France notary fees (frais de notaire) calculator

What you pay on top of the price: your département’s registration duties, the notary’s fees, VAT and disbursements, line by line.

Estimated notary fees

€20,340

that is 8.1% of the price: €270,340 in total with the price of the property

Taxes and duties: €16,695
Notary (excl. VAT): €3,245
Disbursements: €400

For an existing property at €250,000 (département: Gironde), notary fees are about €20,340, that is 8.1% of the price: allow €270,340 in total.

Of these €20,340, €16,695 (82%) are taxes and duties paid over to the State and local authorities: registration duties, land registry security contribution and VAT. The notary receives €3,245 excluding VAT (16%), and €400 pays for documents and procedures advanced on your behalf.

This département (Gironde) has voted the increase to 5% for buyers who are not first-time buyers. If you are one, answer “Yes” to “First-time buyer”: the duties go down.
Above €150,000, the notary may grant a discount on their fees: this calculation does not count it.
This is an estimate, not a quote: ask the notary for a written forecast statement of the costs.

Where the money goes

Duties€15,79678%
Notary (excl. VAT)€3,24516%
VAT€6493%
Disbursements€4002%
Land registry security€2501%

I’m not an accountant or a financial advisor. This is an estimate, for information only. Check with a professional before you decide.

Your numbers

example: change the numbers

Purchase price of the property

The sale price written in the deed, without the estate agent’s fee, the works or the furniture.

Type of property

For a new-build bought from a developer (VAT included in the price), the registration duties are far lower.

Existingalready lived in, sold by a private sellerNew-buildbought from a developer

Département of the property

Each département votes the share of the registration duties that goes to it: 4.50% or, since the 2025 finance law, up to 5% for buyers who are not first-time buyers. The rates are those of the DGFiP table on 1 June 2026; no effect for a new-build.

First-time buyer (primo-accédant)?

Yes if you have not owned your main home in the last 2 years (this is the question of the ANIL simulator): the increase voted by your département then does not apply to you. No effect for a new-build or in a département with no increase.

YesNo

Loan secured by a mortgage or lender’s lien (optional)

The total borrowed if the notary registers one of these securities: the deed has a cost. Enter 0 if there is no loan or if the security is a guarantee company (caution): it does not go through the notary.

Is part of the loan a subsidized loan (PTZ, PEL, CEL…)?

For the ANIL, a subsidized loan adds €150 of formalities; its amount is part of the total borrowed above. No effect if the previous field is 0.

YesNo

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The bill, line by line
	Purchase price	€250,000.00
+	Registration duties6.3185% of the price: département share 5%, collection costs and municipal tax	€15,796.25
+	Notary’s proportional feethe regulated scale, band by band (below)	€2,394.75
+	Formalities feesANIL flat rate	€850.00
+	20% VAT on the fees20% of €3,244.75	€648.95
+	DisbursementsANIL flat rate: documents and procedures advanced by the notary	€400.00
+	Land registry security contribution0.10% of the price, €15 minimum	€250.00
=	Notary fees8.14% of the price	€20,339.95
	Price + feeswithout agency fees, works and loan costs	€270,339.95
	The proportional fee, band by band
	From €0 to €6,5003.870% of this band	€251.55
	From €6,500 to €17,0001.596% of this band	€167.58
	From €17,000 to €60,0001.064% of this band	€457.52
	Above €60,0000.799% of this band	€1,518.10

How it works

The “notary fees” do not all go to the notary: they combine the duties and taxes paid over to the State and local authorities, the notary’s pay (the émoluments, whose scale is regulated), the VAT on those fees and the disbursements, sums the notary advances for you (Service Public).
For an existing property, the registration duties add up the département’s share, collection costs (2.37% of that share) and the additional municipal tax (1.20% of the price). The share is 4.50%; the 2025 finance law allowed départements to raise it to 5% for buyers who are not first-time buyers, and 86 mainland départements out of 96 had done so by 1 June 2026; the Indre is at 3.80% (DGFiP). With 4.50% you get the 5.80665% of the ANIL simulator, with 5% you get 6.3185%. For a new-build, the ANIL uses 0.71498%.
The proportional fee follows a regulated scale, the same for every notary: 3.870% on the part of the price up to €6,500, 1.596% from €6,500 to €17,000, 1.064% from €17,000 to €60,000 and 0.799% above (Service Public, scale in force since 1 January 2021).
On top come the ANIL’s estimate flat rates: €850 of formalities fees and disbursements of €150 to €400 depending on the price. The fees then bear 20% VAT, and the land registry security contribution is 0.10% of the price, €15 minimum.
If the loan is secured by a mortgage or a lender’s lien, the ANIL counts €1,000 of formalities (€1,150 with a subsidized loan) and a fee on the loan equal to one third of the scale. The total fees never exceed 10% of the price, €90 minimum.

Worked example

€250,000 existing property in Gironde, not a first-time buyer: the département share is 5%, that is 5 × 1.0237 + 1.20 = 6.3185% of the price, €15,796.25 of duties. Proportional fee: 251.55 + 167.58 + 457.52 + 1,518.10 = €2,394.75, plus €850 of formalities: €3,244.75 excl. VAT, and €648.95 of VAT. Disbursements of €400, land registry security contribution of €250. Total: 15,796.25 + 3,244.75 + 648.95 + 400 + 250 = €20,339.95, that is 8.14% of the price and €270,339.95 with the price of the property. As a first-time buyer, the share stays at 4.50%: 5.80665%, €14,516.63 of duties and €19,060.33 in all. For a new-build, the duties fall to €1,787.45 and the total to €6,331.15.

Sources

Text checked on October 5, 2026

Good to know

This estimate follows the Service Public scale, the DGFiP table of 1 June 2026 and the ANIL simulator for a purchase in mainland France. Overseas, the scales and VAT are different; land, life-annuity sales and auction sales have their own rules.
The registration duties are the heaviest line: about three quarters of the total for an existing property. Their rate depends on the département and on the buyer’s profile, and départements can still vote it: check it with the notary. The ANIL simulator does not yet reflect the increase in all the départements that voted it.
The definition of a first-time buyer comes from the 2025 finance law; the ANIL simulator sums it up with the question “owner of your main home in the last two years?”. If in doubt, ask the notary which rate applies to your purchase.
The formalities fees (€850) and the disbursements (€400) are estimate flat rates: the notary invoices actual costs, which depend on the file (mortgage record, planning, land register, surveyor). Also not counted: the agency’s fee when it is paid by the buyer, the surety, the loan application fees and insurance, furniture itemized separately in the deed, the discount some notaries grant above €150,000 and the works.
An estimate is not a quote: whichever way you proceed, ask the notary for a detailed written quote or a forecast statement of the cost, and, once the deed is signed, the detailed document of the costs paid (Service Public).

Frequently asked questions

What are “notary fees” (frais de notaire)?

A common expression for all the sums paid at signing: mostly duties and taxes paid over to the State and local authorities, plus the notary’s pay (the émoluments, regulated), the VAT on those fees and disbursements, the sums the notary advances for you (Service Public).

How much does the notary really earn?

On an existing €250,000 purchase, their fees are €3,244.75 excluding VAT, that is 16 to 17% of the costs; the rest, over 80%, goes to the State and local authorities, or pays for disbursements. The scale of fees is the same whichever notary you use.

Why does the rate depend on the département and on the buyer?

Part of the duties is voted by the département. Since the 2025 finance law, départements can raise it to 5% for buyers who are not first-time buyers: the DGFiP table of 1 June 2026 counts 86 mainland départements out of 96 that have done so. First-time buyers stay at 4.50%.

Why are notary fees lower for a new-build?

Because the registration duties are much lower there: 0.715% of the price according to the ANIL, against 5.8 to 6.3% for an existing property. VAT is already included in the price of a new-build bought from a developer. The notary’s fees are the same.

Can notary fees be negotiated?

The scale of fees is regulated and identical for every notary. Above €150,000, under certain conditions, the notary may grant a total or partial discount on their fees, which must benefit all their clients in the same way (Service Public).

When are notary fees paid?

At the signing of the deed of sale. The notary may ask for an advance beforehand; the price itself must be paid into their account before signing (ANIL, Service Public).