These boxes in the tax return are not always known but allow significant savings.
If the tax return is pre-populated, that doesn’t mean it’s completely accurate! The traditional spring chore of filing taxes still deserves some attention. Although the tax authorities already have a lot of information on your income, they do not have all the data concerning your family situation or your spending choices. Before signing your declaration, remember to check if you can benefit from certain tax reductions. Not only can these advantages significantly reduce the amount of tax you pay, but they can also lead to the tax authorities granting you a refund.
First of all, if you have raised a child alone for at least 5 years, you can check box L to benefit from an additional half share. Likewise, if you are over 74 years old and you benefit from a military disability pension, or if you are a war widow/widower, box W allows you to obtain an additional half share. Box T, for its part, concerns single parents living alone with their children or an invalid person.
Then, if you pay child support to an adult child or an ascendant in need, you can deduct these amounts from your income. For an adult child, the deduction is limited to 6,368 euros per year and per child (boxes 6EL and 6EM). For an ascendant, the deductible amount depends on their resources and may include the costs of accommodation in a retirement home or hospitalization (box 6GU).
In addition, donations made to various organizations may qualify for tax reductions. Donations to works or organizations of general interest (box 7UF) allow a 66% reduction in payments, up to 20% of your taxable income. Donations to organizations helping people in difficulty (box 7UD) entitle you to a 75% reduction in payments, capped at 1,000 euros. Finally, donations to religious associations (box 7UG) entitle you to a 75% reduction in payments, up to a limit of 562 euros. Payments exceeding these ceilings are automatically carried over to the 66% tax reduction.
Payments in the form of donations or contributions to a political party may also give rise to a tax reduction, provided they do not exceed 7,500 euros per person and are made by check, transfer, direct debit or bank card for amounts over 150 euros. In addition, if you are a member of a representative professional union, your union contributions entitle you to a tax credit of 66% (boxes 7AC, E or G), up to 1% of your income.
Finally, if you have taken out a first 12-month subscription to a newspaper, a quarterly publication or an online press service providing political and general information between January 1, 2022 and December 31, 2023, you can benefit from a credit tax of 30% of your expenses (boxes 7PA or 7PB).
