No foreign community has shaped the Côte d’Azur quite the way the British have. Queen Victoria wintered in Nice and Menton in the 1890s ; Somerset Maugham lived thirty years at the Villa Mauresque ; the novels and paintings of the Riviera are largely a British achievement. Today the pattern continues, quieter perhaps, but continuous : London-based families buying a house in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, retirees moving to Menton, professionals picking up a lock-and-leave in the Old Port of Cannes. Brexit did not stop any of that. What it changed is everything around the acquisition : the visa question, the tax residency conversation, which bank actually lends, and how much the pound is worth on the day you sign. This guide is written for UK residents preparing a French property purchase in that post-Brexit reality.
The British community on the Riviera today
The British remain one of the largest foreign buyer communities on the Côte d’Azur, along with the Americans and the Scandinavians. The infrastructure supporting them is dense :
- The British Consulate in Marseille serves the Riviera and PACA region
- The Anglican churches in Nice, Cannes and Monaco, active parish hubs since the 19th century
- English-medium international schools (Mougins School, International School of Nice, EIB Monaco) for resident families
- A network of British clubs, associations, cricket clubs and community events
- An established professional ecosystem of English-speaking notaires, tax counsels and real estate agents familiar with UK cases
The result : when you buy on the Riviera as a UK resident, you land in an environment where your language is spoken, your customs are known, and the professionals who handle your file have processed hundreds of British acquisitions before yours.
The Brexit dimension : what actually changed
The right to buy property in France has not changed. UK nationals can acquire, hold and sell French real estate on the same legal terms as any other non-EU foreign buyer. What has changed is the surrounding framework :
Residency and time on French soil
Since 1 January 2021, UK nationals are treated as third-country nationals under EU rules. The 90 out of 180 days Schengen limit applies, as set out in the Schengen Borders Code (Regulation (EU) 2016/399) : you can spend up to 90 days in any rolling 180-day window in the Schengen area (which includes France) without a long-stay visa. For a secondary residence used a few weeks per year, this is rarely a constraint. For a family that wants to spend most of the year on the Riviera, it forces the conversation around a long-stay visa (typically the visa de long séjour visiteur) or a residency permit. The visa and immigration path must be validated with a qualified French immigration counsel ; we handle only the financing.
Financial services : loss of EU passporting
UK-based banks lost their EU passporting rights in 2021 following the end of the Brexit transition period (see HM Treasury communications and the ACPR position on third-country access). A UK retail bank can no longer directly finance a French property purchase for a UK resident under the same conditions as before Brexit. In practice, this means UK residents typically finance a French acquisition through one of three routes described below.
Tax residency : must be validated with your tax counsel
The UK-France double tax treaty of 19 June 2008 continues to apply, unaffected by Brexit (published by HMRC and by the Direction Générale des Finances Publiques, DGFiP). Under Article 4B of the French Tax Code and the treaty tiebreaker rules (permanent home, centre of vital interests, habitual abode, nationality), owning a French property does not, on its own, make you a French tax resident. Spending more than 183 days per year in France, or having your centre of economic interests in France, generally does. This distinction has direct consequences on income tax, capital gains tax on the property, and IFI. Your tax residency status must be validated with a qualified French tax counsel and, where relevant, with your UK tax counsel or accountant, before any acquisition decision.
Three financing routes for UK buyers
Depending on your profile, three financing paths are typically available. Which one fits depends on your income structure, your relationship with your UK bank, and the size of the acquisition.
Route 1 : a French bank
French banks, both retail and private, actively finance UK residents acquiring French property. The advantages : the loan is structured directly under French law, the notarial process integrates seamlessly, and the client benefits from the distinctive French mortgage structure, a fixed interest rate applied over the entire term of the loan, up to a maximum of 20 years. This rate is locked in at signing and does not fluctuate with market conditions. If interest rates fall meaningfully after the loan is in place, the client retains the option to renegotiate the rate with the bank or to refinance the loan with another lender. For most standard files, this is the fastest and most predictable path. LTV typically caps around 70 % for non-resident profiles.
Route 2 : a UK-based private bank with a French real estate desk
A number of UK-based private banks operate international real estate desks that can finance a UK resident’s French acquisition. The advantages : relationship continuity with an institution that already knows the client, GBP-denominated relationship banking, and the possibility to structure collateral in sterling on a pledged account. This route typically suits clients with an established UK private banking relationship. See our dedicated private banking mortgages guide for the mechanics.
Route 3 : a Monegasque or Luxembourg private bank
For clients with international exposure, a private bank based in Monaco or Luxembourg can be an efficient route. These banks are used to serving UK clients on cross-border files, they finance in EUR without FX exposure at drawdown, and they coordinate naturally with the notaire in France. Typical ticket size : €2M+ for the most active institutions.
The GBP/EUR exposure : a specific 2026 risk
Currency has been the single most important cost variable for UK buyers over the last five years. At current 2026 levels, EUR/GBP is around 0.86 (ECB reference rates, Bundesbank historical series), meaning the pound is approximately 14 % weaker versus the euro than its long-term average since 2000 (roughly 0.75, based on BIS historical data). Concretely, a French property that would have cost a UK buyer €1M at parity now costs approximately £860,000 to a UK buyer, and would have cost around £750,000 at long-term average rates.
This has two operational consequences :
- The euro amount of your acquisition is denominated in a currency stronger than yours. Each week of delay between signing the compromis and paying the balance at the final deed carries FX risk on the closing costs (approximately 8 % of price) and, if you fund the acquisition in GBP, on the down payment itself.
- A forward contract executed at the time of the compromis, locking in the EUR amount you will need at signing, is often one of the most cost-effective decisions of the entire acquisition. On a €800,000 closing amount, a 2 % FX swing over 10 weeks represents £13,000 to £14,000 of realised loss or gain.
See our dedicated FX article for the mechanics.
Tax dimensions to consider
The tax situation of a UK resident acquiring French property is governed by the UK-France double tax treaty of 19 June 2008 and by French domestic law. The key points below are a general overview only ; each must be validated for your specific situation with a qualified French tax counsel and, where relevant, with a qualified UK tax counsel or chartered accountant. Omage Finance is not a tax adviser.
- French rental income. Taxable in France under French rules (Article 244 bis and following of the French Tax Code, DGFiP guidance), with treaty relief under Article 6 of the UK-France treaty. HMRC guidance on foreign property income also applies on the UK side.
- Capital gains on sale. Taxable in France for a French property under Article 244 bis A of the French Tax Code. Non-residents are subject to French capital gains tax and social contributions, with treaty-based specifics under Article 14 of the UK-France treaty. HMRC may also tax the gain under UK domestic rules, with credit for French tax paid.
- Inheritance tax. A French property owned by a UK resident is generally subject to French droits de succession (Articles 750 ter, 777 and following of the French Tax Code). See our dedicated inheritance tax article for the brackets. The 1963 UK-France estate tax treaty (still in force for succession matters) and UK inheritance tax rules under the Inheritance Tax Act 1984 may also apply on the same asset.
- IFI. A UK-resident owner of French real estate above the €1.3M French real-estate net threshold is subject to the IFI (Articles 964 and following of the French Tax Code), regardless of UK tax residency. Article 974 governs debt deductibility. See our dedicated IFI article.
Warning. Tax outcomes depend on your personal residency, family situation, holding structure, and the interaction of French and UK rules. None of the above is advice. Every point must be reviewed and validated with your French tax counsel (avocat fiscaliste or expert-comptable) and, if applicable, with a UK adviser regulated in the United Kingdom, before you sign an offer to purchase.
Timeline
From the moment we receive your file to the notarial signing, plan roughly 8 to 12 weeks in optimal conditions. UK files often sit at the shorter end of this range thanks to the quality of the UK documentation and the established familiarity of French banks with UK profiles.
How Omage supports UK buyers
As a regulated mortgage broker and CIF supervised by the ACPR and AMF, our role is to map the right financing route for your specific UK profile, whether French bank, UK-based private bank, or a Monegasque or Luxembourg alternative, and to coordinate every step from first call to notarial signing. We work with a network of banks across France, Monaco, Luxembourg and the UK. On the tax and legal dimensions, we do not act as UK or French tax counsel ourselves ; we introduce you to English-speaking notaires and cross-border tax counsels on the Riviera when helpful. Please note : this article is directed at prospective clients seeking financing for property located in France. Nothing in it constitutes an offer of financial services in the United Kingdom or advice regulated by the FCA.