To begin with, there is much more to relocating to France as a remote worker than just the aesthetic appeal of living in France. There is a lot of sequential movement needed to be able to move to France (and live in France) successfully. Visa status, housing availability, eligibility for public health care, and tax residency in France are all interconnected and if one of them doesn’t align correctly then the others become very difficult to achieve.
Legal stay and work model: get organized early
If you have plans to be in France longer than a short tourist stay, your immigration status must also be reflective of the realities of your work. Remote employees working for a foreign employer have many different administrative issues than freelancers who are billing their clients directly. If you want to bill clients from within France, the micro-entrepreneur status in France is often used by remote workers because it allows for a simplified way to handle small, independent activities. How you report your revenue, calculate your social contributions, and interact with the French tax authorities will be affected.
Key: clarity. Do you solely work for a foreign employer, and receive payment via a foreign payroll? Or do you plan to issue invoices to your clients while you reside in France? Depending on your answers to these questions, the registrations you need, the documents you will be preparing, and the timeline you will be working against will vary greatly.
Finding housing in France as a remote worker
Securing a place to rent on a long-term basis can be quite complicated than expected. Most of the time, French landlords will assess potential tenants’ income stability and require documentation from the tenant to prove this. Commonly, landlords will ask for payslips, tax returns, and a local guarantor. Remote workers that don’t have a French employment contract may find that they are not able to fit into the typical landlord’s template.
One practical way to go about finding a place to rent is to first look at furnished rentals or medium-term leases. This will give you the opportunity to build a French address history and gather some of the necessary paperwork that is usually required for more traditional leases. When you’re generating invoices as an independent contractor, providing proof of income and providing legitimate invoices will help build your file over time.
Organization is important. Make sure to keep both digital and physical copies of your identification, your visa or residence documents, proof of income, and proof of address. You will need to reuse these documents when setting up utilities, opening a bank account, and registering with various government agencies.
Registration for social security and healthcare
Your ability to obtain healthcare will depend upon your residence situation and the type of activity you are involved in. Some visa types require that you purchase private health insurance prior to entering France. Once you have established your residence in France, you may qualify to apply for public coverage through the French system.
Be prepared to present identity documents, evidence of a fixed residence, and other documentation related to your legal stay in France. Because processing times for registration can take several months, you should consider purchasing private health insurance until your registration has been completed.
As a registered micro-entrepreneur, your social contributions will be calculated as a percentage of the turnover reported by your business. Therefore, your social contributions will be directly tied to your social protection and the timely completion of your business declarations will ensure that there are no gaps in your coverage.
Taxes and residency in France: when France is your fiscal base
In determining tax residency in France, the French tax authorities will examine whether you have your principal home in France and/or if you spend more than six months per year in France. After being determined to be tax residents in France, you will typically be required to report all of your worldwide income in France, subject to any applicable tax treaties.
Remote employees need to understand how salaries received from outside of France will be treated in France. Freelance workers need to accurately track their turnover and adhere to reporting deadlines. As a micro-entrepreneur, you will report your turnover regularly and your social contributions will be calculated based upon your last declaration.
It is highly recommended to separate your personal financial information from your business financial information. Opening a separate business bank account will help clarify your financial statements and simplify your accounting.
