We moved to France to retire so we have no personal knowledge about working here. In fact, for the first five years that we lived here it was forbidden for us to have a job of any sort. To get our initial visa and then the annual residence cards, we had to sign a statement that we would not engage in any kind of professional activity. The prohibition was lifted once we were here for 5 years when we obtained a 10-year residence card (and subsequently French citizenship for me) but we remain happily retired. We still get questions, however, from those who want to come here on a permanent basis, yet continue working remotely. The French tax office has some advice.

There’s a news source called The Local (France) that’s directed towards English speakers living here who want to keep up with current events, especially those that affect non-citizens. They asked the Direction générale des Finances publiques (the tax man, if you will) to clarify the issue about working remotely for a non-French company. The response was that, “work is carried out in France when it is physically performed from French territory, regardless of the employer or the location of the clients.” That’s to say for tax purposes, whether you are an employee or a freelancer and your feet are in France while you are working, then you are working in France.

Most of the blog readers that we get to meet up with here in Carcassonne have come over with a “visiteur” visa, just as we did, meaning that they cannot work. Typically that’s not a problem since also like us, they are here to retire. Once that you can show that you have sufficient income to support yourself, private health coverage until you qualify for the country’s universal health insurance, and a place to live already lined up, generally it seems that a visa is granted.

Unlike some of our surrounding neighbors including Portugal, Spain, and Italy, France does not offer a digital nomad visa. With that style of visa in those countries, non-EU citizens can travel and live in different locations rather than being tied to a specific office or home base. They typically use the internet to perform their jobs and can be freelancers, self-employed individuals, or remote employees for a company based outside the country they are residing in.

The best place, in our opinion, to search for information about visas is the government’s site, France Visas https://france-visas.gouv.fr/en/general-information This link connects to the English version of the information with the reminder, “All visas must be applied for prior to departure at the nearest French Embassy or French Consulate in the applicant’s country of residence.”

By the way, all of the above rules still apply even if you’re here on vacation for just a week or two that usually doesn’t require a visa for US citizens. As the saying goes, “All work and no play makes Frère Jacques a dull boy.” Come on over for a true getaway 😎

Photo notes: The featured photo across the top of today’s post shows the Frioul Islands off of Marseille. In the first paragraph it’s time for a pause café in Nantes.