Christmas before time? Not necessarily. But like every December, certain changes could indeed have a beneficial impact on your wallet.
End-of-year assistance for low-income households: the Christmas bonus
From December 16, 2025, households benefiting from social minima (RSA, ASS, retirement equivalent allowance, etc.) will receive the Christmas bonus. The amount depends on the composition of the household: for example, a single person without children receives around €152.45, while a single parent with three children can receive up to €335.39.
This measure constitutes a breath of fresh air for several million French people, just before the holidays, while expenses pile up (gifts, heating, shopping, etc.).
Disability: full reimbursement for wheelchairs
Since December 1, 2025, Health Insurance covers 100% of the cost of wheelchairs deemed medically necessary — manual, electric, custom-made, sports, reconditioned, etc. There is no remaining charge for the user, and no need to advance the costs.
The process has also been simplified: a one-stop shop replaces the administrative imbroglio of the past, where it was necessary to juggle between mutual societies, departmental centers, social action centers, etc. Good news when nearly 150,000 people who purchase a wheelchair per year are affected, as well as tens of thousands of others in temporary need.
Work stoppages: medical check-up now by videoconference
From December 2025, Health Insurance is rolling out a new remote medical monitoring system throughout the country, carried out by videoconference by a medical advisor. After a three-month experiment in three pilot regions (Normandy, Burgundy-Franche-Comté and Occitanie), this telecontrol will make it possible to verify the justification for a work stoppage, a work accident, an occupational illness or certain disability requests. Carried out via a secure platform, this exchange aims to facilitate and accelerate the assessment of situations while guaranteeing the confidentiality of medical data.
Joint custody: the free choice of childcare supplement (CMG) accessible to both parents
Another notable change: in the event of alternating custody of a child, each of the two parents will now be able to receive the CMG, where previously only one of the two benefited from it.
For the parent who did not receive the allowance, it will be necessary to make a request to the Caisse d’Allocations Familiales (CAF). For the other, no change: the payment continues automatically.
A slight reduction in your gas bills
All households heated with gas, or using gas for hot water or cooking, will see a modest drop in the benchmark gas price in December: the price for cooking/hot water increases to €0.1340/kWh (compared to €0.1346/kWh in November), and for heating to €0.10282/kWh (compared to 0.10345 in November).
Even if the difference is not huge, it is still a few euros saved, appreciable with the arrival of winter. This month of December 2025 therefore marks a concrete turning point for the wallets of many French people, at a time when end-of-year expenses are piling up.