“I’ve been advised to set up an SCI to buy my apartment in Sainte-Anne and rent it out as a holiday let—is that a good idea?” I hear this almost every week from would-be investors who reach out to me from mainland France, and nine times out of ten my answer surprises them. The furnished rental SCI in Martinique is one of the most misused structures: the best-known form, the income-tax SCI, is actually incompatible with a furnished-letting activity carried out on a regular basis. As a resident of the island and a manager of tourist furnished rentals, I see too many owners set up an unsuitable structure before they’ve even understood what they were buying.
This guide is educational and up to date for 2026. It does not replace the advice of a notary and a chartered accountant, the only people qualified to validate your specific case.
The trap of the income-tax SCI on a Martinique furnished rental
Let’s start with the misconception that costs the most. A société civile immobilière (SCI) is, by nature, a vehicle with a civil purpose: it is designed to hold and manage property let unfurnished. Yet on the island’s seaside market—Sainte-Anne, Les Trois-Îlets, Le Diamant, Le François, Tartane—almost the entire supply is short-term furnished rental, an activity that is commercial for tax purposes (industrial and commercial profits, the famous BIC).
This is where the trap snaps shut: as soon as an income-tax SCI rents furnished on a regular basis, it carries out a commercial activity that exceeds its civil purpose. The automatic consequence: it is switched to corporate tax (IS), whether it wanted to be or not. Many discover this during an audit or a change of accountant, years later, with a back-tax bill attached.
Remember the principle: an income-tax SCI and tourist furnished rentals do not mix well. If your project is Airbnb, the classic SCI is not your default tool.
The “ancillary” tolerance and its limits
There is some leeway: the tax authorities tolerate an income-tax SCI keeping its regime as long as its furnished-rental income remains ancillary (in practice, under about 10% of the total). An SCI that rents unfurnished and furnishes a single small dwelling at the margin can therefore hold up. But for a portfolio dedicated to holiday letting, where 100% of the rents are furnished—the norm on the Caribbean side during Lent (December to April)—this tolerance is useless.
Which legal structures for an Airbnb in Martinique?
Since the income-tax SCI is ruled out, what are the real options for a legal structure for an Airbnb in Martinique? Four, from the simplest to the most structured: holding in your own name as LMNP/LMP (the default for 1 or 2 properties, see our LMNP status in Martinique), joint ownership (best avoided—unmanageable, since everything must be decided unanimously), the family SARL, and the corporate-tax SCI. The choice depends on your time horizon, the number of properties and partners, and the tax treatment.
The family SARL: renting furnished under income tax, legally
This is the option I most often put on the table for a family project. The family SARL brings together only relatives in a direct line, brothers and sisters, or spouses. Its strength: as a commercial company, it can rent furnished with no conflict of purpose, while opting for income tax. It then combines several advantages:
- each partner declares their share under BIC and benefits from depreciation like an LMNP under the actual-expenses regime;
- the capital gain on resale follows the regime for private individuals, with allowances for the holding period (income-tax exemption after 22 years, social-levy exemption after 30 years)—a major advantage over the corporate-tax SCI;
- professional furnished-rental host (LMP) status is assessed per partner, opening up the offsetting of deficits against overall income.
For siblings who inherit a house in Le François, or a couple investing in Les Trois-Îlets, it combines the flexibility of furnished rental with a framework for passing the property on.
The corporate-tax SCI: building capital over the long term
When the project aims at a long-term portfolio—several properties, partners outside the family circle, reinvestment of rents—the corporate-tax SCI becomes relevant again. It depreciates the building (excluding the land) and the furniture, crushing the taxable result for ten to fifteen years, and benefits from the reduced 15% rate up to €42,500 of profit (25% beyond that).
The downside is the capital gain on resale: calculated on the net book value, with no allowance for the holding period, and with depreciation “recaptured” and taxed. On a property bought for €200,000 in Le Diamant, depreciated by €80,000 and resold for €280,000, the taxable base is €160,000, not €80,000. It is a capitalization vehicle, not one for opportunistic resale.
The rule fits in one sentence: for a furnished tourist rental in the overseas departments (DOM), favor your own name to get started (1 or 2 properties, minimal structure), the family SARL for a family project that wants to depreciate and pass on, and the corporate-tax SCI to build a lasting portfolio with several partners.
What Martinique changes in the choice of structure
Company law is national, but local parameters that no “mainland” simulation captures weigh on the decision:
- Octroi de mer (overseas customs duty): kitting out a one- or two-bedroom unit for short-term letting costs €8,000 to €15,000 (air conditioning, fiber, bedding, outdoor furniture treated against salt). This base inflates the depreciation, and therefore the appeal of the regimes that depreciate.
- Cyclone season (June to November): repairs after heavy swells, anti-termite treatment, and faster renewal of tropical equipment weigh on profitability.
- Local VAT of 8.5% (versus 20% on the mainland), due only if you offer para-hotel services (breakfast, mid-stay cleaning, linen).
- More expensive accounting: €1,200 to €2,000 a year for the tax return package, as chartered accountants are scarce on the island. A one-bedroom unit at €900 in rent leaves 15 to 20% of its income there: the company is only profitable above a certain volume.
The concrete steps to structure your investment
- Frame the project: number of properties, time horizon, partners? The answer guides the structure.
- Simulate own name, family SARL, and corporate-tax SCI over 15 years, resale included, with a chartered accountant who knows the overseas departments.
- Draft the articles of association with a notary (commercial purpose for the SARL, explicit IS option for the SCI), then register with the registry of the mixed commercial court of Fort-de-France.
- Finance: a 10 to 20% down payment and personal guarantees from the partners, at rates close to the mainland.
- Declare the furnished rental at the town hall (Sainte-Anne, Les Trois-Îlets, Le Diamant…), obtain the registration number, and organize the tourist tax.
Delegating the operation: what makes the structure hold up
No structure is profitable if the property doesn’t turn over. That’s where Hostel Toucan comes in. As a concierge service established in the French overseas territories, we operate your furnished rental for short and medium stays, with a system designed for investors:
- direct booking with no platform fees, where OTAs charge 15 to 17%;
- free cancellation up to 7 days before arrival, which reassures travelers;
- WhatsApp assistance 7 days a week, which absorbs the unexpected despite the time difference;
- tourist tax collected and paid back with no rate errors, and a monthly summary your accountant can use, with invoices in your company’s name.
To discover the island, browse our rentals in Martinique; if you are setting up your structure, see our rental-management offer for owners.
FAQ
Can you run a furnished rental within an SCI in Martinique?
Yes, but not with just any SCI. An income-tax SCI that rents furnished on a regular basis is automatically switched to corporate tax, because furnished rental is a commercial activity foreign to its civil purpose. You therefore need either an SCI that opted for corporate tax from the outset, or a family SARL, or your own name under LMNP.
Family SARL or corporate-tax SCI for a furnished tourist rental in the DOM?
The family SARL suits a project among relatives: it rents furnished while staying under income tax, with depreciation and a capital gain under the advantageous regime for private individuals. The corporate-tax SCI is more appropriate for long-term capitalization, with several partners outside the family circle—at the cost of a heavier capital gain on resale, on the net book value with no allowance.
What is the simplest legal structure for an Airbnb in Martinique?
For a first property, your own name under LMNP remains the simplest: no company and no corporate accounting, depreciation under the actual-expenses regime, and a private-individual capital gain on resale. A company (family SARL or corporate-tax SCI) only becomes relevant with several properties, several partners, or a wealth-planning goal over fifteen to twenty years.
Do you need a chartered accountant to manage a furnished-rental company in Martinique?
Yes, in practice. As soon as you go through a family SARL or a corporate-tax SCI, the commercial accounting and the tax return package justify a chartered accountant (often €1,200 to €2,000 a year in Martinique, where they are scarce). This cost is deductible and quickly pays for itself, but it weighs on small portfolios: it is one of the criteria that make people prefer their own name as long as they have only one or two properties.
