HELP GUIDES

Income Tax in France

Healthcare in France

Inheritance Law and Wills in France

Visas and residency cards for France

Residence

What are France’s new language level rules to apply for residency?

The recent immigration law requires better language skills for some residency cards and to get French nationality

Did you know? France has a team ready to defend foreigners' rights

We speak to a key public rights official working with the Defender of Rights about administrative difficulties and how to find help in your area

French farmers’ union welcomes plans for new residency permit

France plans to create a specific residency permit for foreigners who are already working illegally in industries facing labour shortages

practical

Can we renew a carte de séjour online in France?

We look at the process involved in applying for a new residency permit and the variations depending on type

9 changes for residents and second-home owners in France November 2022

The government fuel discount is reduced, winter tyre rules begin in some mountainous areas, heating oil bill help is sent out and more

Court ruling raises issues for family members of EU citizens in France

The EU court has ruled on the right to an EU long-term resident’s card for close family members of Europeans living in another EU country

Debate: Should all foreigners in France have vote in local elections?

We speak to a French MP and a city mayor who find themselves on either side of this debate

Can you hold a carte de séjour for France while living in the UK?

Usually holding a residency card means you have your main home in France – but there can be exceptions

Do you need a language certificate to obtain a French residency card?

The government has recently stated that multi-year cartes de séjour should be conditioned on a certain level of French proficiency

French court rules residence permit applications cannot be online only

It comes after the government last year introduced laws to fully digitalise the process

Britons in France: What is the benefit of EU long-term resident card?

Even if you have a Withdrawal Agreement (WA) card you are also eligible for an 'EU carte de résident de longue-durée'. We explore the extra rights it can give

Fuel, energy cheques, cold calls: 14 changes for residents in April

From the 18 cent per litre fuel refund to a ban on meat growth antibiotics, we look at some of the changes coming in from April 1

French taxe d’habitation: Who is fully exempt in 2022?

Only 20% of households will pay the tax this year, before it is fully phased out for main homes in 2023

What carte de séjour is available under five years?

Is there is a kind of carte de séjour that one can obtain before five year’s residence? I have been a resident for less than a year. K.S.

Residency card application Q&A: December questions answered

This month's answers from The Connexion team on the Brexit residency card application website

Brexit: should I change UK pet passport to a French version?

Every other day, we share a reader question from our Brexit and Britons in France Help Guide. Get your copy of the guide via the link at the end of this article.

France introduces Covid travel waiver for unmarried couples

France is to allow international unmarried couples that have been separated by the Covid-19 crisis to beat travel restrictions, and finally be reunited after months apart.

Could long lockdown stays affect French tax residencies?

Some readers have asked if spending the lockdown at a second home in France and staying much longer than planned could affect their tax residency.

Q&A: Your Brexit deal card queries

We answer below a selection of the many queries we have received about the new residency cards. Some details of the new system were not available on going to press and the site itself was not open, but it was due to launch at the beginning of July.

Boost for EU Green Card idea

The pro-EU group which champions an EU Green Card to protect rights of Britons in the EU and EU citizens in the UK says it is encouraged after the House of Lords called for EU citizens to have a physical proof of their status in Britain.

Residents are on the take

Until we live in Utopia, where we are all world citizens with freedom of movement and residence, we have to accept that countries have borders and rules.

‘Treat Britons in EU well’ say MEPs

An MEP’S resolution calling for better rights for Britons in the EU passed by 610 to 29, with 68 abstentions.

Annual cartes would be costly for pensioners

Retired British people on low incomes who moved to France within the last five years face having to make a costly and time-consuming carte de séjour application every year for life if there is a no-deal Brexit and no new rules are agreed.

Family told to leave France can stay

A British family who were sent letters telling them they had been refused cartes de séjour and had to leave France within 30 days can now stay after an error came to light.

Second home-owners in France: questions on Brexit

Residency, Visas, health cover, driving licences....

Does French nationality help wife’s residency right

I have taken French nationality but my wife, who is also British, has not. Does my double nationality simplify things to make sure she can stay in France as well? G.M.

Brexit and incomes: France to be flexible

‘Generous approach’ but residency refusals reported

Easy enough to get our cartes in France

Re: The recent letter headlined “Humiliating faff” about applying for a carte de séjour ...

France gears up for no-deal Brexit

Britons in France will have a year to obtain new residency cards in the event of a no-deal Brexit, France has announced.

Is the Cesu system only for residents?

Is it true that the Cesu system which simplifies employing a person in the home, such as a cleaner, is only for residents and not open to holiday home owners? N.L.

Humiliating faff for carte

I have just finished applying for a carte de séjour, and feel angry that as a resident in France for 12 years, I should be subjected to such difficulty.

Brexit updates - December 2018

Latest news on Brexit and Britons in France related issues

Send bill to Leave Lord

I suggest Brian Cloughley sends an invoice for the cost of translating documents ( Readers’ cartes de séjour experiences , Letters, October edition) to Lord Lawson, the person responsible for heading the Conservatives leaving the EU.

Your carte de séjour applications

Readers talk about their experiences whilst going through the process of applying for a carte de sejour in France

Can I choose being taxed in UK or France?

I have been living in France for eight years and have been taxed here for seven years. I have been told that I have the choice of being taxed in France or the UK. My husband died three years ago. I am getting my house ready to go on the market next year and move back to England. Can I now ask to be UK-taxed and, if not, how soon can I change my place of tax, and how long will it take? L.L.

Ensuring you are paying tax in right place

Regular readers of this column will know that I often talk about reviewing your tax planning for France, so that you can take advantage of the tax mitigation opportunities available here. However, the very first step, before you start re-organising your assets, is to make sure you understand the tax residence rules of both France and the UK (or wherever you have financial interests). You need to be certain which country you should be paying tax in, and on which assets.

Licence to live in France

My wife and I obtained French Permis de Conduire in December 2012.

Reader cartes de séjour experiences

Connexion readers talk about their experiences trying to obtain a French carte de séjour

Changing carte de séjour address

I received my carte de séjour (residency card) in 2016, valid for five years, and had no problems gaining this with the prefecture in Avignon. Connexion has provided a lot of information about applying for a card but can you explain about changing address when you move? B.M.

Implications of acquiring French nationality on will

Last week I received notification that my wife and I are now both dual nationals, not just British but newly French. We have been living in France for over 30 years. Some time ago we opted for our wills to be considered under the English system; can you say if acquiring French nationality means this option is no longer applicable – and should we make new wills? P.B.

Another French commune rules against Linky meters

Residents in Blagnac (Haute-Garonne, Occitanie) are now legally allowed to refuse the installation of Linky energy meters in their homes, a French court has ruled.

Showing UK criminal record to French authorities

In the Brexit negotiations it has been agreed that countries can request criminal record checks. If they ask to see proof of lack of serious crimes committed, how do we obtain this? S.A.

France grants refugee status to 42 Aquarius migrants

The city of Lille has granted official refugee status to the 42 Sudanese migrants who arrived in the Nord after coming to Europe on humanitarian migrant ship the Aquarius.

Cartes woes – deal with it

What a lot of hot air has been expressed re: cartes de séjour .

Manage your new life in France and reap the benefits

If you are new to living in France or in the process of organising your move here, you probably have a list of jobs to get through. This needs to include reviewing your tax, financial and estate planning. Do not let this stagnate far down the list. It is important to adjust your wealth management for your new life here and spending a little time on it now should reap dividends and give you peace of mind. If you have been living here for a while, then think about the last time that you reviewed your financial planning? Are you sure it is up-to-date and specifically designed for your life in France?

French residency rules for mixed nationality couples

I am British and am interested in moving to France with my wife, who is of a different nationality. What are the rules on residence rights? M.D.

Hypocrisy unbound...

Vote Leave’s Lord Lawson applies for carte de séjour

LEADING Brexit campaigner Lord Lawson, who lives in Gers, south-west France, told Connexion in 2016 that leaving the EU would not affect Britons’ fundamental rights but might mean extra paperwork... He tells Oliver Rowland he is applying for his carte de séjour (permanent residency card), which guarantees those rights

Apply now for cartes, ministry tells UK expats

Interior Ministry officials have once again stressed the importance of Britons in France obtaining a carte de séjour (and, if possible, the séjour permanent type) so as to ‘get into the system’ before Brexit.

Hallyday will battle hinges on where he was resident

For many people, legal place of residence is key in working out inheritance issues. However the estate of Johnny Hallyday, often described out of France as ‘the French Elvis’, is likely to be especially complicated, reports Oliver Rowland

UK issues the most residence cards

Britain was the EU country which issued the most residence cards to non-European new arrivals last year, with many of them going to students.

Has tax on UK pension changed?

My UK state pension is paid into our UK account and if the exchange rates favour us, we transfer some to our French bank account. When we arrived in France in 2001 we were told by our local tax inspector it was not liable to French tax as we had already paid our tax in the UK. Now our tax office says there has been a change in law (they mentioned a UK/France convention) and from the 2016 tax year I would have to start paying tax on it. Have you heard of this? T.H.

Non-resident registering as micro-entrepreneur?

We have a holiday home in Normandy where I spend six months a year. My brother and sister-in-law retired to France and opened a brocante using our barn. They have registered as a micro-entreprise . I am not French tax-resident but would like to cover for them when they have time off. Can I also register as an micro-entrepreneur even though I am here less than six months of the year? L.M.

Carte de séjour experiences

Readers talk about their experiences whilst applying for a carte de séjour

Told that permanent carte de séjour does not exist

In recent issues there has been a lot of queries about Cartes de Séjour which I have been Interested in as I have been a resident in France as a retired Englishman for nine years. I visited my préfecture in Cahors to request one with the word ‘ permanent ’ as you suggested and was told no such card exists and they can only give a 10-year card. Is there a website where I can find out more so I am prepared next time? P.P.