France Crypto Loss Treatment 2026

French crypto loss rules are where a profitable strategy can still produce a painful tax bill. Under the occasional-investor PFU regime, losses help you only within the same year — net losses are generally lost, not carried forward, and they do not reach other income. A volatile year (big gains, big losses, net modest) can be taxed far more harshly than the net result suggests. This guide is the mechanics, the minority legal argument, and the BNC contrast.

TL;DR

• PFU (occasional investor): losses offset gains within the same year only; net losses generally not carried forward (lost if losses > gains).
• Category-confined: crypto losses offset crypto gains, not other capital income or general income.
• Form 2086 nets all the year's disposals automatically (150 VH bis); net loss → 2042 C line 3BN.
• Minority legal argument contests no-carryforward — plan on the mainstream rule, confirm with an adviser.
• BNC regime loss treatment is more favourable (professional-income rules) — a structural asymmetry.

The mainstream rule: intra-year only, no carryforward

For occasional investors under article 150 VH bis, losses are usable in a narrow way:

• Within the year: a loss on one disposal nets against gains on other disposals in the same tax year, automatically, on Form 2086.
• Across years: a net annual loss is generally not carried forward. If the year's losses exceed its gains, the excess is lost — it does not reduce next year's gains.
• Across categories: crypto losses are confined to the digital-asset category. They do not offset securities gains, rental income, or general income.

This triple restriction — intra-year, no carryforward, category-confined — is the harshest structural feature of the French occasional-investor regime, and it is the one most likely to surprise a holder who reasons from "net result."

Why a volatile year is taxed harshly

Consider a year with a €40,000 gain in Q1 and a €38,000 loss in Q4 on different positions. Net economic result: €2,000. Under PFU, the Q4 loss does net against the Q1 gain within the year, so the taxable base is the net €2,000 — fine if both fall in the same calendar year. But shift the €38,000 loss into January of the next year and the picture inverts: Year 1 taxes €40,000 at 31.4%; Year 2's €38,000 loss is largely wasted (no carryforward, no other crypto gains to absorb it). Same economics, very different tax — purely from the calendar.

The planning implication: loss realisation timing matters enormously under PFU, because a loss only has value against same-year gains.

Form 2086 mechanics

Form 2086 computes each taxable disposal's gain/loss with the 150 VH bis portfolio method and automatically nets them for the year. Outcomes:

• Net annual gain → Form 2042 C line 3AN, taxed at PFU 31.4% (or barème by option).
• Net annual loss → Form 2042 C line 3BN (records the loss, but it does not carry forward under the mainstream PFU rule).

The €305 test is applied first: if total disposals ≤ €305 the year is exempt and there is no usable loss from it; above €305 the netting runs (see the France €305 exemption).

The minority legal argument

Some French legal commentators argue that occasional-investor net losses should be carryforward-eligible, contesting the DGFiP's restrictive reading. This is a genuine but minority position. The responsible posture for a YMYL guide: state the mainstream no-carryforward rule as the planning basis, flag that a counter-argument exists, and direct contested cases to a French adviser. Do not plan as if carryforward is available unless an adviser confirms it for your specific situation.

The BNC contrast

The non-carryforward restriction is a PFU occasional-investor feature. Under the professional BNC regime (which applies to habitual/professional traders since the Loi de Finances 2022 — see BNC vs PFU), losses follow professional-income rules: professional deficits generally have more favourable treatment (deduction against income, carryforward) than the confined PFU category.

This produces the well-known asymmetry: a high-volume trader repeatedly hitting the PFU loss wall can be structurally better off under BNC, despite BNC's higher complexity. It is rarely worth choosing BNC for this alone, but it is a real consideration once reclassification is on the table.

Practical workflow

1. Map gains and losses to calendar years — timing is decisive under PFU.
2. Realise offsetting losses in the same year as the gains where possible (a deferred loss is largely wasted).
3. Apply the €305 test first; above it, let Form 2086 net the year automatically.
4. Record a net loss on 2042 C 3BN but do not plan on carrying it forward (mainstream rule).
5. If volume is high and losses recur, assess the BNC asymmetry with an adviser.
6. Reconcile against DAC8-reported data (see DAC8 impact on individuals).

How vendor tools handle losses

Waltio (French-specialised) and Koinly net the year correctly under 150 VH bis. The check: confirm the tool does not silently carry a net loss forward for the PFU regime (a tool importing a generic carryforward model will understate next year's tax), and that it applies the €305 test before netting. Neither tool decides the minority-argument or BNC-classification questions.

How Wag3s helps

Wag3s Folio nets the year under the 150 VH bis method, surfaces the loss-timing impact (so offsetting losses can be realised in the right year), and does not assume PFU carryforward — reconciled against DAC8-reported activity. See the Folio product page.

Further reading

• France Crypto Tax Guide 2026
• Crypto Capital Gains Calculation France (150 VH bis)
• BNC vs PFU for Crypto in France
• The France €305 Exemption
• Crypto Tax Loss Harvesting — general framework
• DAC8 Impact on Individuals

Sources

• Article 150 VH bis CGI — Légifrance
• BOFiP-Impôts — guidance on occasional-investor loss treatment (intra-year offset; mainstream no-carryforward position)
• Council Directive (EU) 2023/2226 (DAC8) — EUR-Lex