Giving jewellery during your lifetime: what you need to know

Passing on a ring to your daughter, a necklace to your granddaughter, a watch to your godson: the gesture seems simple, almost obvious. Yet it is governed by precise rules, and the way it is carried out — or not — can have consequences years later, at the time of the estate settlement.

Since 1985, we have appraised jewellery that families are about to pass on or that they received in the past. This page gathers what you need to understand before giving: the boundary between a gift and a donation, what must be declared, at what value, and why the value of the jewellery on the day of the gift deserves to be put in writing.

Gift or donation? The distinction that changes everything

A piece of jewellery given can fall under two very different regimes:

• customary gift: a present given on the occasion of an event (birthday, wedding, birth, holidays), whose value remains proportionate to the income and assets of the giver. It is neither taxable, nor declarable, nor reportable to the estate;
• manual gift: the hand-to-hand transfer of an asset outside this framework. It must be declared to the tax authorities, may be taxed, and will be taken into account at the time of the estate division.

No text sets a fixed threshold: it is proportionality that decides, assessed case by case. A €3,000 watch given for an 18th birthday by a wealthy grandfather does not have the same legal nature as the same watch given by a household with modest income. We detail the criteria and case law on the page customary gift or manual gift.

What changed in 2026: declaration goes online

Since 1 January 2026, the declaration of a manual gift is in principle made online, from the beneficiary's personal account on impots.gouv.fr. The paper form No. 2735 is no longer accepted, except in five limitatively listed situations (beneficiary who is a minor or a protected adult whose donor is not the representative, imputation of taxes paid abroad, Dutreil regime, gift of money for the main residence, asset previously transferred and returned to the donor).

The procedure falls to the beneficiary of the gift, within one month of its disclosure to the tax authorities. Details can be found on our page declaring a manual gift of jewellery.

The €31,865 trap: it does not concern jewellery

Many families have in mind the exemption of €31,865 renewable every fifteen years, often called the "family gift". Careful: this scheme, provided for by Article 790 G of the French General Tax Code, applies only to gifts of sums of money — cash, cheque, transfer. Assets in kind, including jewellery, are excluded.

Giving a ring therefore never falls under this exemption: only the classic allowances linked to the family relationship apply (€100,000 per child and per parent, €31,865 per grandchild, etc.), detailed on the page allowances applicable to donated jewellery.

The rule you discover twenty years too late

This is probably the most important point on this page. When a donation is reportable, Article 860 of the French Civil Code provides that the asset is reintegrated into the estate division for its value on the day of the division, based on its condition on the day of the donation.

In concrete terms: a ring given in 2005 and worth €8,000 at the time, but €20,000 today, will be counted at €20,000 in the division. The heir who received it will have to take this into account vis-à-vis their siblings. This is a frequent source of family conflict, and it can be anticipated: see the reporting of donated jewellery.

Why have jewellery appraised before giving it

A written and dated appraisal, carried out at the time of the gift, serves three purposes:

• it helps situate the gesture: in light of your means, does this jewellery fall under customary gift or donation?
• it provides the figure to declare, if a declaration is required;
• it documents the condition of the jewellery on the day of the donation — the exact reference that Article 860 will require on the day of the division, sometimes decades later.

This appraisal is free with us, carried out in your presence, with no obligation to sell.

Updated on 25 July 2026 — allowances and declaration procedures change regularly; check the rule in force on the day of your donation.