LMNP depreciation by components: the method explained
By Juliano Majally · · 7 min read
Land, structure, roof, installations, fittings, furniture: useful lives, first-year pro rata, the article 39 C cap, and a worked example for an LMNP flat.
Depreciation (amortissement) is what makes the régime réel so attractive for a furnished rental in France, and it’s also the part nobody explains clearly. When I got the FEC from my accountant for 2025, I saw six lines of fixed assets with different lifespans, and I wanted to understand where they came from. Here is the method.
The principle
A flat wears out over time, so the accounts spread its price over its useful life. Each year, a slice of the price becomes an expense: the depreciation charge (dotation aux amortissements). No money leaves your pocket, but your taxable profit goes down. Furniture follows the same logic over a shorter period.
Land is not depreciated
Land doesn’t wear out, so you take a land share (quote-part terrain) out of the price before depreciating. In practice, accountants use 10 to 20% for a flat, sometimes more in city centres or on the Côte d’Azur, where land is expensive. On my file, the accountant set aside a land share and split the rest into components.
The component method
Since 2005, French accounting rules require a building to be split into parts with different lifespans. Each component is depreciated on a straight-line basis over its own life. Usual splits and durations:
| Component | Share of the building | Useful life |
|---|---|---|
| Structure (gros œuvre) | 50 to 60% | 40 to 80 years |
| Facade, roof, waterproofing | 10 to 15% | 20 to 30 years |
| Technical installations (electrics, plumbing, heating) | 15 to 20% | 15 to 30 years |
| Interior fittings (kitchen, floors, paintwork) | 10 to 15% | 10 to 15 years |
| Furniture and appliances | actual value | 5 to 10 years |
The percentages are not set by law: the tax office accepts a reasonable split applied consistently. What matters is keeping the same method from one year to the next.
First-year pro rata on a 30/360 basis
Depreciation starts when the property is first let, not when you buy it. The first year is prorated. Accountants use the 30/360 convention: every month counts as 30 days. A flat first let on 16 April is depreciated for 8.5 months in its first year (16 to 30 April is half a month, then 8 full months). Meublé applies exactly this convention, which is how it matches an accountant’s depreciation figures to the cent.
A worked example
Flat bought for €200,000, land share 15%, building €170,000, furniture €8,000, first let on 16 April.
- Structure 55% = €93,500 over 50 years: €1,870 a year
- Facade and roof 15% = €25,500 over 25 years: €1,020
- Installations 15% = €25,500 over 20 years: €1,275
- Fittings 15% = €25,500 over 15 years: €1,700
- Furniture €8,000 over 7 years: €1,143
That’s €7,008 a year for a full year, and €7,008 × 8.5 / 12 = €4,964 in the first year. When a component is fully depreciated (furniture after 7 years, fittings after 15), the annual charge drops accordingly.
The article 39 C cap
For an LMNP, depreciation cannot create a loss. The deductible charge for the year is capped at the profit before depreciation, that is rent minus expenses. If rent minus expenses is €3,000 and your depreciation is €7,000, you deduct €3,000 and the remaining €4,000 is carried forward (amortissement différé). It isn’t lost: it can be deducted in later years, within the same limit, with no time limit. So you have to keep a running total of deferred depreciation and report it on form 2033-D every year. It’s one of the lines most often forgotten when you change accountant or software.
Furniture: the €500 threshold
A piece of furniture or an appliance costing less than €500 excluding VAT can be expensed in the year of purchase as small equipment. Above that, or if it’s part of a set (a fitted kitchen bought on several invoices), it’s capitalised and depreciated. A €35 fan is an expense; a €900 sofa is depreciated over 5 to 7 years. More in the guide on furniture.
What about purchase costs?
Notary and agency fees can either be expensed in the first year or added to the price and depreciated with the components. It’s an irrevocable choice made at your first year-end. I cover it in a separate guide: notary fees for LMNP.
What Meublé does
Meublé splits the property into components, computes each year’s depreciation on the 30/360 basis that accountants use, and applies the article 39 C cap, carrying the excess forward. On my own 2025 file, it reproduces the accountant’s figures to the cent.
Frequently asked questions
- Over how many years is a flat depreciated under LMNP?
- Not over a single period: the building is split into components, each depreciated straight-line over its own life. Structure 40 to 80 years, facade and roof 20 to 30, installations 15 to 30, fittings 10 to 15, furniture 5 to 10. On a €200,000 property, that typically gives €5,000 to €7,000 of depreciation a year.
- Can depreciation create a tax loss for an LMNP?
- No. Article 39 C of the French tax code caps deductible depreciation at the profit before depreciation, meaning rent minus expenses. The excess is carried forward and deducted in later years, within the same limit and with no time limit. You track this deferred depreciation every year on form 2033-D.
- Does depreciation start on the purchase date or when the flat is first let?
- When it is first let, not on the date of the deed. The first year is prorated on a 30/360 basis: a flat let from 16 April is depreciated for 8.5 months that year. The months between purchase and the first letting give no depreciation at all.
- What land share should I take out before depreciating?
- Land doesn’t wear out, so it isn’t depreciated. Accountants usually take 10 to 20% of the price for a flat, more in city centres or on the coast where land is expensive. No percentage is set by law: the tax office expects a reasonable split, applied consistently from one year to the next.