# Case Study: France's 75% supertax (2013–2014) Back to [[Economic Freedom and Prosperity]] · [[Post Analysis - Handre on Economic Freedom Case Studies (2026-10-23)|Post analysis]] · People: [[People/François Hollande]], [[People/Gérard Depardieu]] **What the post says:** a 75% top income tax from 2013 lasted two years. The socialist government admitted the projections were fiction, capital left, Depardieu became Russian, and the tax raised under €200m against €500m projected before vanishing in 2015. ## Timeline | Date | Event | Source | |---|---|---| | 2012 campaign | Hollande promises 75% on earnings above €1m | ✔ [Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/dec/31/france-drops-75percent-supertax) | | Sept 2012 | Measure announced. Bernard Arnault seeks Belgian nationality (the Guardian says he "took out" Belgian nationality; ⚠️ my recollection is that he applied and withdrew the application in 2013, not checked this session). Depardieu moves to Néchin, Belgium | ✔ Guardian | | Dec 2012 | Constitutional Council strikes down the version paid by individuals | ✔ Guardian; Reuters | | Jan 3, 2013 | Putin grants Depardieu Russian citizenship by decree | ✔ [Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jan/03/putin-grants-gerard-depardieu-citizenship), [BBC](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-20921208) | | Dec 2013 | Reworked tax approved: a 50% levy paid by **employers** on pay above €1m (about 75% with social charges), capped at 5% of turnover, for 2013 and 2014 only. Expected yield about €210m a year | ✔ [CBC](https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/france-passes-75-millionaire-s-tax-1.2478390); [ABC](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-12-30/france-approves-75-per-cent-tax-on-high-incomes/5177916) (via search summary); [BBC](https://www.bbc.com/news/business-25541739) | | Oct 2014 | PM Valls confirms in London that it will not be renewed | ✔ Guardian; Reuters | | Jan 1, 2015 | Lapses | ✔ Guardian | ## Outcome - **Revenue:** €260m (2013) + €160m (2014) = **€420m**, from about 1,000 employees in 470 companies. That is "broadly in line with expectations" but "tiny" next to an €84.7bn deficit ([Reuters via Yahoo](https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/france-waves-discreet-goodbye-75-percent-super-tax-162358813--business.html); Guardian). - **Emigration:** "the mass emigration has not happened." Most affected earners agreed with their employers to limit salaries for the two years. "A few went abroad — to Luxembourg, the UK" (tax lawyer Jean-Philippe Delsol, to Reuters). - **Reputation:** an executive recruiter said it "clearly damaged France's reputation and competitiveness." Emmanuel Macron, then an adviser, called it "Cuba without the sun" (Reuters; Guardian). ## Reading This was a symbolic, temporary levy. It brought in about what was forecast, which was very little. Its real cost, if any, was to France's reputation, which is hard to measure. The post's numbers (under €200m against €500m) and its claim that the government "admitted the revenue projections were fiction" are not supported by any source I found. For the research on top tax rates and migration, see [[Research and Evidence]].