article_snippet: As a result, Britons who have rented out or sold second homes in France over the past three years can look forward to receiving tens of millions of euros in reimbursement from the French government.
article_snippet: Victoire: British citizens who own second homes in France, like this attractive stone manoir in Sarlat-la-Caneda, southern France, left, will no longer have to pay the large 'social contribution' charge levied by French President François Hollande, right, and can apply to the French government for a payout .
article_snippet: In 2012, French President François Hollande Socialist government introduced painful new charges on second home owners, which hit hundreds of thousands of Britons.
article_snippet: The measures caused uproar among British owners of French property.
article_snippet: The measures meant British owners of French property were paying towards a social security system from which British owners of French property would not benefit, on top of paying towards the welfare state in Britain.
article_snippet: Moreover, since the charge was categorised as a 'contribution' rather than a tax, The measures did not qualify for Britain's double-taxation treaty with France, meaning that British second home owners were effectively being taxed twice.
article_snippet: According to calculations by the Telegraph, this meant that a British couple who bought a French home for €200,000 20 years ago and sold a British couple who bought a French home for  for €750,000 would be forced to pay a painful €60,000 'social contribution' on top of standard capital gains tax, which would not be acknowledged by the UK tax system.
highlights_snippet: In 2012, François Hollande's Socialist government introduced painful new charges on British second home owners .
  