Do you have to pay this fee of 136e if you have a tele but do not use any french tv/radio stations through it?
yes!
Ditto. If you have anything in your house capable of receiving the stations - aerial, dish etc - you pay.
Yes.
After a search of “l’audiovisuel public” and reading the scattering of posts going back a fair few years, now jumping forward to 2021 - what is the current situation…?
We have no aerial / satellite dish / TV.
We have SOSH internet - so stream Netflix / Amazon Video to iPads only.
Question is: Do we still have to pay the contribution to " l’audiovisuel public"…?
My understanding is that no, you don’t. My partner researched this when he started getting tv via Orange and he was amazed to discover that, unlike in the UK, looking at TV broadcasts on a device such as a monitor or tablet does not render you liable for the tax. However, as soon as you get a TV (he was given one last year) then it starts to apply.
Thanks for the reply Angela. My next minefield then is to try and work out how I can get the amount (138 euro) removed from my Tax d’habitation bill from my login portal on “https://impots.gouv.fr” - any ideas??
Do you fill in a “normal” tax return? There is a check box on there somewhere for having a TV and in your case it should be pre-ticked and you need to un-tick it. I can’t remember which box it is but someone on here will know…
Otherwise, I would try a secure message to your local tax office via the impots site you quoted. Depending on who the person-of-the-day is who is landed with answering those thngs, you may get a good response! They should be able to action it for you 
I suggest that you read this first Êtes-vous exonéré de redevance télé ? | Gouvernement.fr
or
Redevance télé (contribution à l'audiovisuel public) | service-public.fr
In you current situation you do not have to.
However, if you ever decide to have a TV or any other devices that can receive either terrestrial or satellite broadcasts then you will be liable, unless you qualify for any of the age or income related exonerations. What stations you decide to watch on/via such a device is not relevant.
I think that when you reach 60 you don’t need to pay it. also at 60 you get 50% off train fares in France. I will have to check if I’m eligible for a discount on the habitation and fonciere as well. I’m sure I heard something about it.
I thought you said earlier that you lived in the UK?
Non residents in France do not get any reductions in property taxes.
it’s a maison secondaire. but I will make enquiries.
Well, the rules for over 60’s are on the web page linked above.
So, over 60 and of limited income, not just over 60 - for reference that’s 11120€ for an individual and 17058€ for a couple.
And as @Sandcastle says non French residents will have to pay anyway.
I’ve read somewhere that possibly… just possibly computer screens/laptops/who knows what… might well be charged in future years, as so many folk are honestly saying NO to TV (NO I do not have a TV)… but are using other means of watching their favourites instead …
Nothing as yet… but something to watch out for in the years to come.
I’m sure that is not the case, @Stella - at the moment anyway. My partner researched it throroughly and was staggered to discover that it was only TV sets to which it applied. Seems to be an internet-type loophole as far as I understand…
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Sorry Angela… I have amended my post… it’s something which is debated regularly, but with no official outcome as yet…
I agree, Stella… and to me it does seem like a sensible loophole to close. I haven’t had a TV for many a long year and haven’t watched TV either when I was in the UK. However, it’s such a useful medium for improving my language comprehension here that I would be watching it if our broadband wasn’t on 3km of wet string…
As you know… for us the TV is used with dvd’s… and like you our internet is naff. I try watching something on my computer… YouTube has some wonderful stuff… but mostly, it’s stop-start-freeze… have to laugh…
Shirley and Dino have me in fits…
concentration… !!!
if you click onthe second link above then on quel sont les materials concernés ,then on dispositifs assimilé
this opens a dropdown with an explination