Many creators now live abroad while receiving income from works broadcast or distributed in France. In this situation, it is essential to properly declare your foreign tax residency in order to avoid any unjustified withholding on your author’s rights paid by the SACD or the SCAM.

If no supporting documentation is provided, French collecting societies are legally required to apply withholding tax at source, even if you are already taxed in your country of residence. This withholding can reach up to 30%.

This article explains why properly declaring a foreign tax residency is essential, and the risks involved if you fail to do so.

⚖️ Benefits of a properly declared foreign tax residency

Having your tax residency abroad is not an issue — you simply need to provide the required documents. When these are correctly submitted:

• You avoid double taxation thanks to the certificate of tax residency / non-double taxation (forms 5000 and 5003).

• You receive your full net royalties, with no withholding applied in France.

• You benefit from Wizdeo’s support in monitoring your situation with the SACD and the SCAM.

? Important: forms 5000/5003 and all certificates must be completed, signed, and sent by post in original form to the SACD and the SCAM. All steps are explained in detail on the SACD website. Wizdeo cannot carry out these procedures on your behalf.

⚠️ In case of omission or failure to submit documents

If the certificate is not provided:

• An automatic 30% withholding is applied.

• Payments may be delayed or blocked.

• Recovery is only possible up to N-2, and only if it has not already been done.

• After 31/12/N, the amounts are definitively lost.

• Processing times by the tax authorities are fast for the current year, but very long for N-1 and N-2 — currently 10 to 12 months on average.

? How Wizdeo supports you

Wizdeo helps you avoid the most common mistakes.

We know that declarations, notifications, or even their effective processing by the relevant bodies can easily fall through the cracks. And even when documents are correctly submitted, their processing is far from automatic.

That’s why we continuously monitor your file and ensure that each step is properly taken into account.

Concretely, we help you to:

• Verify that your documents have been properly received by the French collecting societies (SACD / SCAM).

• Confirm that they have actually been processed, as sending documents alone does not guarantee an update of your tax status.

• Recover withheld amounts, when possible.

• Ensure that your tax status is correctly updated, in order to avoid any unjustified withholding on future payments.

? However, Wizdeo cannot obtain tax certificates on your behalf: these steps must be carried out directly by you with the authorities of your country of residence.

You will find more details on the SACD website, under the section Authors residing abroad: responding to requests from the French tax authorities.

If you live abroad or have recently moved, don’t hesitate to contact us at the slightest doubt regarding your situation. We will review your status with you and confirm that you benefit from the most advantageous regime — without paying undue taxes.