Like every year, many changes occur in the daily life of the French.
Rises and falls at all levels and administrative changes that will, for the most part, have repercussions on everyone's wallet.
We take stock.
Purchasing power
The minimum wage will be increased by 0.9%
The monthly minimum wage will automatically increase to 1,603 euros gross for 35 hours per week on January 1, an increase of 14 euros compared to October 1.
The employee will receive 1,269 euros net per month, ie 38 euros more.
The gross hourly rate will be 10.57 euros.
There will be no additional help from the government, as announced by the Minister of Labor, Élisabeth Borne.
This automatic increase in the minimum wage follows the acceleration of inflation in November (2.8% over one year).
Retirement pensions will be revalued by 1.1%
This “will concern all basic pensions except those for lawyers.
It will apply to pensions for retirees in the private sector, the civil service, special schemes and the self-employed, ”says service-public.fr.
Red and green stamps are increasing
It has become a habit: the price of stamps will increase further on January 1.
That of the green stamp, for a cover distributed within 48 hours in mainland France, will rise from 1.08 to 1.16 euros, while that of the red stamp, for a priority letter, will rise more sharply, from 1.28 to 1, 43 euro.
LP / Delphine Goldsztejn
New reduction in housing tax
In 2022, this is the last step in the reduction of the housing tax before its complete abolition in 2023. “Households which have not yet benefited from the abolition of their housing tax can claim an exemption 65% of this tax on their main residence, regardless of their income, ”says the tax website.
If you are part of the households that will still have to pay it and you have opted for a monthly payment, you will see the difference on your withdrawals from the month of January.
No more mortgage loans over 25 years
The conditions for granting a mortgage will change.
From now on, the duration of the loan can no longer exceed 25 years.
Also, the debt ratio (the share of a household's income that can be devoted to repaying the loan) will drop to 35%, against 33% before.
But this rate will now include the cost of borrower insurance.
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A helping hand for caregivers
The daily caregiver allowance (Ajpa), for a person who stops working in order to take care of a sick or disabled loved one, goes from 52.13 euros for a single person to 58 euros.
An immediate tax credit for home employment
The immediate tax credit comes into effect for activities linked to childcare or "comfort" (cleaning, ironing, gardening, etc.) with the payment by the individual-employer of only 50% of the amount due.
AAH: a new reduction
A flat-rate allowance of 5,000 euros on the spouse's income is provided for as part of the allowance for disabled adults: we are talking about a gain of 110 euros per month for 120,000 couples.
Health
A new emergency package
When you go to an emergency department, without this leading to hospitalization, a flat-rate bill of 19.61 euros will be issued at the time of your discharge.
It will be sent to your complementary health insurance and must be covered if you have a "responsible" contract.
If you cannot provide proof of additional health coverage, the invoice will be delivered to you personally.
This device, voted by the National Assembly in October 2020 and which includes several exemptions - beneficiaries of AME, pregnant women, etc.
- will replace the co-payment.
"My health space"
Tested since this summer in three pilot departments, Haute-Garonne, Loire-Atlantique and Somme, the “My health space” digital space will be available to all users.
Intended to facilitate the procedures and exchanges with health professionals for better care, it will replace the Shared Medical File (DMP).
Free contraception for women under 25
The government wants to fight against renouncing contraceptives for financial reasons.
This measure concerns nearly three million young women.
After being unanimously adopted by the National Assembly, free contraception will be possible from January 1.
"Health insurance will cover 100%, and without advance of costs, the cost of contraception and the acts which are related to it", specifies service-public.fr.
Male and female condoms, spermicidal creams, patches, vaginal rings and 3rd and 4th generation pills are not affected by free.
Waste
Bars and restaurants must provide free water
Until then, it was not compulsory.
As of January 1, 2022, establishments open to the public must be equipped with at least one drinking water fountain accessible to the public.
"Restaurants and drinking establishments are required to clearly indicate on their card or on a display space the possibility for consumers to request free drinking water", and the water must be fresh or temperate, indicates the law.
Destruction of unsold non-food items prohibited
Non-food unsold items can no longer be destroyed by incineration from January 1.
This is one of the flagship measures of the anti-waste law, known as the “Garot law”.
The products concerned are: electrical and electronic products, batteries, ink cartridges, clothing and shoes, furniture, hygiene and childcare products, books and school supplies.
Environment
The end of plastic packaging for fruits and vegetables
Manufacturers will no longer have the right to use plastic packaging for around thirty fruits and vegetables.
Exceptions will indeed run until June 30, 2026. Certain products, which do not tolerate substitutes such as cardboard, could disappear from the shelves.
Read also "The switch to cardboard will create an additional cost": producers fear the end of plastic packaging
New penalty on the most polluting vehicles
The automobile penalty, a tax applied to the most polluting vehicles to be paid upon registration, will change on January 1.
Cars emitting more than 128 g of CO2 / km (instead of 133 g of CO2 / km in 2021) will be taxed 50 euros, explains service-public.fr.
Several slices exist.
To complete this provision, a new "weight penalty" will also be implemented for new vehicles weighing more than 1.8 tonnes.
The unit price will be set at 10 euros per kilogram.
More transparency on endocrine disruptors
Manufacturers of products that contain these substances will now be required to “make publicly available” information about their presence.
Plastic fined in fast food restaurants
As of January 1, tea bags and plastic toys distributed free of charge in fast food restaurants are banned.
Controlled wind power
“Systematic noise controls” will come into force this year, with “noise restrictions if authorized thresholds are exceeded”.
Launch of FranceRénov
On January 1, FranceRénov will be launched, a new public service that aims to bring together all of the measures to help renovate housing.
It will serve as a single point of entry for all those who wish to renovate their property.
Politics
Talk time: rule change
As of January 1, audiovisual companies will be subject to the principle of fairness in the airtime of candidates declared as presumed - as well as their supporters - with regard to the political weight of each.
The latter being determined according to the results of previous elections, polls, etc.
Read alsoSpeaking time for the presidential election: the new rules of the CSA
ENA is dead, long live the INSP
The National Institute of Public Service (INSP) was launched on the first day of January, replacing the National School of Administration (ENA).
At its head: Maryvonne Le Brignonen, former director of the financial intelligence unit Tracfin.
Council of the EU: France holds the rotating presidency
For Emmanuel Macron, the long-awaited date is that of his big speech in Strasbourg, on January 19.
But it is on January 1 that France takes the rotating presidency of the European Union, a boon for the president-candidate.
Read also French Presidency of the EU: controversial timing
And also
The free train for the police
As of January 1, police officers can travel home / work for free on SNCF network trains, provided they are armed and report themselves.
Submit your building permit application online
According to the Ministry for the Ecological Transition, in charge of housing, "a user can submit his application for a building permit online, at any time and wherever he is, in a simplified and free process", from the 1st. January 2022. The law also specifies that all municipalities must be “able to receive requests for planning permission in electronic form”.
A compulsory residence permit for Britons living in France
The British and members of their family already settled in France before January 1, 2021 could continue to stay in France without a residence permit and continue to work there without a work permit until January 1, 2022. From this date date, they must imperatively be in possession of a residence permit.
It is pushed back
The ban on oil or coal-fired boilers
This type of heating was to be banned on January 1 in new homes.
This will be the case on July 1: their replacement will have to be done by less polluting boilers (gas, heat pumps, wood or pellets).
Paid parking for two-wheelers in Paris
Considered for the start of the year, the introduction of paid parking for motorized two-wheelers in the capital has finally been postponed until next September.