France’s summer holidays enter their second month this week, meaning there are a few things you need to know.

Monday

Tax rebates – the tax office this year began issuing refunds to those who had overpaid on their taxes on Friday, July 25th, and these payments will continue this week. Around 15 million households are expected to receive a rebate into their bank account this week.

Budget discussions – parliament is now officially in recess for the summer, but prime minister François Bayrou says he will not take a holiday this year and will instead work through the summer trying to persuade opposition groups to back his €40-billion cost-cutting budget.

READ ALSO: OPINION: Bayrou’s budget has infuriated everyone and may force France into fresh elections✎

Friday

Utility bills – VAT on the the fixed part of households’ electricity and gas bills will increase from 5.5 percent to 20 percent on August 1st, in line with an EU directive requiring that inseparable elements of the same good or service – in this case the subscription and the consumption of electricity – are subject to the same VAT rate.

Savings – Bad news for holders of popular small savings account, the Livret A. Six months after interest rates dropped from 3 percent to 2.4 percent, they are set to fall again – to 1.7 percent – on August 1st. Rates for the Livret d’épargne populaire (LEP) will also fall, from 3.5 percent to 2.7 percent.

Travel trouble  – It’s the start of the worst weekend of the summer on France’s roads – the dreaded ‘crossover’ weekend, when the July holidaymakers return and the August ones set out.

Roads watchdog Bison Futé has flagged every weekend in August as having ‘very difficult’ or ‘extremely difficult’ conditions on the country’s roads as holidaymakers head out – and home. 

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Strikes – Compounding possible August travel difficulties, rail union Sud Rail has filed an open-ended strike notice until September 1st, although they say they’re planning weekend-long or 2-3 day strikes on dates which are yet to be announced. 

Meanwhile, employees of Vinci, one of the companies that runs the French motorway network, have filed strike notices covering the summer holiday period, especially on the A8 in southern France. Vinci says that drivers should not be impacted – more details here.

And French air traffic controllers remain in dispute with their bosses, but at the time of writing have not filed any fresh strike notices after their hugely disruptive two-day strike at the start of June. Find all the latest strike info here.

RER C – Work is planned on the line at Saint-Ouen station to create two fire safety zones on the central section. As a result, the line will be closed between Avenue-Henri-Martin and Pontoise from August 1st to 23rd.

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Festivals – Brittany is the place to be for festival lovers with the Festival du Bout du Monde at Landaoudec Prairie on the Crozon Peninsula, and the Festival Interceltique de Lorient in Morbihan both starting on August 1st, as France’s summer festival season continues.

Sunday

Women’s Tour de France – After starting in July, the nine-stage Women’s Tour de France concludes with a 124.1km mountain run from Praz-sur-Arly to Châtel, in Haute-Savoie, on Sunday, August 3rd. The climb to the finish, at Pré laJoux, is particularly punishing.

Metro – Traffic will be interrupted on Line 3 of the Paris Metro between Opéra and Gallieni stations reopens on Sunday, August 3rd, after a month-long closure.