ENERGY CHECK. The government has announced the payment of an “exceptional energy check” at the end of 2022. Who will be affected? When and how much? Here is all you need to know.
[Mis à jour le 15 septembre 2022 à 11h53] This is one of the key announcements from the press briefing organized by the government on Wednesday 14 September and devoted to the energy crisis. An exceptional energy check, in addition to the one already paid to households benefiting from this aid and received in the spring of 2022, will be paid before the end of 2022. In an attempt to offset the harmful effects of the rise in energy prices by 15% at the start of 2023 (electricity and gas), the government has thus announced the creation of this kind of “bonus”, an exceptional energy check for the most modest.
In total, 12 million households, or “the most modest 40%” according to Elisabeth Borne, are affected by this exceptional check for an amount of 100 to 200 euros depending on their family situation and expected before the end of the year 2022 for the households concerned. For example, a single mother with two children and at minimum wage will receive a check for 200 euros. For a couple with two children and whose income is equal to 3,000 euros net, the exceptional check distributed will be 100 euros. The Minister of the Economy Bruno Le Maire estimated the cost of such a device at 1.8 billion euros for the finances of the State.
As a reminder, the energy check, paid in the spring for its usual annual scheme, is an aid for the payment of housing energy bills. It is awarded subject to means testing. If you are eligible, you will automatically receive your energy voucher, in your name, by post to your home (it is sent to you at the last address you gave to the tax authorities). Thursday, September 15, the Minister of Public Accounts, Gabriel Attal, pointed out on France Info that another envelope had been voted in Parliament this summer within the framework of the purchasing power law for households heating with fuel oil or wood. . The envelope will ultimately be used to pay other exceptional aid expected in mid-November. Arbitrations are still underway in the government.
Help from Engie also expected
As a reminder, in an interview with Parisian, on July 28, the Managing Director of the Engie group announced that a “supplement” would be paid to the group’s customers who will receive the energy check. A bonus valued at 100 euros, which will be paid from November 2022. This bonus will therefore be added to the amount of the energy check collected between March 30 and April 29 this year, but also undoubtedly to the exceptional energy check announced on September 14, 2022. Catherine MacGregor also said she wanted to set up a support fund of 60 million euros for small and medium-sized businesses.
The energy check is awarded each year, depending on your income and the composition of your household. It is sent to you, automatically, on the basis of the information transmitted by the tax services, and provided that you have made your tax return within the deadlines set by the tax authorities. You must also live in accommodation subject to housing tax (even if you are exempt).
At the end of 2022, an exceptional energy check will be paid to 12 million beneficiaries according to the announcement made by Elisabeth Borne on Wednesday September 14 as part of a press briefing on the energy crisis. The conditions have not yet been formally specified, but the beneficiaries should be generally the same as for the usual energy check paid in the spring of 2022. 4 out of 10 households should be eligible according to the government. Income criteria are put in place to specify the conditions for obtaining it.
The payment of the energy check is made by department. The 2022 check was sent automatically between March 30 and the April 29, 2022 depending on your department of residence. The “exceptional energy check” announced in September 2022, a sort of extension to deal with rising energy prices, will be paid before the end of the year, the government said.
About the exceptional energy vouchersthe official payment date has not been revealed, but the beneficiaries of this aid of 100 or 200 euros should receive them before the end of 2022. The executive should communicate more precisely on the subject in the weeks to come.
The amount of the energy check depends on the resources and composition of your household. To determine this, the government has established a scale. Here is the scale that applies in 2022.
| RFR / UC < 5,600 euros | 5,600 euros < RFR / UA < 6,700 euros | 6,700 euros < RFR / UA < 7,700 euros | 7,700 euros < RFR / UA < 10,800 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 CU | 194 euros | 146 euros | 98 euros | 48 euros |
| 1 < UC < 2 | 240 euros | 176 euros | 113 euros | 63 euros |
| 2 or more CUs | 277 euros | 202 euros | 126 euros | 76 euros |
As you can see, a single person can receive an energy check for a maximum amount of 194 euros in 2022. Note that the energy check can be combined with the Ma Prime Rénov aid, the device that replaces the energy transition tax credit (CITED).
For the exceptional energy check expected at the end of 2022 as announced on September 14 by the government, the amount may reach 200 euros for a household composed of a single mother receiving the minimum wage and with two dependent children. For a couple with two children and whose income is equal to 3,000 euros net, the exceptional check will be for an amount of 100 euros.
You are sure and certain to meet the conditions of the energy check, and yet there is no trace in your mail? In this case, contact support, either via the contact form on the dedicated site, or by telephone. Remember to bring your tax notice. “To be able to benefit from the energy check, you must have declared your income to the tax services (even if your income is low or zero)”, we recall in the Frequently Asked Questions. “After having regularized your situation, you will be able to apply for an energy check. On the other hand, if you have still not declared your income for the following year, you will no longer be able to claim the benefit of the energy check”.
To determine your eligibility for the energy check scheme, you can go to the site dedicated to the energy check. There is no simulator in the strict sense of the term. On the other hand, we invite you to enter your tax number to determine if you are eligible for the device. By entering your tax ID, the site tells you whether or not you are concerned. If this is not the case, the following message is displayed: “If you nevertheless think that your household fulfills the conditions of income and composition to benefit from the energy check, or, if you are an approved operator for housing in rental intermediation and you wish to check the eligibility of a sub-leased household for the energy check, you can nevertheless continue with the eligibility test”. You are then invited to complete a questionnaire comprising three questions.
The energy check is reserved for the most modest households. Its allocation depends on the resources of the household and the composition of the household: your reference tax income is taken into account. Please note that it must be less than 10,800 euros per consumption unit (CU). As an indication, a person represents a CU. The second person is counted at 0.5 and each person at 0.3 CU. To find out if you can benefit from the energy voucher, you must therefore divide your reference tax income by the number of consumption units in your household. Very concretely, this means that the reference tax income must not exceed 10,800 euros for one person only.
You don’t have to do anything. The energy voucher is allocated in such a way automatique. In practice, it is the tax administration that sends the list of eligible households to the Services and Payment Agency (ASP). The latter is in charge of editing and sending the check by mail. Eligible households therefore receive it automatically, without having to fill out any form. There is therefore no point in contacting the services in charge of the energy check if you are not eligible.
Energy check assistance can be reached on 0 805 204 805 (freephone number), Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. “In case of heavy traffic, we recommend that you call in the morning from 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., or at the end of the day from 5:00 p.m.”, we warn on the energy check site.
Yes ! EDF is one of the electricity suppliers that accepts the energy check to pay your electricity expenses directly online. “No need to wait for your next bill: you can use your energy check now, it will be credited directly to your customer account”, we explain. on the official site of the energy check. To do this, simply enter the number of your energy voucher.
The energy check can be sent by Postal mail Where rissued in clean hand to the energy supplier. In this case, you must attach a copy of a document showing your customer references and report them on the back of the check. But you can also use it directly online, on the chequeenergie.gouv.fr website.
Note that in the case of carrying out work, the check can be used directly to pay the invoice. On the other hand, please note that this work must be carried out by a professional “Recognized guarantor of the environment” (RGE). You will find the list of RGE professionals on the website renovation info service. If you are the beneficiary of the energy check, know that its expiry date is listed. It usually occurs at March, 31st of the calendar year following the year of issue.
You are asked to report the loss or theft of your energy voucher. To do this, you have two options:
- Online at the following address: https://chequeenergie.gouv.fr/beneficiaire/cheque/declarer-perdu-vole
- Contact energy check assistance by telephone (read above) or by post, providing your contact details, tax number and the number of your energy check.