The Girardin industrial scheme is a simple one on paper: the State offers individuals the opportunity to contribute to the purchase of new equipment, such as cranes or trucks, in the overseas departments and communities. “The aim is to offset the cost of investments in these territories, which, due to their remoteness, is 25 to 30% higher than in mainland France,” explains Jérôme Devaud, deputy CEO of the Inter Invest group, a historic player in this field. Rather than resorting to subsidies to erase this difference, the State offers private investors, in return, an attractive tax reduction, higher than their contribution.”
The investment is a lost cause but the compensation is significant because the tax reduction allows you to go beyond the tax break cap of 10,000 euros. It can climb to 40,909 euros automatically and 52,941 euros for larger operations, requiring approval from the tax authorities. Even better: only a fraction of the tax reduction obtained is taken into account in the tax break cap. “For example, a family, already having 6,000 euros of tax reduction linked to childcare and 2,500 euros for other home services such as gardening, cleaning or home tutoring, will still be able to obtain 21,590 euros of additional tax reduction in Girardin”, explains Jérôme Devaud. At Inter Invest, the projects offer a return of 10% throughout the year, which means that for an investment of 5,000 euros, you will benefit from a tax reduction of 5,500 euros.
Other players, such as Ecofip, Profina or Starinvest, offer differentiated rates depending on the time of year. Logical: your savings will be tied up for much longer if you subscribe at the beginning of January than at the end of December, with a tax reduction that will only take effect in July of the following year. Thus, these players most often display 14% at the beginning of the year, then 10% during the second half of the year. But, after the summer, you must not hang around. “Due to strong enthusiasm, we have almost no more products to market,” explains Mélanie Kabla, development director at Ecofip, the number 2 in the sector.
Of course, this investment involves risks, the first of which is to use an exotic player, not very serious about setting up the project. Bercy will then reject your application and you will lose all your capital. Another essential point, carefully check the guarantees of the chosen intermediary, both against the risks of tax reclassification and in terms of civil liability. Indeed, you remain the owner of the financed tools, and therefore criminally liable in the event of an accident.