First-time buyers
Donation from parents for the down payment: ensuring the gift is recognised without delaying the application
Family gift for the down payment: documents proving the origin of funds, what must be declared, and what to ask the notary before the transfer.
A gift from your parents counts as a down payment, without creating a liability, provided it is documented, dated and traceable: a written document specifying the transaction, proof of the transfer on both sides and, where the gift is subject to it, proof of its tax declaration. Without these documents, the sum remains an unexplained movement that suspends the processing of your application. A family loan, even if interest-free, is a debt counted in your liabilities.
By Sandy MASCART, mandataire d'intermédiaire en opérations de banque et en services de paiement ORIAS 26000541 sous le mandat de CDV PATRIMOINE & ASSURANCE (ORIAS 14005573)
Key points
- The lender always verifies the origin of the down payment: a family transfer without documentation or trace suspends the processing of your application.
- A gift increases the down payment without creating a liability; a family loan, even if interest-free, is a debt counted in the borrower's liabilities.
- A family gift of money benefits from a specific exemption, which is cumulative with the standard allowance for direct-line donations.
- The declaration of the gift to the tax authority gives it a certain date: this is exactly what the lender seeks to establish.
- Whether a customary gift or a donation, the label makes no difference to the lender: the sum must be documented, dated and traceable to count as a down payment.
Yes, the lender will ask where the money comes from before processing the application. A written, dated and traceable family gift counts as equity; a transfer without supporting documentation suspends the processing of a first-time purchase.
Three documents for the gift to count as equity
The lender verifies the origin of all equity, without exception. A family transfer is documented by a written statement and, depending on the circumstances, by the tax declaration of the gift or the notarial deed.
- A written statement naming the transaction: letter of donation, notarial deed, or certificate from the donor (gift without consideration or repayment).
- Proof of the transfer: statements of both accounts, date and reference.
- Proof of the tax declaration, if the gift is subject to it.
A promise cannot be financed: the sum must be received, traceable and documented at the time of submission.
Family gift or loan: the effect on your borrowing capacity
A gift increases the equity. A family loan, even without interest, is a liability that reduces your borrowing capacity.
Les banques comptent un prêt familial remboursable parmi vos charges. Un don n'y entre pas : il augmente l'apport.
- En vigueur depuis le
- Source
- Décision D-HCSF-2021-7, art. 1er — Légifrance
There is no middle ground: choose, and write it down. A family loan is presented with a debt acknowledgement and repayment schedule (declaration to be verified on impots.gouv.fr). See what the equity actually pays for.
Receiving without duty: the exemption for family gifts
The family gift of sums of money has its own exemption (Article 790 G of the General Tax Code), which can be combined with the allowances, is renewable after a set period, and is subject to conditions regarding age and family relationship.
Article 790 G du code général des impôts. L'exonération s'apprécie par donateur et par bénéficiaire, et se cumule avec l'abattement personnel de droit commun.
- En vigueur depuis le
- Source
- Article 790 G du code général des impôts — Légifrance
- Money only: a property or securities falls under the general regime.
- Age and relationship: descendants, or nephews and nieces in the absence of descendants.
- Per donor-beneficiary couple: two parents each open their own exemption.
Declare the gift within the deadline
The beneficiary declares the gift within the deadline set out in Article 790 G, starting from the date of the gift.
un mois ()Procedure: impots.gouv.fr. Bonus: the declaration dates the gift, which is what the bank is looking for.
Gift in use: a written document is still required
For the lender, whether it is a gift in use or a donation, the sum must be documented, dated and traceable. The classification is determined by the notary, before the transfer.
Before approaching your family, review your housing savings: PEL and CEL, the right to a loan.
Inheritance and separation: consult the notary before the transfer
The answer depends on the form of the gift, the family and the couple: put these questions to the notary before the payment, when the form is being chosen.
- Inheritance: how will the gift be counted, and on what value? What changes with a notarial deed or a partition donation?
- Separation: joint purchase, unequal contribution? Have the origin of the funds recorded in the deed (the joint loan).
Transfers that raise questions
Without a written document, proof of the transfer and any required declaration, the sum is not counted towards the contribution. Certain movements call for additional questions.
- a recent and significant transfer, without an explicit reference;
- a series of transfers from the same sender, which resembles a flow;
- a cash deposit, which cannot be justified;
- an overseas account in the circuit;
- a donor outside the direct line.
Have the money arrive early, with a clear reference, and the written document attached from the deposit.
Before the deposit: four documents
- The written document that classifies the operation.
- The receipt of declaration or the deed.
- The bank trace on both sides.
- The sum on your account when the lender issues the loan offer.
The rest: the documents to provide, the deposit, the purchase costs. An unexplained movement remains the first of the first-time buyer errors. Have the gift documents read back by telephone.
Create your file and submit the gift documents with the rest.
Sources
Read next
- How much can I borrow? Mortgage capacity in Lyon
- Family loan for the deposit: how to draft it, declare it and present it to the bank A family loan complements the deposit, but the bank counts it as a debt. How to draft it, declare it, choose the repayment schedule and present it.
- Mortgage application: the exact list of documents to provide The documents required by profile, the order that avoids a three-week delay, and what the bank really reads in your last three bank statements.
- First-time buyer mortgage application: the 7 errors that lead to rejection, and how to correct them in time Overdrafts, consumer credit, change of employer, untraceable gift, badly set sale agreement: what can be fixed before submission, and how fast.
- Borrowing as a couple: the true calculation of your joint borrowing capacity, and how to protect each partner Borrowing as a couple: what the bank actually adds up, what it examines next, and how to protect an unequal contribution in the deed.
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