Cost of living in France: five things that have changed

The start of the new year brings with it a series of changes. The Connexion has previously detailed changes in areas including healthcare, residency, and driving. 

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Below, we detail five of the biggest changes to the pouvoir d’achat (purchasing power, or cost of living) to those residing in France this year. 

French pension increase 

Millions who receive a French pension saw it increase by 2.2% on January 1. 

Former prime minister Michel Barnier wanted to delay the indexing of this year’s pensions to inflation levels – a process done automatically outside of the annual budget – to July, reducing the annual increase to 1.5% and only seeing the majority of pension increases take effect from the latter half of the year. 

His plans, which were part of his government’s proposed 2025 budget, ended with his ousting meaning pension increases from January at the previously-expected levels. 

It corresponds to an average €15 monthly increase per person. 

Note a minimum monthly gross salary of €1,782 each month for three months is required to ‘earn’ a quarter (trimestre) of French pension payouts. 

This increase corresponds to last November’s minimum wage hike (the two are tied) and should not affect those working full-time who are earning at least the minimum wage.

However it may impact those with monthly earnings less than this, such as part-time workers.

Read more: France’s minimum wage will not automatically rise on January 1

Changes to eco-friendly home renovation grants 

Changes have been made to the government’s MaPrimeRénov’ scheme which partly funds eco-friendly home renovations.

Certain rules brought in last year for single-project renovations (mono-gestes) have been extended.

These include funding to upgrade single-family properties (essentially, not flats) with an ‘F’ or ‘G’ rating, and a temporary end to the requirement for a Diagnostic de performance énergétique (DPE) rating for properties prior to an application.

However, funding levels for the lowest income households have been reduced from 70% to 50% in some cases, as they have for higher income households even in cases where the renovations see a property’s DPE ranking increase significantly. 

Read more: French grants for home renovations are changing

New rules on tourist lettings 

Short-term rentals through such as gîtes, or hosted via sites including Airbnb face further restrictions this year. 

Alongside potential limits to the number of properties which can be used for short-term rentals and the number of days they can be made available for rent, tax allowances for owners who let such properties have been reduced to be closer to the allowances available if letting in the more traditional longer-term market. 

Read more: Airbnb rental laws to be toughened in France 

Interest rates cut for newly opened savings accounts and late payments 

The interest rate on a plan épargne logement (PEL, savings account for a home purchase) opened after January 1 have dropped to 1.75%.

Prior to this, the rate was 2.25%. 

The rate on the account remains fixed from the date it is opened and has historically fluctuated, dropping as low as 1% in August 2016. 

Interest rate changes for other savings accounts, including the government-regulated tax-free Livret A, have not been announced, but are widely expected to fall at some point this year. 

The Livret A currently has an interest rate of 3%. 

The interest rate on late payments for private individuals (taux d’intérêt légal, or legal interest rate) will fall from 8.16% to 7.21%. This is used in areas such as banking and property loans.

The rate will be reevaluated on June 30.

Funeral expenses increase 

The amount which can be taken from the deceased’s bank account to cover funeral expenses where there is not a funeral policy in place to cover these has risen to €5,910 from last year’s figure of €5,000. 

Read more: France changes its deadline rules for burials and cremations

Other changes 

Other changes which may have an indirect effect on expenses include those relating to clearing garden undergrowth (obligations légales de débroussaillement) and driving restrictions in four French cities. 

You can read about these and other changes below.

Read more: 15 changes in France from January 1, 2025