare the VAT and invoice it to your customers. Invoices issued in the month of overrun, before the day on which the overrun occurred, must be corrected to include VAT. For example, a trader exceeds the VAT threshold on 15 December. He must then charge VAT in December. If it has already issued invoices between 1er and on December 15 without VAT, it must amend them to add VAT.
  • You are now entitled to the deduction of VAT on your business purchases. You can ask the tax authorities to deduct the VAT paid on your business purchases at the time of your VAT return on 1er month of overrun.
  • You must apply for intra-Community VAT number and show it on your invoices. To obtain your intra-Community VAT number, you must contact your company tax department (SIE) on your business account at impots.gouv.fr and inform them of your departure from the VAT exemption scheme:

Online tax account for professionals (EFI mode)

Please note

For income from ancillary activities (workshops, courses, public meetings), you benefit from the VAT exemption when your turnover for the previous year (N-1) does not exceed €19,600 and if it does not exceed €23,700 for the current year.

Option for VAT payment

Regardless of the amount of your annual turnover (even less than €47,700), you can opting for VAT payment and charge your customers. This allows you to recover deductible VAT on business expenses.

The request for an option must be made in writing to the company tax department (SIE) on which you depend.

Who shall I contact

The option takes effect to 1er day of the month in which it is declared.

The option must cover a period of 2 years renewable (including the request). Thus, an option formulated on 1er November of year N shall take effect until 31 December N+1.

Withholding tax on certain copyrights

The VAT withholding tax system exemption from VAT declaration when you collect copyrights from publishers, producers or collective management organizations (Adagp: titleContent, SAIF: titleContent, Sacem: titleContent, etc.).

The broadcaster declares and pays VAT on your behalf and then withholds the VAT paid on the copyrights it pays you.

This exemption applies to both artists-authors eligible for the exemption on a basic basis and artists-authors liable to pay VAT.

FYI  

Where copyright is paid by a publisher, the withholding tax on VAT shall apply only in respect of copyright paid under a publishing contract. Therefore, if you charge copyright to a publisher (i.e. outside of a publishing contract), it is up to you to declare and pay VAT to taxes, there is no withholding tax.

General case

This deduction is equal to the amount of VAT calculated at the rate legally applicable to copyright (10%) less a right of deduction fixed at a flat-rate of 0.80%, or a net deduction of 9.20%.

Guadeloupe, Martinique, Réunion

This deduction is equal to the amount of VAT calculated at the rate legally applicable to copyright (10%) less a right of deduction fixed at a flat-rate of 0.40%, or a net deduction of 9.60%.

You can waive the withholding tax system, at any time. In this case, you pay and declare VAT yourself.

The waiver must be formulated in writing and forwarded by registered letter to company Tax Service (SIE)). You must then immediately send a copy of the waiver letter sent to the tax department to all publishers, duty collection and allocation businesses and producers from whom you collect or are entitled to collect duties.

This waiver shall apply for a period of 5 years.

Who shall I contact

The companies' property levy (CFE) is a local tax payable by traders who habitually engage in self-employed occupation on 1er January of the taxation year, irrespective of their legal status, activity or taxation regime.

The following artists-authors are exempt :

  • Painters, sculptors, engravers and draftsmen considered to be artists and authors of graphic and plastic works and selling only the product of their art. This includes graphic artists provided that their activity is limited to the creation of graphic works. On the contrary, it excludes graphic designers who carry out works based on models supplied by third parties, or operate an establishment in which industrial work is predominant and secondary artistic work.
  • Photographers of art for their activity in the making of photographs, the transfer of their works of art and the transfer of their property rights in relation to their photographic works
  • Authors of literary and dramatic, musical and choreographic works, as well as co-authors of a collaborative audiovisual work and authors of a radio work
  • Lyrical and dramatic artists

On the other hand, software authors shall not benefit from of this exemption.

Who can help me?

Find who can answer your questions in your region

  • Company Tax Service (SIE)

  • Social security for artists-authors (Agessa and Maison des artistes)

    By telephone

    Monday to Friday: 9am to 5pm

    0 806 804 208 (price of a local call)

    By E-mail

    http://www.secu-artistes-auteurs.fr/contact

    By mail

    60 rue du Faubourg Poissonnière

    75010 Paris

  • Urssaf Limousin (Artists-authors)

    By email

    https://www.artistes-auteurs.urssaf.fr/aa/accueil

    By mail

    Urssaf Limousin

    Artists and Authors - TSA 70009

    93517 MONTREUIL CEDEX