France committee backs crypto exit tax on unrealized gains

France's National Assembly finance committee has backed two new crypto taxes, including a levy on paper gains for anyone holding more than €800,000 who moves abroad. The committee adopted the amendments on October 7 and 8. Neither is law yet.

The measures sit inside the draft 2027 budget, the projet de loi de finances. Cointelegraph and the French outlet Cryptoast both reported the committee votes, each naming the sponsoring lawmakers and the official amendment numbers.

What the committee approved

Three crypto amendments cleared the finance committee during two days of debate. The first, numbered I-CF1826 and tabled by deputy Nicolas Sansu of the left-wing GDR group, would treat a swap from crypto into a stablecoin as a taxable event from January 1, 2027. Today, French investors owe nothing until they cash out into euros or dollars. That would change. Cryptoast reported the new tax would apply only to stablecoins regulated under the EU's MiCA rules.

A second amendment, I-CF1822, again from Sansu, is the one drawing the most attention. It would extend France's exit tax to crypto. Holders with more than €800,000, about $895,000, in digital assets would owe tax on gains they have not yet realized if they shift their tax residence out of France. The charge would bite on the way out the door.

Not every amendment tightens the screws. A third change, I-CF798 from deputy Daniel Labaronne of the governing bloc, runs the other way. It would let investors carry forward realized crypto losses for 10 years. That matches the treatment France already gives to stock losses.

A separate proposal went after self-custody. Charles de Courson, of the LIOT group, filed amendment I-CF821 to force holders to declare self-custodied wallets worth more than €100,000, with fines reaching €10,000 for those who fail to. Cryptoast listed it among the crypto measures the committee weighed.

Why an exit tax on paper gains matters

Most countries tax a crypto gain only at the point of sale. France wants to tax some of it sooner. The exit levy targets residents who build large holdings in France, then relocate to a lower-tax country before selling. It is aimed at the wealthy, not the average holder.

The explanatory text behind the stablecoin amendment calls the current rules a "loophole in the legislation," according to a machine translation cited by Cointelegraph. Supporters argue that turning crypto into a dollar token locks in a real gain, so it should be taxed like a sale, even when no euros move.

Critics see a precedent worth watching. No sale required. A holder could face a bill on a paper profit, then watch the market fall before ever selling. Timing cuts both ways. France already applies an exit tax to large share portfolios, so bringing crypto into it is a smaller step than it first looks.

Still far from law

Committee approval is a signal, not a statute. When the full Assembly takes up the budget, with floor debate set to begin October 13 according to Cointelegraph, lawmakers restart from the government's original text. Every amendment adopted in committee then has to be voted again in the chamber.

Cryptoast reported that the solemn vote on the budget's revenue section is scheduled for October 20. After the Assembly, the bill would still need to clear the Senate, with final adoption expected by December 31. Plenty can change at each stage.

Adoption in committee is a strong political signal, Cryptoast noted, because an amendment that clears it is then defended in the chamber on behalf of the finance committee. That gives these measures a running start. It does not guarantee they finish.

No official revenue figure has been attached to the crypto measures. The committee has not fixed their final shape either. France is not alone in rethinking the rules, with Greece proposing a 10% tax on crypto gains that exempts the first 500 euros.

What to watch

Watch the floor vote in mid-October. If the crypto amendments are re-tabled and survive, France would move from taxing realized gains to taxing some unrealized ones, a shift other EU capitals will note. For now, nothing has changed for French holders. The rules on the books still tax only at the point of sale.