France has confirmed that the reduced rate of VAT on home improvements is to rise from 7 percent to 10 percent. The previous 7 percent rate will however still apply in certain situations including work that began before 1 January 2014 and cases where at least 30 percent of the fees have been paid in advance.
Only a few EU countries apply reduced VAT rates for improvements to residential dwellings. Under the EU Directive member states may only use reduced VAT rates in limited circumstances as specified in the Directive.
