French Tax & Health Insurance Advice
 

This is an old question but there does not appear to be any recent info on the subject.


The brief summary is this. I work for a US corporate charter company on an FAA license, receiving a gross "salary" (basic, per diems & re-imbursements) and I sort out my own tax, etc... (effectively self-employed). Up until recently I was based in London paying UK tax and NI contributions through the Self Assessment system. I am now resident in France and would like some advice from guys in the same boat regarding getting set up for tax, social security, etc...


Current scheduling (or lack thereof) means I spend anywhere between 3-5 weeks away from home and then 2-3 weeks at home. This puts me away from home for more than half the year, if that has any bearing on tax status. Thanks.

With the current regime in France you need to do everything you can to avoid being tax resident in France, and setting up any sort of company or self-employed status in that place. Be very careful of charlatans who tell you that 'tax in FR is lower than X and Y and Z'. The statement may be true but what they won't tell you about is social charges (tax by another name) which are crippling.

Others will no doubt be able to give you more detailed information but the basic rule so far as the French Tax Authorities are concerned is that if you spend more than 6 months plus 1 day in France in any calender year (the tax year runs from 01.01 to 31.12) you are classed as resident for french tax purposes. So spending less than that in France would mean that you wouldn't be liable under the basic rule.

That said, if your main home is in France and you spend more time there than anywhere else, I suspect you'd be regarded as as resident there. I strongly advise you to ask a local accountant-a 'comptable' for advice. Certainly people in employment in France pay significantly more tax than the UK though there are allowances for a spouse and any dependent children.

Good luck

That's wrong for a start. The number of days you spend is ONE OF the various tests applied. You can spend well under 183 days and still be considered tax resident. If you have a family, or children at school in FR, and a home in FR, and that is your main residence, which in the absence of another one it will be, you will be considered tax resident in FR. It is not a matter of choice on your part. The French economy is in dire straits and they are grasping for every cent of tax revenue they can raise.

Seconded, basic French "Income Tax" is not that crippling for many, it's the Social Charges (which is levied on just about any income and/or savings ) that can make your eyes water.

Since 28th June 2012, you are supposed to pay your social security in the country where you are based. Therefore this is important to be able to define your base.
EUR-Lex - 32012R0465 - EN - EUR-Lex

Then, you should look at your tax residence. It is important to note that in some case, you can be tax resident in France, but not have to pay tax there if your income is coming from another country which has a double taxation agreement and/or you have paid (enough) tax in this country. Therefore you should look at this agreement.
impots.gouv.fr has plenty of info, mostly in french, I do not know if there is an english version.
Being self employed can make it complex to arrange as you may have to deal with different countries for the tax aand social security...