Following an experiment using artificial intelligence (AI), more than 20,000 hidden pools were discovered in parts of France. Those undeclared private swimming pools have provided an unexpected windfall for French tax authorities. They have amassed some €10m ($9.9; £8.5m) in revenue, French media is reporting. Pools can lead to higher property taxes because they boost property value, and must be declared under French law.
The software, developed by Google and French consulting firm Capgemini, spotted the pools on aerial images of nine French regions during a trial in October 2021. The regions of Alpes-Maritimes, Var, Bouches-du-Rhône, Ardèche, Rhône, Haute-Savoie, Vendée, Maine-et-Loire and Morbihan were part of the trial - but tax officials say it may now be rolled out nationwide.
There were more than 3.2 million private swimming pools in France in 2020, according to data website Statista, with sales already booming before the Covid pandemic. But as more employees worked from home, there was a further surge in pool installations.
According to Le Parisien newspaper, an average pool of 30 sq m (322 sq ft) is taxed at €200 ($200; £170) a year.
The tax authorities say the software could eventually be used to find undeclared home extensions, patios or gazebos, which also play a part in property taxes.
Now if they had been clever enough they would have constructed pool covers made of fake grass to pull over the pool when not in use! (Not that I condone tax evasion of course…just a random cheeky thought which crossed my mind )
There’s probably a business opportunity manufacturing those, Pixie!
I’m wondering if painting the bottom of the pool green or brown instead of blue would make them harder to spot?
Too late for most of those caught out now, I suppose, it reminds me of the window tax
Here in the South West the police have had a lot of success using thermal imaging cameras from helicopters to spot attics being used as cannabis farms ( the light needed give off a lot of heat)
Oooh! Now there’s an idea, Maree… grabs paper and pen
I think painting the pool a more natural colour would work too…especially if you did pretty murals on it of plants and coral…it would blend right in, as opposed to bright blue! Who thought bright blue was even a good idea?
The cannabis farms will be going out of business due to cost of living. No point in thinking of a business plan for them
I read this and have heard examples of this. Putting in a pool in France, especially one sunk in the ground (as opposed to an above ground pool) is very expensive. As well as the cost of the pool, the kit to run it, the surround and pool house - there are the taxes. There is a specific tax at the time of installation and there are taxes added to the tax on the property. Hence the temptation to keep quiet, not get planning permission and try to put it in under the radar.
The next tax fun in France will be the British second home owners who got themselves a residency card based on their second home. They thought this was clever as it would allow them to stay as long as they liked in France and not be restricted by the 90 day rule. What they seemed to overlook was the fact that in their application for the residency permit they formally declared themselves to be full time France residents. And as such they are obliged to pay tax on all incomes in France. And now the French tax authorities are going through all those who have been granted this permit and checking to see if they have put in their tax return in France. Expect some headlines in certain newspapers!
Given the fact that some French like to bathe in the nude in the privacy of their garden they might not be very pleased about their private garden being filmed!
Thats true, Mei…never thought about that. I wonder what the drones do with the video data then…interesting! Could the French sue for invasion of privacy, I wonder?
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