Livret A: Lecornu announces ceiling raised to as much as €30,000 from February

It was the surprise announcement of the afternoon at the Assemblée nationale. On Tuesday 3 November, during questions to the government, Sébastien Lecornu confirmed that the ceiling on the Livret A, France's tax-free regulated savings account, will be raised in February. Currently capped at €22,950, it should land in a range of €25,000 to €30,000, according to franceinfo. The interest rate is also due to rise, though no figure has been put forward.

The Prime Minister was responding to the leader of the Liot group, Christophe Naegelen, who was arguing for a major national loan. The final amount has not yet been decided: a last round of consultation is to take place with the banks and the Caisse des dépôts, the state financial institution, and Economy Minister Roland Lescure will make the decision in the coming weeks, the head of government said.

Savings running out of steam

In practical terms, the measure would allow savers who have already reached the ceiling to make new deposits. It comes as the French public's favourite savings product is losing momentum. According to Caisse des dépôts figures cited by franceinfo, households held €606.7 billion in their Livret A and LDDS accounts at the end of September, a stable total over one year. In September, withdrawals exceeded deposits by €1.52 billion.

The rate had fallen from the start of 2025 to a floor of 1.5% at the start of 2026, before rising to 1.7% on 1 August, which only weakly revived inflows over the summer.

Nuclear power in the frame

The stakes go beyond the nest egg. The executive wants to steer part of these funds, historically earmarked for social housing, towards the nuclear revival, and then towards the climate adaptation of public buildings and infrastructure.

According to L'Express, the 2027 draft budget plans to mobilise up to €60 billion of regulated savings to finance six EPR2 reactors, built in pairs at Penly, Gravelines and Bugey. The loan, covering 60% of the projected cost, would pass through the Caisse des dépôts savings fund to an EDF subsidiary, with a state guarantee.

The left and campaign groups concerned

The scheme is already causing a stir. In an op-ed published on Monday and relayed by Greenpeace, 145 signatories (elected officials, associations, trade unions) are demanding its removal from the budget. They denounce a decision taken without consultation and fear it will drain resources from social housing, at a time when 2.9 million households are waiting for social housing (HLM), L'Express notes. The Banque des Territoires gave assurances in March that social housing would remain a priority.

What now?

The exact amount and the date it takes effect remain to be set by the Finance Ministry. Meanwhile, the issue is spilling into the budget battle: the formal vote on the revenue section of the 2027 budget, postponed twice, is now expected later in the week.