French acronym explainer: What is a Pacs?

Pacs stands for Pacte civil de solidarité, which translates as a contract of civil union. In real terms, it is what we would call a civil partnership.

Two people can enter into a Pacs when they are committed to each other but do not necessarily want to be married. The process is open to same-sex couples as well as heterosexuals, and is also available for foreigners in France.

Almost 210,000 Pacs contracts were signed in 2022, according to the latest Insee data, published earlier this year – a record since the creation of this contract in 1999.

Read more: Is a French Pacs recognised in the UK or US?

What are the practicalities?

Both parties must be aged 18 or over, and must be living together. 

Neither should be in an existing marriage or civil partnership, and there must be no close familial connection: you cannot set up a Pacs with an uncle, niece, or any ‘step’ relatives (stepbrother, stepmother). However, it is legal to have a Pacs with a cousin (cousin germain).

 Is Pacs a recent thing?

The law allowing for Pacs civil partnerships dates from November 1999 and is such an established part of French life that it even has its own verb: se pacser. 

As a side note, the UK equivalent did not arrive until 2005 for same-sex couples and 2019 for heterosexuals.

Is it only for same-sex couples?

While the Pacs was originally intended for same-sex couples, it has increasingly been adopted by heterosexual couples: of the 209,827 Pacs agreements from 2022, only 10,350 were same-sex couples.

Fees, pensions and wills

If you go through the process at a mairie, embassy or consulate, it is free; if you use a notaire, the fee is around €100.

Using a notaire allows you to record each partner’s belongings and assets, which can simplify matters if you split up later on.

Pacsed couples have tax, social and inheritance advantages similar to married couples – for example, no inheritance tax is payable when your partner dies. 

However, a partner in a Pacs is not eligible to receive their partner’s pension benefits, unlike in a marriage. Pacs partners must also create a will to ensure the surviving partner inherits their estate, as French intestacy laws do not automatically grant Pacs partners rights to their deceased partner’s assets.

Read more: ‘It took five trips to mairie’: What is getting a Pacs in France like?

Write down your anniversary

According to a 2021 study by Wilfried Rault and Arnaud Régnier-Loilier, published in the Revue française de sociologie, barely 40% of civil partners are able to spontaneously quote the date they entered into their contract. This compares with 80% of married people with wedding anniversaries – an “eloquent indication,” reported Le Figaro, “of the less sacred status couples attach to this more flexible, less formal form of union”.

Read more: What documents do non-French people require for a Pacs?

Find out more

Visit the Service Public website for more information. You can also ask your mairie, embassy or consulate for further details.