Published On 5/7/2026
The French president of the global luxury goods group LVMH, Bernard Arnault, was ordered to pay additional tax dues amounting to 22.5 million euros (about 25.74 million dollars), according to a decision issued by the Administrative Court in Paris.
The richest man in France announced his intention to appeal the decision before the Council of State, the highest administrative judicial body authorized to adjudicate disputes between citizens and the administration.
A spokesman for Arnault said in a statement to Agence France-Presse, “An appeal will be submitted before the Council of State against this decision, which overturns the ruling issued in the first instance, and even the ruling that this same court had previously issued.”
According to the decision issued on July 2, Bernard Arnault and his wife were obligated to pay 12.96 million euros in additional taxes on income and social contributions for the year 2010, in addition to 9.5 million euros under a wealth tax for the period between 2012 and 2015.
In December 2020, the Administrative Court in Paris approved the couple’s request to be exempt from additional taxes on income, and ordered the refund of the amounts paid under the wealth tax for the period between 2012 and 2015.
In November 2023, the Minister of Economy and Finance submitted a request to the Administrative Court of Appeal to annul the ruling issued by the Administrative Court in Paris.
The case revolves around the “complex shareholder structure” of the LVMH group, according to the Linforme news website, which revealed on Saturday the content of the administrative judiciary’s decision.
The website added, “The Arnault family does not own direct shares in the capital of the luxury goods group, but rather through a series of holding companies.”
The website added: “At the top of this pyramid is the Belgian company Pilinvest,” which allows the richest man in France to reduce the value of his tax return.
The French giant LVMH Group is the largest luxury goods and products company in the world and includes 75 other international brands.
Bernard Arnault had warned that imposing 2% taxes on wealth and the wealthy threatened to destroy the French economy.
The wealth of Arnault and his family amounts to $151.5 billion, according to Forbes magazine estimates for the month of July, and this wealth has witnessed a noticeable decline compared to the highest level recorded in the year 2024 at $233 billion.
