France: Lawmakers must reject regressive “Rioters Pay” bill

France’s proposed bill to make demonstrators pay for damage caused to property by acts of violence in street protests, even if they did not directly cause it themselves, will have a chilling effect on freedom of peaceful assembly and must be rejected by lawmakers, Amnesty International said ahead of a two-day debate in the Senate.

This bill threatens to further deter people from exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly

Nathalie Godard, Amnesty International France

If passed, the legislation commonly referred to as the “Rioters Pay” bill, could hold individuals liable for acts they did not personally commit, provided they ‘knowingly’ participated in a gathering where acts of violence, theft, destruction, or property damage took place. A protester could be liable to pay up to 10,000 euros; in addition, social benefits could be seized if compensation is not paid, which risks plunging already marginalised families further into poverty. Parents may also be held civilly liable for acts that their children did not commit.

“This bill, coming on the back of a series of legal amendments to restrict the right of protest in France, threatens to further deter people from taking to the streets to exercise their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly,” said Nathalie Godard, Director of the Action Department at Amnesty International France.

“Holding protesters responsible – and making them pay – for acts committed by others creates a risk of arbitrary punishment and would be contrary to France’s international obligations. If passed, this bill would be a deeply regressive step, and it must be categorially rejected by lawmakers.”

Under international law, those participating in demonstrations may only be held responsible for their own conduct and any such responsibility must be based on evidence of individual culpability.

If passed, this bill would be a deeply regressive step, and it must be categorially rejected by lawmakers

Natalie Goddard, Amnesty International France

Under current French law, family social security allowances and housing benefits are generally protected from seizure to recover debts. The bill introduces additional exceptions to this protection, allowing these benefits to be seized to recover compensation. This would include where damage is caused by children and would reduce the financial support available to families to meet their essential needs and costs. The bill further allows for the possibility of seizing payments from the Active Solidarity Income (Revenu de Solidarité Active), a benefit designed to provide a minimum income for people who would otherwise have no or very low income.

“Seizing family allowances, housing assistance, or the active solidarity income could have disastrous consequences for some of the most vulnerable people, impacting their ability to access an adequate standard of living for themselves and their families,” said Natalie Goddard.

The proposed bill also expands the scope of the penalty of exclusion from French territory for people who are ‘foreign nationals’ and who have been found guilty of certain serious offences committed during public gatherings. These include attacks against the physical integrity of others, serious damage to property, such as arson, and aggravated theft or looting.

Amnesty International calls on the lawmakers to ensure that in no case should the penalty of expulsion from French territory result in the violation of the principle of non-refoulement, which is absolute and prohibits the expulsion of anyone, regardless of status, to a place where they would be at real risk of persecution or human rights violations.

“Existing law already allows for the penalty of expulsion from French territory. We are therefore deeply concerned that this amendment may introduce xenophobic rhetoric into the legislative debate, and further fuel the scapegoating of refugees, migrants, asylum seekers and minorities,” said Nathalie Godard.

Background

The bill is due to be debated by the French Senate on 27 and 28 October.

The French government announced the proposed bill titled “Compensation for damage resulting from violence or property damage in public spaces and the recovery of damages” in the summer of 2026, following the incidents of violence and property damage during the UEFA Champions League final in May 2026. The French authorities put this bill on the parliamentary agenda and initiated an accelerated procedure for its consideration in the context of the ongoing protests in France, which started on 31 August 2026 in the overseas territories and from 18 September in Metropolitan France.

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