Form 3516 — paying a tax deadline with a tax receivable
Form 3516-SD lets you pay an upcoming tax deadline with a receivable the tax authority owes you — a VAT credit whose refund you have requested, a corporate-tax overpayment — instead of waiting for the refund and then paying. It goes to the business tax office you report to, in two parts: the first attached to the refund request, the second sent with the deadline settled by set-off. The request may only target a deadline whose payment date falls at least 30 days after the refund request was filed, and it is no longer possible once the refund has been put in payment.
Up to date for 2026 — verified on September 11, 2026Official form3516-SDGuide: about 15 min
This content is part of the path: Managing my company's VAT· Step 10 of 11· Next step: Cerfa 3514 — VAT instalment notice (simplified regime)
Deadlines
- At least 30 days before the targeted deadline
- The payment date of the deadline must fall at least 30 days after the filing of the refund request the set-off relates to.
- Before the refund is put in payment
- Once the refund has been put in payment, set-off is no longer possible: the receivable is settled, the deadline is paid normally.
Documents to prepare
- Reference of the refund request (3519) or of the claim carrying the receivable
- Amount and nature of the receivable to set off
- Targeted deadline: tax, period, payment date, amount
- Statement or return of the deadline, with the "payment by set-off" box
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Who this applies to
- Businesses that have filed a VAT credit refund request (3519) and have an upcoming deadline: corporate-tax instalment or balance, related tax
- Companies whose corporate-tax balance statement shows an overpayment, to be used on a following instalment
- Taxpayers who, in a claim, elect to set off the expected relief against a future deadline
Worked example
Example: Atelier Perrin uses its VAT credit to pay its corporate-tax instalment
Atelier Perrin SARL files on 5 May 2026 a VAT credit refund request of €9,000 (form 3519). Its corporate-tax instalment of 15 June 2026 amounts to €6,000. As 15 June falls more than 30 days after 5 May, it attaches to its refund request the first part of form 3516-SD, which designates the receivable (VAT credit, €9,000, request of 5 May) and the deadline (corporate-tax instalment of 15 June, €6,000). On 15 June, it sends the second part with its 2571 instalment statement, ticking payment by set-off. If the office admits the refund, €6,000 is set off against the instalment and €3,000 is refunded; had the refund already been put in payment before the 3516 was received, the instalment would have had to be paid in full.
How to fill it in, step by step
- Identify the receivable precisely: nature (VAT credit, corporate-tax overpayment, expected relief), amount and reference of the refund request or claim that carries it.
- Designate the deadline to be paid precisely: tax, period, payment date and amount — it must fall at least 30 days after the refund request was filed.
- Attach the first part of form 3516-SD to your refund request (or claim), addressed to the business tax office you report to.
- At the deadline, send the second part with the statement or return settled by set-off, ticking that payment method where the form provides for it (statement 2571, return 3310-A, notice 3514).
- If the deadline exceeds the receivable, pay the balance by e-payment: set-off only covers the amount admitted.
The form, line by line
- Receivable to set off
- Nature, amount and reference of the refund request or claim. Set-off is only accepted if the refund is admitted: a disputed receivable pays nothing.
- Deadline to be settled
- Tax, period and payment date, at least 30 days after the refund request was filed. A deadline already past cannot be paid by set-off.
- Two parts
- The first goes with the refund request, the second goes with the deadline settled by set-off. Both designate the same receivable and the same deadline.
Good to know
- Set-off concerns State-budget taxes collected by the business tax office. An income-tax overpayment cannot be used this way: it is an individual's tax.
- If the refund has already been put in payment before the office receives the set-off request, the operation is no longer possible — the only case where timing works against you.
- In a claim, you may elect from the outset to set off the expected relief against a future deadline; the office will then ask you in writing to specify the deadline concerned.
- Form 3516-SD is named by the VAT instalment notice 3514 and return 3310-A for payment by set-off: without it, a ticked set-off cannot be processed.
Common mistakes
- Targeting a deadline too close: fewer than 30 days between the filing of the refund request and the payment date.
- Ticking "payment by set-off" on a statement without attaching form 3516-SD, or without having filed the refund request it relates to.
- Designating the receivable without its reference, or the deadline without its payment date: the office cannot match the two.
- Not paying the balance when the deadline exceeds the receivable: set-off only covers the amount admitted.
Frequently asked questions
Who is form 3516-SD sent to?
To the business tax office the professional reports to — the same one that handles your VAT and corporate tax. The first part goes with the refund request, the second with the deadline settled by set-off.
Can I set a VAT credit off against a corporate-tax instalment?
Yes: the doctrine cites precisely the case of a VAT credit refund request used to settle a deadline such as a corporate-tax instalment, provided the refund is admitted and the deadline falls at least 30 days after the request was filed.
What if the refund is refused or already paid?
Set-off is only accepted if the refund of the credit is admitted; it is no longer possible if the refund has already been put in payment before the request is received. In both cases, the deadline is paid normally, on time.
Go further
Compute the related amounts
Understand this form: the related course
Official sources
- impots.gouv.fr — Form 3516-SD, request to set a tax receivable off against an upcoming deadline (2026 edition, the latest the page serves): to be sent to the business tax office the professional reports to; first part attached to the refund request, second part sent with the deadline settled by set-off — September 11, 2026
- bofip.impots.gouv.fr — Payment of professionals' taxes, payment by set-off against future deadlines (BOI-REC-PRO-10-20-30, 16 December 2013): form 3516-SD (CERFA 12619), clearly specified receivable and precisely designated deadline, filed with the business tax office, set-off accepted once the refund is admitted and impossible if the refund has already been put in payment, deadlines whose payment date falls at least 30 days after the refund request, income-tax overpayments excluded — September 11, 2026
Guide and document provided for information purposes only; they do not constitute personalised legal or tax advice. Check the recipient organisation's requirements and consult a professional if needed.