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LIVING IN FRANCE

Curfew, bars, travel and health passports: What rules are in place in France right now?

Wednesday, June 9th marked the day that France moved into the third phase of lifting lockdown - here's what the new rules say.

Curfew, bars, travel and health passports: What rules are in place in France right now?
With curfew relaxed, nightlife can begin again in France. Photo: Ludovic Marin/AFP

Bars, cafés and restaurants can reopen indoor spaces – previously allowed to open only their terraces, bars and cafés can now reopen indoors as well, with a 50 percent limit on capacity and a maximum of 6 people per table. Anyone drinking or eating inside will have to provide their contact details and cafés are setting up QR codes that customers can scan.

READ ALSO QR codes and sign-ins – how France’s reopened restaurants will keep track of customers

There’s a change to outdoor areas too, as terraces will be able to operate at 100 percent of their normal capacity, albeit still with the 6-person limit on tables.

Bar service will not be allowed either indoors or outdoors.

International travel sees big changes with the introduction of the traffic light system which ends restrictions on vaccinated travellers from many non-EU countries – full details HERE.

Curfew moves back to 11pm from 9pm. Anyone out between 11pm and 6am will still need an attestation justifying their essential reason for being out, but bars etc will be able to stay open until 11pm.

READ ALSO How France’s curfew will work this summer

Health passports come into use for events within France. The French health passport is already up and running on the TousAntiCovid app, which now has a ‘my wallet’ section where you can scan in either vaccination certificates or a recent negative Covid test. From June 9th, this will be required to enter certain large events in France including concerts and sports matches.

READ ALSO When and where do you need a health passport? 

Gyms and swimming pools reopen for the general public, with limits on the total numbers of people allowed and strict health protocols in place.

Events of up to 5,000 people are again allowed, with a health passport. Large events such as concerts and sports matches can start up again, up to a 5,000 person limit. Entry will be via the health passport with proof of either being fully vaccinated or having been recently tested.

Spas reopen for the general public, at full capacity.

Shops, museums, cinemas and tourist sites get an increase in their customer capacity. These reopened on May 19th but had to allow 8 square metres for each person. That limit drops down to 4m sq per person on June 9th, meaning less restrictions on entry numbers. Meanwhile cinemas and theatres can move up to 65 percent of their normal capacity, up to a maximum of 1,000 people, or 5,000 people with a health passport.

Most larger museums, galleries and tourist sites are still operating a policy of advance booking only, so check in advance of your visit and some of the bigger sites have chosen to reopen later in the summer.

IN DETAIL When are France’s tourist sites reopening?

Remote working – government advice for everyone who can to work from home full time comes to an end, but this does not mark a mass ‘back to the office’. The protocol published by the Labour Ministry says only that the 100 percent remote working recommendation ends, but advises a gradual and phased return to the office, with the exact details worked out between employers and employees. 

“This must be the starting point of a move to find the right balance between face-to-face and remote working, and to put in place new practices,” said Labour Minister Elisabeth Borne.

Weddings or civil ceremonies are allowed but the venue must be at no more than 50 percent of its capacity, while funerals have a maximum of 75 attendees.

And what stays the same?

Gatherings of more than 10 people in public places remain advised against, unless health protocols are in place.

Masks are still compulsory in all indoor public spaces, at pain of a €135 fine. While some local authorities have lifted the rule on masks in outdoor private spaces in most of France, including virtually all of the big cities, masks remain compulsory outside as well.

Nightclubs remain closed.

Member comments

  1. Events up to 5000 people allowed, yippy! Yet when you sit outside your 7th friend has to sit at a seperate table! It all makes so much sense!

    1. Just use some common sense, which seems to be lacking in certain sections of today’s society.

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LIVING IN FRANCE

Are Canadian pensions taxed in France?

If you are considering retiring to France, you might be wondering whether you will still be able to access your Canadian pension and if it will be subject to French taxes. Here is what you need to know.

Are Canadian pensions taxed in France?

Before going any further, it is worth noting that this article is meant to give an overview of the pensions situation for people with Canadian pensions. It does not replace professional financial advice, and Canadians looking to retire in France should still seek out expert financial assistance as needed.

The first step is to determine whether or not you are a tax resident in France (you can look through our guide). All tax residents must fill out a yearly tax declaration, and they must report all global income, even if it is not subject to tax in France. 

You should also consider if you have a pension from another country besides Canada, as different rules may apply based on that country’s bilateral tax treaty with France. Here is the situation for British, American, and Australian pensions, and here is an overview of the system.

Where is my pension taxed?

In Canada, the pensions system includes multiple tiers of public and private schemes, but luckily the double tax treaty between Canada and France is explicit about where pensions are taxed.

The Local spoke with Isaac Barchichat, a registered CPA in France, Canada and the USA to understand the situation for Canadians in France. He is a managing partner at Monceau CPA, an international accounting firm based in Paris with offices in the US and Canada.

He told The Local: “Tax treaties usually follow the OECD model, which means that Article 18 is usually focused on pensions.

“Article 18 for the Canada-France treaty is very similar to the USA-France treaty. This means that pensions are taxed in the country that they are issued in,” he said.

As a result, any Canada-based pension – whether that is the Old Age Security plan, the CPP (Canada Pension Plan) or QPP (Quebec Pension Plan), or a private personal or employer plan (such as Registered Retirement Savings Plans, or RRSPs) – would be taxed in Canada, not France.  

Barchichat explained that Canadians in France should still declare their pension income in France. Like Americans, they will receive a tax credit from France attesting that they have already paid tax in Canada on their pension.

“People should still maintain proof that the pension was already subject to tax, in case of an audit,” he added.

Barchichat also recommended that Canadians resident in France can make use of the ‘mention expresse’ section in their French tax declaration.

“Sometimes French local tax authorities fail to assess foreign income properly. Using the ‘mention expresse’ allows you to specify to French tax authorities Article 18 from the tax treaty to ensure that they process your documents properly,” he advised.

All of this being said, Canadians should beware that their pension income could still count towards your total household income in France, even though it is not taxed here. As a result, it could end up pushing you into a higher tax bracket.

What about social charges?

In addition to taxes (impôts), France also requires people to pay social charges (prélèvements sociaux) on income. However, only specific types of income can be considered for social charges, such as the CSM charge (PUMa) for healthcare. 

The general rule is that pensioners and their spouses do not have to pay the CSM charge, but France specifically exempts people who have a pension from France, the EU, the EEA and the UK (people with S1 forms), as well as their non-working spouses.

There is some debate over whether American and Canadian private pensions ought to be treated as a pension (and therefore exempt from CSM) or as investment income (which can attract CSM charges). 

When it comes to Americans, tax expert Jonathan Hadida from HadTax told The Local: “Under the principle of equality amongst taxpayers, URSAAF has treated most US pensions/IRA distributions/401(k) distributions akin to a French/Swiss/European pension and have therefore exempted Americans with pension income.”

“I have called URSSAF, and I was told by the representative that they should be paying for PUMa. But in practice, I have not seen many American pensioners charged for it.”

It is likely that similar standards are applied to Canadians. 

Barchichat, who is licenced in both the US and Canada, said that in his opinion neither American nor Canadian pensioners should be charged for prélèvements sociaux

“If this happens, it is a mistake by tax authorities”, he added. You can learn more about contesting a CSM charge here.

READ MORE: Cotisations: Why you might get an unexpected French health bill

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