Immigrate to France. How to move to France
THE BASICS
What you need to know about living in France
Paris
UTC +1
Euro (EUR)
67 million
French
+33
112
On the right side
BEFORE MOVING
The cost of moving to France. International removals to France by Eurosender
The cost of moving to France depends on the shipment size and its urgency. Eurosender offers multiple options for international removals to France:
Visa regulations for France
For the EU and the EEA citizens planning to relocate to France, there are no visa requirements to live and work in France.
If you are immigrating to France from outside the EU or EEA countries, you need to obtain a visa. The most common types of visa expats apply for before moving to France are related to work, study, and family reunion purposes. For detailed information, check all visa requirements with your local French consulate or embassy.
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Property information. Rentals in France
Before you immigrate to France, you have to find an apartment, villa, or a house. Depending on the purpose of your stay and the number of family members moving to France together with you, you may consider different options for renting or purchasing a real estate property in France.
IF you are relocating to France as a student, you can rent a one-bedroom apartment for around €600 per month. If you are moving to France with your family, a three-bedroom accommodation will cost about €1000 per month.
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LIVING IN FRANCE
The cost of living in France
The cost of living in France may vary across the country. While the minimum monthly salary is €1,539 and the average monthly wage in France is €2,200, you will need at least €600 to support your living. Additional spendings are associated with apartment rental and utilities. The most expensive cities in terms of the cost of living in France are Paris, Nice, Grenoble, Nantes, Marseille, Bordeaux, Toulouse, and Lille. While the price for food and utilities will be pretty similar in those cities, the cost of an apartment rental in Paris will be higher than that in Bordeaux, for instance. However, you may try to find an affordable furnished room in a good region of Paris for about €400 or €500 per month.
Do you need to send documents urgently to France to help secure a place to stay before moving?
Eurosender offers fast envelope delivery with our Express delivery service.
The job market in France
Expats living in France find decent job opportunities in the field of aerospace, motor industry, electronics, textiles, tourism, and agriculture. Over the past few years, more and more professionals in the sphere of IT and engineering are in high demand. Thus, experts with corresponding skills in those areas could easily find a job opportunity in France.
The EU and EEA citizens don’t need a work permit to work in France. Meanwhile, the expats moving to France from the US, Canada, and other non-EU and non-EEA countries need to prepare the corresponding documentation to work legally in France.
Education in France
When moving to France with family, you need to take care of your children education as well. All children residing in France should obligatorily attend school starting from the age of 6. In case your children are not fluent in French, there are primary schools with French-language courses for beginners.
The French education system includes compulsory primary, secondary, and high school.
Even though high school is compulsory in France, one can choose whether to attend lycée general, lycée technique or lycée professionnel. Depending on the type of the chosen educational establishment, students either get ready for vocational studies, to work in the sphere of technology and IT, or to pursue a bachelor’s program at the university.
Age: 3 – 5
Compulsory: no
Age: 6 – 10
Compulsory: yes
Age: 11-15
Compulsory: yes
Age: 16-18
Compulsory: yes
Healthcare in France
As the healthcare system of France has gone through transformations recently, both working and non-working foreign residents living in France have obtained access to medical services under the Protection Universelle Maladie. In France, every resident should obligatorily have private or public health insurance.
The healthcare system in France is similar to that in the USA and other countries of the European Union. After you obtain health insurance coverage, you also need to register with a family doctor. It is necessary to address a family doctor if you have any health issues to get an appointment to any other medical specialist.
Driving in France. Should I get a French driving licence?
You must have a valid driving licence issued in an EU or EEA country to drive a vehicle in France. If you hold a non-European licence, you can drive in France for up to one year with an International Driving Permit or your local driving licence translated into French.
There are several basic tips for driving in France:
- You need to carry driver license, passport, and insurance documents with you while driving in France.
- All children under the age of 10 need to travel in special seats.
- You need to drive on the right side of the road in France.
- Stick to the speed limits: 130 km/h on motorways, 50 km/h in urban areas. 90 km/h on other roads.
What else to expect when living in France as an expat
Immigrants moving to France allocate the following aspects of living there:
- Living in France is sometimes directly associated with living in Paris and its many cultural and historical spots. Meanwhile, there are many other culturally diverse and unique cities such as Marseille, Lyon, Bordeaux, Nice, Lille, etc.
- While the right to strike is a privilege granted to workers in France, it may turn into an inconvenience for city residents.
- If you need to renew your residence permit card, for instance, be prepared to apply beforehand and collect all the necessary documents. French bureaucracy is very tough, indeed, but there is practically no way to escape.
RECOMMENDED
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MOVING DESTINATIONS
See the most popular countries from where people move to France
Moving to France from Italy
Before moving to France from Italy, you will need to find the cheapest way to move your furniture and other belongings to France. With the international removals service provided by Eurosender, you get lower than the average price to move house to France. Our logistics agents will answer all your questions and provide relevant information about relocation to France with Eurosender.
Moving to France from Canada
Nearly half of Canada speaks French fluently. If you want to immigrate to France from Canada, use Eurosender services to move personal belongings to Paris, Marseille, Lyon or any other destination. There is no need to spend time comparing different prices for courier services before moving to France from Canada. With Eurosender, you get the most affordable and reliable way to move house to France.
Moving to France from Spain
Eurosender offers exclusive international removals services to France for expats and international students at an affordable cost. When using the Eurosender platform, you can instantly check out the average price to move house, furniture and other belongings to France and book a removal service in just a few minutes. Take advantage of the leading shipping platform and immigrate to France from Spain easily.