APL: calculation, amount and payment date 2025

Personalized housing assistance (APL) is intended to reduce the amount of rent or monthly loan payments linked to the purchase of housing outside a tense area. This aid is granted by the Caf or the MSA, subject to income conditions. What are the conditions related to housing to receive APL? How much is it? Answer !

Capital video: Personalized housing assistance (APL)

What is the APL?

The APL was created to facilitate access to housing or home support for people with modest incomes. It covers part of the rent for tenants or the reimbursement of a fraction of a loan taken out for old accommodation occupied as their main residence.

Who has the right to receive APL?

The tenants

Any tenant, roommate or sub-tenant can receive APL if they meet the eligibility conditions. No age requirement is required. A minor and emancipated child can receive the allowance if the lease is in his or her name. If it is not, the lease must be signed or co-signed by the parents.

The owners

Buyers of property benefiting from an approved loan or a social accession loan are also eligible, subject to resource conditions. Unlike tenants, owners’ APL is often paid directly to the lending organization, thus reducing the monthly mortgage payments.

What are the conditions for receiving this housing allowance?

Beneficiary conditions

To benefit from the APL, you must be of French nationality or, for foreigners, have a valid residence permit, as well as a declared tenant of approved accommodation. Since the reform of housing aid, a condition of residence in France for at least nine months per year applies to be able to benefit from the APL.

Accommodation conditions

The right to APL is granted for a single accommodation, located in France, per tenant, that of the main residence. A single request must be made for the entire household. Housing must also meet criteria of decency and minimum occupancy conditions.

Tenant resource conditions

All the income of the people living in the household is taken into account when calculating the APL allocation. Recipients already benefiting from the social housing allowance (ALS) or the family housing allowance (ALF) cannot combine it with the APL.

If a person depends on the tax household of their parents and the latter are liable for the IFI, they will not be able to claim the APL either. In addition, a subtenant, declared to the owner, can also receive APL, provided that he is under 30 years old.

Conditions for shared accommodation

In the case of shared accommodation, the amount of personalized assistance is proportional to:

• the share of rent paid by the roommate;
• his income;
• the composition of his household.

If the rent receipt is unique (not individualized), the Caf divides the rent price by the number of roommates appearing on the lease.

What is the income ceiling that must not be exceeded to receive APL in 2025?

Criteria taken into account

The right to APL (Personalized Housing Assistance) depends on the household’s resource conditions. To be eligible, the total household resources must therefore not exceed a certain ceiling, determined based on the composition of the family and the geographical area of ​​the accommodation.

The assets of the APL applicant are also included in the calculation of rights if they exceed 30,000 euros. Exceptions exist, in particular for elderly people residing in an Accommodation Establishment for Dependent Elderly People (EHPAD).

Resources from the last 12 months

Since January 1, 2021, it is the resources of the last 12 months which are used to calculate the APL, and no longer those of the previous two years. In addition, the right to APL is automatically updated every three months.

The resource ceiling taken into account is to be understood in the broad sense. It crosses different data which varies depending on the composition of the household. Once this threshold of annual resources is exceeded, the amount of APL allocated to the beneficiary decreases.

Annual resource ceilings in 2025

To receive the maximum amount, here are the annual income ceilings not to be exceeded depending on the composition of your household.

What is the rent ceiling that must not be exceeded to receive APL?

The rent ceilings determine the maximum amount taken into account by the Family Allowance Fund (Caf) to calculate Personalized Housing Assistance (APL). They vary depending on the location of the accommodation and the composition of the household.

Table of rent limits for tenants

Here is the amount of the rent ceiling in effect in 2025:

Table of rent limits for roommates

Here are the ceilings for people in shared accommodation in 2025:

How is the amount of APL calculated?

The amount of the APL is calculated according to scales taking into account:

• family situation and the number of dependents usually living in the tax household;
• the resources of the applicant, the person with whom he or she lives as a couple and people usually living under the same roof;
• the value of the real estate and financial assets of the applicant as well as the people attached to them (beyond 30,000 euros);
• the amount of rent or monthly loan payments.

APL calculation formula

APL = L + C – Pp.

• The L corresponds to the possibly capped rent.
• The C, has a fixed charge.
• The Pp, to a personal participation, depending on the resources of the household and its family situation.

Revaluation of APL

Personalized housing assistance is revalued every October 1 based on changes in the rental reference index (IRL) for the second quarter of the current year. As of October 1, 2024, APLs were up on average by 3.26%.

Carry out a simulation to estimate the amount of your APL

To simulate the level of assistance to which an insured person is eligible, all they need to do is connect to the Caf website. He must first answer several questions to find out whether or not he is eligible for the APL. Then, it indicates the amount of its net taxable resources.

This simulation does not take into account certain reductions from which the applicant may benefit nor certain charges, such as alimony paid or actual costs. The estimate obtained may therefore be different from the actual amount.

How to apply for APL?

Make your request to Caf

The APL request is made online from the National Family Allowance Fund (Caf) or by sending a form to the MSA by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt.

Documents to provide in your file

The list of supporting documents to be provided has evolved following the publication of a ministerial decree in the Official Journal of November 16, 2024. This text applies to both first APL requests and renewal requests made from 17 november. Here are the necessary documents:

• a copy of proof of identity (identity card, passport, extract of birth certificate, valid residence permit in other cases);
• a state of the people usually living in the household;
• a bank identity statement;
• a certificate from the lessor justifying the allocation (for residential use), the surface area, the decency of the accommodation (in particular on the basis of the energy performance diagnosis) and the amount of the rent;
• the amount of assets if its value exceeds 30,000 euros.

When is the APL paid in 2025?

Monthly payment

Personalized Housing Assistance (APL) is paid monthly by the Family Allowance Fund (Caf) in arrears, that is to say at the beginning of the month following that for which the assistance is due. Thus, the APL for the month of January 2025 will be paid at the beginning of February 2025.

Payment schedule 2025

Here is the calendar of APL 2025 payment dates:

• APL January 2025: Wednesday February 5, 2025.
• APL February 2025: Wednesday March 5, 2025.
• APL March 2025: Friday April 4, 2025.
• APL April 2025: Monday May 5, 2025.
• APL May 2025: Thursday June 5, 2025.
• APL June 2025: Friday July 4, 2025.
• APL July 2025: Tuesday August 5, 2025.
• APL August 2025: Friday September 5, 2025.
• APL September 2025: Monday October 6, 2025.
• APL October 2025: Wednesday November 5, 2025.
• APL November 2025: Friday December 5, 2025.
• APL December 2025: Monday January 5, 2026.

>> Our service: Save money on your electricity and gas bills with our Energy comparator

What recourse should there be in the event of refusal to grant APL rights?

Reasons for refusal

The Caf may refuse an APL request for different reasons:

• exceeding the resource ceiling,
• the accommodation does not meet the criteria of decency,
• the owner is a direct relative of the applicant, etc.

Challenge Caf’s decision

To contest this decision, you must first send a letter by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt to the Caf within two months following notification of the refusal. The applicant must explain the contested decision, mention the reasons for the contestation and request a new examination of his situation.

Refer to the administrative court

The request is studied and the decision of the Amicable Appeal Commission is systematically sent to the applicant within two months. In the event of a new refusal, the last recourse available is to refer the matter to the administrative court. It must be entered within two months.

To refer the matter to the administrative court, it is necessary to send a registered letter setting out the contested decision and the reasons for the contestation accompanied by all the documents in the file. A summons is sent by the administrative court to the applicant.

>> Our service – Save money by testing our savings book comparator