Canal+ warns of €200M hit as France plans to double TV subscription tax
Canal+ says it could lose €200 million a year if France doubles sales tax on TV subscriptions.
The pay-TV broadcaster put that number on a proposal in the draft 2027 budget presented by Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu. The plan would lift VAT — value-added tax, the tax added to the price customers pay — from 10% to 20% on TV subscriptions in mainland France, according to Deadline.
In the overseas territories the jump would be steeper. The rate there would quadruple, alongside the mainland rise from 10% to 20%, Canal+ said in its own statement.
Canal+ publicly denounced the idea on Thursday, October 1, 2026. It called the decision to double the rate “inconsistent” and “ill-advised.” The company said the government had only last year confirmed that the 10% rate would stay in place.
The economics, as Canal+ tells them, do not add up. It said the gain for the state would amount to less than a quarter of its own €200 million loss. That is less than €50 million for public coffers, set against a far larger hit to revenue and operating margin.
Canal+ said it would be unable to absorb such a loss in France. It warned it would be forced to adjust its operations in mainland France and the Overseas Territories, with an impact on subscription prices, workforce levels, and payments into film and sport.
That is a big jump. For viewers, this means higher monthly bills are on the table, alongside less money flowing from Canal+ to French cinema and live sport.
The proposal sits inside a much larger budget package. The draft includes some €43 billion worth of recovery measures aimed at reining in France’s public debt. For the 2027 budget, Lecornu set a goal of bringing the deficit down to 5% of gross domestic product, a target the 2026 budget missed, according to Le Monde. The finance law would simplify the VAT regime for pay television by removing the reduced rate.
Alarm has spread beyond Canal+. France’s film and TV guilds organised a joint statement before the confirmation, and the government confirmed the increase despite opposition from the cinema industry.
Canal+ said it regrets “this direct attack on its business in its home market of France.” It said it will accelerate its international expansion strategy across nearly 70 countries, as set out on its official website.
The row has a longer history. French tax authorities are claiming substantial amounts from Canal+ Group over alleged VAT due, which the group is contesting. Its 2024 annual report states that applying the standard 20% rate to its entire revenue produces a €457.8 million proposed tax adjustment, a claim the company disputes.
