TLDR: Property tax is generally assessed in the name of the current owner of the property. If the SCI owns the property, it is therefore in principle liable for the tax. The tax is imposed by the municipality where the property is located, with specific rules for certain rights or contracts.
The person liable for property tax
Any built or undeveloped property is, in principle, taxed in the name of its current owner. For an SCI, property tax is therefore linked to the company’s ownership of the property, and not solely to the fact that the company is an SCI.
Specific situations
Property tax may be assessed in the name of another person when the property is subject to a usufruct or covered by certain contracts. This notably concerns emphyteutic leases, construction leases, solidarity leases, rehabilitation leases and certain temporary authorisations to occupy public property that create a real right.
In these situations, the tax is assessed in the name of the holder of the right concerned, notably the usufructuary or the lessee, depending on the applicable contract.
The rule concerning taxation of each member for the share attributable to them specifically applies to real estate companies for co-ownership referred to in Article 1655 ter of the CGI. It is therefore not the general rule applicable to every SCI.
The municipality of taxation
Property tax is due in the municipality where the property is located. If the same property is located within the territory of several municipalities, the tax is apportioned between those municipalities for the part located within each of their territories.
The taxable base
The property tax base is based on the rental value of the property, determined according to the rules applicable to this tax. The information provided does not make it possible to present a complete general formula or to determine an amount without precise information about the property and its circumstances.
For a property recorded on the balance sheet of an SCI that owns an industrial establishment and has elected for corporation tax, the rental value is determined according to the accounting method. This rule concerns only this specific case.