At the age of 69, I decided to move to France.
I had already lived in the Paris area in my youth, first as the child of an expat working for a US company, and then as an architecture student at the Beaux Arts (Fine Arts). Until 2005, I only had French degrees (not on purpose, it just happened due to moving, wars, et al).
This background is, however, of no interest whatsoever to the French government when I decided to move to France (definitely or indefinitely). I have US citizenship, and that’s it. No European ancestors to call upon, unless a crusader strayed into my forebears, but that would be too long ago, anyway.
I’ll provide the story of my journey (I don’t mean the plane journey, long enough from San Francisco to Nice), from decision to first residence card. A couple of things may have changed in the meantime, but not much, as far as I can tell. I wish I had known all the pitfalls before I started; at least I would have been better prepared.
My first bit of advice is to get on Americans in France blogs, Facebook groups, etc., before you start, rather than afterwards! You can’t believe everything (and you shouldn’t even believe me, without verifying first), but at least you get a lot of information about the pain points.
Before You Pull Up All Your US Roots
- If you are selling your home, do it before you move to France. Otherwise, you may incur additional capital gains taxes in France.
- Before you cancel your car insurance, ask for a letter that shows your claims history (in theory, 14 years’ worth). Otherwise, you’ll be treated as a beginner driver.
- Only some US states have a reciprocity agreement for the driver’s license.
The Start: the Long-Stay Visa
France is not a country that is especially welcoming to non-EU (European Union) immigrants. There are no golden visas and no special deals. There are many categories of immigrants, and the first action item is to figure out where you fit in. There is no official “retiree” visa: it is a visitor visa. It is only at the expiration of the 1-year visa that you can apply for a residence card.
You’d think the place to apply would be the French embassy or consulate in your area, but no. Visas had been outsourced to a company called VSF Global — now it’s another company, TLSContact. Visas are handled for a variety of countries; the person I interviewed with didn’t even speak French. Before booking an appointment, you fill in an application.
The visa requires health insurance. I got mine via the VFS website, with a company named Mutuaide. Possibly, TLScontact offers links to insurance companies. American insurance companies may be very expensive. **Note from the editor: we recommend Cigna Global for the health insurance needed for your visa application.
You register your account on the TLS site, find the appropriate visa type (VLS-TS), provide the documents they request, and ask for an appointment. Remember, there is no specific retired person visa; you apply as a visitor.
At the appointment, you’ll be asked some questions, get fingerprinted, and hand over your passport, which will be sent to the French Embassy. If the request is accepted, you’ll get it back in about a week or so, with a full page stamp that shows your “numéro d’étranger” (your “foreigner’s number”) that will follow you for the length of your time in France as a foreign resident.
Arrival in France
Once you have arrived in France, you will need to “validate” your visa online. There will be a fee.
Then you receive an email with an appointment for a health check. In 2023, I needed a recent chest scan, but this may not be the case any longer. My scan was a couple of months old, so I had to undergo a new X-ray at the government office on the day of my appointment.
You cannot choose your appointment. If it’s inconvenient, you can cancel it and wait for a new appointment. It took about 6 weeks for me. There is nothing you can do to speed it up. If it’s inconvenient again, well, too bad. I had to cancel a trip.
After the chest scan, you go to another location and fill in a couple of questionnaires. One of my questionnaires was about my mental health. Some questions were tricky: “Do you worry about your weight?” for example. “Have you ever been upset at your coworkers?” (I don’t recall the exact wording.) You undergo an interview with health professionals, and if you pass muster, you are given a receipt that is NOT TO BE LOST (even though nobody asked me for it again).
Health Coverage
After three months in France, you can apply for a Social Security number (this is for healthcare): “ouverture des droits.”
You’ll need to prove that you live in France (usually via electrical invoices), and provide:
- Notarized copy of birth certificate (may need to be translated by a certified translator)
- Copy of passport
- Visa or receipt for residence application
- Proof of residence: for example, a rental agreement, or 3 months of electrical invoices
- IBAN (French bank account info)
Make sure the name on your passport is the same as the name on your birth certificate. If you can’t, be prepared to be able to prove who you are!
Most probably, you will receive a questionnaire or a request for more documents. And then you wait, and you wait some more. You may have been approved without even knowing it. Sometimes it’s easy, and sometimes it’s very difficult. You can call them for updates; they have English-speaking agents, but you may not get the correct answer.
In the meantime, it’s less expensive to get medical care in France than in the US without insurance.
Taxes
Once you’ve been in France for over 6 months, you will be considered a tax resident. Income taxes are filed around May. The deadline works well for US taxpayers, as we file in April.
There may be a tax office in your town, and it is possible to talk with the counselors; it’s better to go before high tax season starts (I waited for an hour in the pouring rain in April, and at one point someone advised me in the lobby. They were very, very busy).
A Few More Notes
- US Medicare does not cover overseas expenses
- Beware requesting a 6-month visa instead of a 1-year visa on the TLS website; you won’t be able to request the carte de séjour (residence card)
- American Express is not widely accepted in Europe, and they charge fees for overseas charges
- US credit card companies will not automatically cover your overseas expenses in the unfortunate case of your card being stolen and used before you can block it
- When you get money at an ATM, it is usually preferable to choose to get the money in euros, rather than have it converted by the bank managing the ATM. Unless the US dollar is in free fall. You never know
This first part covers my experience of getting your foot into France! Stay tuned for Part 2 for the next part of the saga.
Photo of the view of Mont Boron in Nice.
Did you enjoy this article? TAIP is 100% reader-supported through tipping. If you want to leave us a tip of any amount it would be highly appreciated. These tips help support our efforts to keep TAIP an ad-free environment. Just like at a cafe, the tips are split evenly among the team.