Bank card tipping has changed significantly in France in recent years. Traditionally, bank card tips were less beneficial for employees who interact with customers (e.g., waiters, concierges, hairdressers) because the tips had to be reported and taxed. However, digital tips were made tax exempt in 2022 and are now subject to the same rules as cash tips.

For service industry professionals (e.g., workers in cafés, hotels, and restaurants), this change addresses three issues. It increases employee retention in industries that face recruiting challenges and increases earnings because of a tax provision valid through 2028. This change also helps businesses meet the expectations of a customer base that now uses cash less frequently for purchases.

In this article, we address how bank card tipping works, including its related legal framework, advantages, and limits.

Key takeaways

• Bank card tipping allows customers to leave a voluntary gratuity when paying via electronic payment terminal (EPT), quick-response (QR) code, or mobile app.
  
• French regulations on bank card tips include Article L3244-1 of the Labor Code—which requires all tips to be paid in full to public-facing staff—and the 2022 Finance Act—which has aligned the rules for bank card tips with those for cash tips.
  
• Tax exemption only applies to employees that earn less than 1.6 times the minimum wage, excluding nonsalaried employees and tips automatically included in bills.
  
• Businesses must activate bank card tips on their payment terminals, configure the proposed options, isolate the amounts collected for accounting, and organize distribution of tips to staff through a dedicated process.
  
• Bank card tipping offers several advantages, including increased numbers of tips, use as a tool for recruiting and retaining staff in industries experiencing difficulties, improved financial tracking for accounting, and a smoother, cashless customer experience.
  

What are bank card tips?

Tipping via bank card allows customers to add extra amounts to bills to thank the staff members who served them. Always optional, tips are voluntary gratuities given to express appreciation for services received.

Traditionally left in cash, tipping has gradually gone digital and is now accepted during card or mobile payments. In France and other European countries including Germany, it is now possible to tip via bank card in bars, cafés, restaurants, hotels, private transportation services, and, more broadly, in businesses equipped with electronic payment terminals (EPTs).

This shift toward digital tipping is popular with French customers. In 2021, 68% of respondents said they appreciated the convenience of digital tipping, allowing them to leave the amount of their choice without the hassle of having cash. In addition, 40% admitted that the option to leave a digital tip encouraged them to be more generous in the future.

This trend is also reflected in the number of transactions that include digital tips. According to an internal study based on data from 1,500 restaurants in France, the share of transactions that included digital tips rose on average from 4.19% in 2023 to 9.54% in 2025—an increase of over 127%.

What legislation applies to bank card tipping in France?

Two main legal frameworks govern bank card tipping in France. Article L3244-1 of the Labor Code establishes rules for allocating and distributing tips, and the 2022 Finance Act exempts digital tips from tax liability.

Article L3244-1 of the Labor Code states that, in business establishments with tipping, all amounts collected for service or voluntarily offered by customers must be paid in full to public-facing staff. Employers cannot retain part or all of these amounts.

The 2022 Finance Act exempts bank card tips from tax liability. Before 2022, only cash tips were tax exempt. Tips paid by card and included as part of a business’s revenue were automatically subject to social security contributions and income tax. To address this imbalance—which had become burdensome as card payments became the norm—Article 5 of the 2022 Finance Act established that bank card tips are tax exempt. With this tax-exempt status, the French government is also supporting recruitment in the hospitality industry, which is facing a labor shortage.

Note: Only tips that customers voluntarily leave for public-facing staff are tax exempt. This also only applies when staff salaries do not exceed 1.6 times the minimum wage. For nonsalaried employees and salaried employees who earn greater than 1.6 times the minimum wage, digital tips are treated as supplemental income. These employees must declare tips for income tax purposes, and the tips are subject to social security contributions and withholding. Amounts automatically included in bills presented to customers—also known as “service charges”—are also not tax exempt.

Originally scheduled for 2022–2023, the measure has been extended several times. Currently, it has been extended through December 31, 2028.

How bank card tips work

Customers tip with bank cards at the time of payment. The payment terminal or digital payment solution offers the customer the option to add an additional tip amount (e.g., preset options, percentages, or custom amounts). The tip amount is then separately identified and distributed to the staff.

Customers and bank card tips

Customers can tip via bank card using the following payment methods:

• EPTs
  Modern payment terminals typically include an option for tipping. After the main purchase amount displays, customers can choose the digital tip amount. Depending on the terminal, tips might be included in the total amount or recorded on a separate line. In both cases, once a transaction has been validated, there will only be one debit from the customer’s account. This is the case for Stripe Terminal, which can collect tips before or after payment authorization.
  
• Quick-response (QR) codes
  Customers can also scan QR codes found on the table, bill, sticker, or display stand. Then, they can access a website, enter the amount of tip desired, and pay in a few seconds, using Apple Pay, Google Pay, or a bank card.
  
• Mobile app payment
  Some apps enable bank card tips directly within their interfaces.
  

Businesses and bank card tips

For a business or restaurant owner, integrating bank card tips involves several steps:

• Feature activation: The business can activate the tip feature on the payment terminal or display a QR code.
  
• Option configuration: The business can choose the digital tip formats offered to the customer, including preset amounts, percentages of the bill (e.g., 5%, 10% or 15%), customized amounts, or transaction rounding.
  
• Collection and accounting: To comply with the Labor Code, once tips are collected, they must be isolated from business revenue for accounting purposes. The employer must be able to justify tip collection and distribution to employees using a dedicated process.
  
• Staff distribution: Depending on the process used, the employer can distribute tips individually or collectively.
  

Advantages of tipping by bank card

Bank card tipping offers businesses several advantages. For example, it is a modern payment practice and can contribute to motivating and retaining employees. Bank card tips also benefit from favorable tax status through 2028. For businesses in industries experiencing difficulties, it’s an important way to motivate and retain employees without having to make a significant investment.

The main advantages of digital tips include the following:

• Increased number of tips
  The removal of the main barrier to cash tipping—lack of cash—allows businesses to adapt to new payment methods. This allows employees to earn more tips, which can provide a significant boost to their incomes.
  
• Significant tax and social advantages
  For employees earning less than 1.6 times the minimum wage, bank card tips are entirely exempt from income tax and social security contributions. The employer saves on all employer payroll taxes, including social security contributions and other wage-based taxes and contributions.
  
• Recruitment and retention tool
  In industries with high staff turnover and difficulty attracting new staff, the prospect of tax-free net supplemental income is a concrete incentive for recruiting and retaining qualified staff.
  
• Security
  Bank card tips benefit from the same levels of security as all card payments, including encryption, tokenization, and 3D Secure authentication.
  
• Traceability and transparency
  Unlike cash, digital tips are trackable through customer receipts, accounting of individual tip line items, and employee visibility on the amounts earned. This transparency can build trust with staff and customers. Staff have visibility into the tips they earn, and customers know who receives their tips.
  
• Enhanced customer experience
  Adding a tip has become easier because the customer doesn’t have to search for cash or round a bill’s total.
  
• Simplified accounting
  There are solutions available today that make it possible to automatically isolate tips from business-related revenue. This simplifies compliance with legal requirements and internal accounting procedures—without causing administrative burden.
  

Disadvantages of tipping by bank card

Despite its benefits, bank card tipping is not a perfect solution. It has only been adopted in certain regions and types of establishments, and its favorable tax status is conditional and subject to periodic revision. There are also some technical and cultural issues that still impede broader use.

The main disadvantages of bank card tipping include the following:

• Commissions and fees
  Commissions are applied to some digital tipping solutions. This can significantly reduce the tip amount, especially when tips are modest.
  
• Temporary tax exemption
  Tax exemption has been extended to 2028. However, if it is not extended past that date, adoption of bank card tipping might slow down.
  
• Psychological pressure for the customer
  A payment terminal that suggests a 10%, 15%, or 20% tip in front of the server could cause customer discomfort or be seen as intrusive. This could lead customers to reject systematic requests to tip.
  
• Minimum wage limit with some exceptions
  Employees earning more than 1.6 times the minimum wage (e.g., managers, experienced line cooks, and some luxury hotel workers) do not benefit from the tax exemption. This could create inequalities within teams.
  
• Complex distribution
  When tips are pooled, the employer must define clear distribution rules (e.g., according to number of hours worked, seniority, or position held or equal distribution), maintain a record, and justify distribution decisions. Managing tip distribution can be time-consuming without a defined process.
  
• Required tax declaration
  Whether exempt or not, employees must declare tips.
  

How Stripe can help

Stripe Terminal allows businesses to grow revenue with unified payments across in-person and online channels. It supports new ways to pay, simple hardware logistics, global coverage, and hundreds of POS and commerce integrations to design your ideal payments stack.

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Stripe Terminal can help you:

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