From RFI · · 1m 30s
France records 285,000 domestic violence victims in 2025
Domestic violence reports in France have more than doubled since 2016, with women making up 84 percent of victims, as lawmakers debate new legislation.
In brief
Domestic violence reports in France have more than doubled since 2016, with women making up 84 percent of victims, as lawmakers debate new legislation. France recorded 285,000 domestic violence victims in 2025, a five percent annual increase, as a new bill against sexual and gender-based violence heads to the Senate…
285,000 victims recorded in 2025
French authorities recorded 285,000 victims of domestic violence in 2025, representing a five percent increase from the previous year.
Numbers have more than doubled
The 284,681 recorded victims last year marks more than a doubling since 2016, according to the Interior Ministry's statistics service, SSMSI.
Women are 84 percent of victims
The vast majority of victims are women at 84 percent, while those accused are most often men at 85 percent of French nationality. Nearly 73 percent of victims are aged between 20 and 45.
Sexual violence is fastest-growing
Sexual violence accounts for five percent of victims but is the fastest-growing category, up twelve percent compared to the year before, with some 15,100 victims recorded.
Most violence goes unreported
Only 13 percent of survivors of domestic violence file a complaint with police. This drops to nine percent for those subjected to sexual violence by their partner, according to data from 2023-2024.
New bill heads to Senate in January
France is overhauling how it investigates and prosecutes sexual violence.The comprehensive bill against gender-based and sexual violence, adopted by the National Assembly on 13 October, is due to be examined by the Senate in January.
The bottom line
France recorded 285,000 domestic violence victims in 2025, a five percent annual increase, as a new bill against sexual and gender-based violence heads to the Senate.
