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WORKING IN FRANCE

Digital nomad: What are the rules on working remotely from France?

Modern technology means that many jobs can be done from anywhere in the world with only a laptop and a decent wifi connection - but what are the rules if you are working remotely in France for a company back in your home country?

Published: 25 October 2021 17:33 CEST
Updated: 10 May 2023 09:53 CEST
Remote working from France for non-French comanies
Photo by Chris DELMAS / AFP

These days it is perfectly possible to be physically located in France, while working remotely for a company based in the UK, the USA or other.

It’s grown since the pandemic and is increasing popular for roles including journalism, translating, online or web services, copy-editing or online tutoring, plus a host of other roles that can be done using just a laptop and a decent wifi connection.

But while modern technology means this is increasingly practical, people doing this option need also to consider how it affects their residency, work permits and tax status.

We asked Fiona Mougenot, a lawyer and partner in the immigration specialists Expat Partners, what are the things that people need to think about.

Digital Nomad or French resident?

You might have heard the term Digital Nomad, and some countries including Spain are even offering Digital Nomad visas to tempt people to head to under-populated areas of the country (although reports from over the border suggest that actually getting one of these new Spanish visas is far from easy). 

France does not have a similar visa although the country is keen to attract tech workers, but Fiona says people need to be clear on their long-term aims.

A Digital Nomad is usually someone spending a short time in a country, or moving between various countries while doing some short-term tech-based work – for example food bloggers or Instagram influencers.

Fiona says: “If you are genuinely a Digital Nomad and you’re just in France for a few months that is one thing, but if you want to live in France, then you need to consider your longer-term access to French residency, maybe citizenship one day and in the shorter term healthcare and benefits.”

Working in France

So what actually counts as ‘working in France’? French visa and residency applications generally ask if you have emploi en france (employment in France).

But does that include any work done while you are physically located in France?

Not necessarily. Fiona says: “If the work that you are doing has no connection to France – it’s not a French company, the work doesn’t benefit or involve France or a French company in any way then you can legitimately claim that you are not working in France.”

There is however, a big caveat to this – do you really want to say that you’re not working in France?

Working abroad

While it may initially seem simpler to not ‘officially’ be working in France, this can have an effect on many other things such as your access to healthcare and social benefits in France, as well as your pension rights.

If you intend to stay in France in the longer term you will eventually need to apply for long-term residency and maybe even citizenship and in most cases this will require you to prove that your main base of operations is France, not the country where your employer is based.

If you are British and covered by the Withdrawal Agreement (for people resident in France before December 31st 2020) – the Withdrawal Agreement carte de séjour gives you the right to work in France.

Fiona said: “It’s complicated, this is a real grey area as most of the rules were put in place before remote working became widespread. Everyone’s circumstances are different, but when we have clients making this decision once we have pointed out to them all of the knock-on effects people almost always decide that it’s better to be officially working in France.

“Many people have a desire to avoid the French admin, which is understandable, but if you see yourself staying in France for any kind of long or medium term future it’s inevitable and if you want to do things like registering children in school or retiring in France and having access to healthcare then you will need to engage with the system.

“And if you want to apply for a 10-year residency card or citizenship one day then you need to show that your main economic base is France, if you have been declaring that your work was done elsewhere then you may find that these years don’t ‘count’ towards the five-year mandatory residence period for citizenship, for example.”

Working while visiting

If you don’t intend to make France your home, you may want to spend long periods here anyway – especially if you have a second home – and if you’re from a non-EU country then that requires a visa.

Most second-home owners who don’t intend to work will apply for a visitor visa – but does this rule out doing a few days of work remotely from your French property?

READ ALSO How to get a visitor visa for France

Visitor visas ask people to agree not to have emploi en France, but what about doing some work for your company back in the UK or the USA?

Fiona says: “Depending on the circumstances this would probably be OK, provided that your work has no connection to France or a French company. You remain a visitor in France, with all the limitations that implies such as a lack of access to the state healthcare system, while working for a company in another country.”

However there are other things to think about, including ensuring that your employer knows where you are working and agrees to it.

Fiona said: “There are other potential issues connected to this, such as whether you would be covered by insurance in case of an accident – your workplace insurance will not cover you if your employer was not aware that you were working from France.”

Living and working in France

So if you’re living in France and decide to declare your status as working, what do you need to do?

If you’re applying now for a visa you would apply for a working visa as an entrepreneur or auto-entrepreneur, depending on whether you are an employee or self-employed.

When the time comes to apply for residency, you again apply as either employed or self-employed and provide proof if necessary of your work.

Once you are officially working in France, you then gain access to the social benefits – which are generous in France – and begin paying into your French pension. This is also available to freelancers via Urssaf.

However there are still other things to think about here, such as your position with your company regarding things like insurance.

Fiona says: “Don’t be tempted to lie to your company and pretend that you’re still in the UK, if you’re based in France – they need to know as it may affect other aspects of your employment.

“As with visitors, insurance cover will not be valid if you haven’t told your company that you’re working in France, you should even tell them if you’re changing locations in France eg if you’re working from your holiday home in the country for a few days or visiting a friend and working from their home.”

Freelancers

Many of the people who do this type of work will be freelancers, working for several different companies. Most people who do this will want to set themselves up as micro-entrepreneurs (previously known as auto-entrepreneurs) in France so they can benefit from social benefits as well as applying for healthcare under self-employed status.

READ ALSO How to register yourself as a micro-entrepreneur in France

If you are declaring work that is done remotely for companies outside France, this still counts in terms of your social security contributions.

However if you are billing companies outside the EU for work done, you need to be aware of the tax rules.

Since Brexit, this of course includes the UK and your work may count as ‘digital supply to UK consumers’ making it liable to UK VAT – more details here.

Tax

Everyone living in France must file an annual tax declaration, even if all of their income comes from abroad – whether that is income from work done in another country or a pension paid by another country.

We have addressed the tax situation for remote workers in France HERE.

Fiona Mougenot is a lawyer specialising in immigration law with Expat Partners.

Member comments

  2. Thanks, very useful and reassuring: all my work is online, for clients in Hong Kong, channelled through my micro-entrepreneur business that helped secure my residency under the Brexit withdrawal agreement. My accountant clarified I can receive HK income into my HK bank account (clients much prefer that), and transfer it once quarterly to my professional bank account in France – thereby saving on bank transfer costs. I report income quarterly and am paying into the health and social security system here – ready for that citizenship application. HK tax authorities have been notified I’ve moved my consultancy from HK to France. Of course, I pay more tax in France, which Thomas Piketty has taught me not to complain about!

  3. Peter Werry
    I have now retired to France but still have Consultancy Agreement with my former Thai employer. They are remitting monies to me monthly to my French bank with the Thai income tax paid by them. I no longer have Thai bank account. So what advise does Fiona Mougenot or yourselves suggest?.
    Regards
    Peter

  4. Without any link or reference to French law or stated policy of the French Interior or Labor ministry, this is nothing more than one person’s opinion. TheLocal should not publish articles that do not support their views with data.

  5. Without references to French labor or immigration law, or even opinions of high ranking people in those ministries, this is nothing more than the unsubstantiated opinion of the author. TheLocal should not publish information without demanding solid data to back up any claims made. This is especially true when there could be severe consequences for someone who follows the advice.

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For members

READER QUESTION

Can I work on a laptop in a French café?

As cafés in Spain launch a crackdown on remote workers who hog tables for hours without buying anything, what's the etiquette over working from a café in France?

Published: 16 May 2024 16:30 CEST
Can I work on a laptop in a French café?

Reader question: I’m visiting France shortly and I will need to do some work while I’m there – is it socially acceptable to go to a café and use my laptop there?

Over the border in Spain, cafés in Valencia, Barcelona and Santiago are reportedly ‘on a war footing’ against laptop-users, with some cutting the wifi during peak hours or just banning them altogether.

Fortunately in France, things are a little more relaxed – although this will depend on exactly where you are and how busy the café is. 

First things first – there are no local or national laws about laptop use in cafés (which you might think is a given but France does love to legislate) so the rules are up to the individual café owner and their staff. 

Culturally, however, there is something of a tradition of working in French cafés – famous writers from Victor Hugo to Ernest Hemmingway wrote novels while loitering in cafés, philosophers from Voltaire to Jean-Paul Sartre held discussion groups in Paris cafés and poverty-stricken artists have attempted to pay for their drinks with paintings (usually unsuccessfully).

In more modern times it’s completely normal for work-related meetings to be held in cafés while in cities where people tend to live in small apartments it’s common for social groups such as book clubs to meet in cafés.

But how does this all relate to opening up your laptop and getting down to work?

Well is varies, but there are a few things to think about;

Location – working on a laptop is undoubtedly more common in cities than it is in smaller places and in areas like the Paris or Bordeaux businesses districts it is a common site to see people typing away, perhaps in between business meetings that they have lined up in the café. 

Café size/occupation – take a look around you, is the café busy with people waiting for tables? Is it a tiny place with only space for a few tables? In these cases you’re less likely to be welcome to loiter for hours. If, however, things are quiet and there are plenty of tables it probably won’t be a problem to spend a few hours catching up with work 

Time of day – while this may vary in smaller towns, most city cafés are open all day – catering for the breakfast crowd, then into morning coffee, lunch and leading into the apéro hour and dinner.

Naturally cafés get busier at lunchtime (12 noon to 2pm) and when apéro starts (usually about 6pm) so you’re likely to be less welcome to take up a table for long periods during these times. If you’ve been there all morning and the server pointedly starts adding cutlery to your table, it’s probably a sign that they want the table back for the lunch-time busy period. You could of course order lunch yourself. 

Type of café – not all cafés are created equal and there are many different types. While most places have no problem with people working there, in recent years some Paris cafés have decided to impose limits on laptop use.

One of those is the Fringe café in the trendy Marais district. Owner Jeff told The Local: “I’m not against laptops, but I am against the minority of users who will sit down for four or five hours, with the cheapest drink. That’s not respectful to the space, so the decision came about because of those few who do that. We call them squatters.”

However this view is far from universal. Nix Audon, a server at Café de la Poste, said: “We evolve with the times, we even offer wifi for free. People can come, relax, and do what they need to.”

Before Nix worked at Café de la Poste, he was a customer. “I would come here every day after work just to relax. For me, café culture is about being able to chill, and sit for however long you want. Cafés are a huge part of social life for Parisians and café culture is intended to be inclusive of everyone, including those who want to sit and work on their laptops.”

While this isn’t a hard-and-fast rule, we’ve noticed that most of the places that do have laptop bans are more ‘coffee shops’ in the American style (think loads of different coffee types with elaborate alternative milk options and big slabs of cake) than traditional French cafés (oat milk is for baby oats but the wine selection is excellent).

Do you need to order something? Yes, absolutely, it is only polite to order something if you intend to take up a table for long periods and no that thing cannot be tap water (which is free in French bars, restaurants and cafés).

How much you need to order depends on how long you want to stay – but staying all day and ordering a single espresso (roughly €2) would definitely be regarded as pushing your luck.

That said, French cafés mostly have a ‘no hurry’ policy and you’re unlikely to be rushed out as soon as you have finished your drink unless the café is very busy and you’re in a very touristy area. Lingering over a single coffee while you people-watch and/or think great thoughts is definitely part of France’s traditional culture.

Just ask – of course, you can just ask if it’s OK to work there. The places that don’t appreciate laptop users usually have a sign up to that effect, sometimes just covering a specific time like asking people not to use laptops at weekends or in the evening.

But if you’re unsure, just ask your server 

J’aimerais travailler sur mon ordinateur pendant quelques heures, si c’est possible ? – I’d like to work on my laptop for a couple of hours, if that’s OK?

Je peux utiliser un ordinateur portable ici ? – Is it OK to use a laptop here?

Alternatives – if you want to do more than a couple of hours of work, you might look for a more formal solution. France has a variety of options for people who need a work space, with the most popular being ‘un co-working‘ – a shared workspace where you pay for your time by the hour or the day.

Many of the larger and more business-orientated hotels also offer work spaces and meeting spaces.

Meanwhile in the larger cities there is the trend of ‘un co-homing‘ where people open up their apartments – for a fee – to people who need a space to work, plus a little social interaction.

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