Viral claim about France’s tax-free health care workers bonus needs context

Since this piece was first published, we’ve written about the claim again here, after the French government confirmed details of the scheme.

We’ve seen posts on Facebook claiming that care workers in France are getting a £1,500 tax-free lump sum. 

The French government has said it wants to give workers in nursing homes and some who provide care in people’s homes a bonus, but it’s not yet clear how much that will be. 

France is also offering its front line health workers a bonus of up to €1,500 (£1,300). This was announced by the French Prime Minister on 15 April. The French government says this will be for all staff who manage the Covid-19 crisis in the hospitals of the departments most affected, as well as to staff in less affected departments who have received Covid-19 patients. All the other hospital staff who don’t benefit from the maximum rate will receive €500 (£440). Staff working overtime in hospitals will also be paid more than usual.

Some other workers will get some kind of bonus too, including state civil servants.