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BREXIT

Explained: Post-Brexit rules on travelling to France with a pet

Brexit hasn't just brought about changes in passport rules for humans, pets are also affected - and this issue is particularly pertinent for British second-home owners.

Published: 23 May 2022 10:37 CEST
Updated: 19 February 2024 08:27 CET
Explained: Post-Brexit rules on travelling to France with a pet
Don't forget travel paperwork for your pets. Photo by THOMAS COEX / AFP

Pre-Brexit, people travelling between France and the UK could obtain an EU Pet Passport for their cat, dog or ferret which ensured a hassle-free transport experience.

But since the UK left the EU things have become more complicated – and a lot more expensive – for UK residents wanting to travel to France with pets.

You can find a full breakdown of the new rules HERE, but the main difference for people living in the UK is that that they now need an Animal Health Certificate for travel.

Unlike the Pet Passport, a new ACH is required for each trip and vets charge around £100 (€118) for the certificate. So for people making multiple trips a year, especially those who have more than one pet, the charges can quickly mount up.

UK nationals who live in France can still benefit from the EU Pet Passport, but the situation for second-home owners became a little confusing in the immediate post-Brexit period.

However in 2022 the French Agriculture ministry published updated information on its website.

The rules state: “The veterinarian can only issue a French passport to an animal holding a UK/EU passport issued before January 1st, 2021, after verifying that the animal’s identification number has been registered in the Fichier national d’identification des carnivores domestiques (I-CAD).”

I-CAD is the national database that all residents of France must register their pets in – find full details HERE.

The ministry’s advice continues: “If not registered, the veterinarian may proceed to register the animal in I-CAD, if the animal’s stay in France is longer than 3 consecutive months, in accordance with Article 22 of the AM of August 1st, 2012 on the identification of domestic carnivores.”

So if you are staying in France for longer than 90 days in every 180 (which usually requires a visa for humans) your pet can be registered and get an EU Pet Passport.

However, those who don’t have a visa and stick to the 90-day rule to make shorter visits to their French property must continue to use the AHC – which means paying each time they travel to France.

Some confusion had arisen for second-home owners because previously some vets had been happy to issue the Passport using proof of a French address, such as utility bills. The Ministry’s ruling, however, makes it clear that this is not allowed.

So here’s a full breakdown of the rules;

Living in France

If you are living in France full time your pet is entitled to an EU Pet Passport regardless of your nationality (which means your pet has more travel rights than you do. Although they probably still rely on you to drive the car/book the ferry tickets).

Your cat, dog or ferret must be fully up to date with their vaccinations and must be registered in the national pet database I-CAD (full details here).

Once issued, the EU Pet Passport is valid for the length of the animal’s life, although you must be sure to keep up with their rabies vaccinations. Vets in France usually charge between €50-€100 for a consultation and completing the Passport paperwork.

Living in the UK

If you are living in the UK and travelling to France (or the rest of the EU) you will need an Animal Health Certificate for your cat, dog or ferret.

The vaccination requirements are the same as for the EU Pet Passport, but an ACH is valid for only 10 days after issue for entry to the EU (and then for four months for onward travel within the EU).

So if you’re making multiple trips in a year you will need a new certificate each time.

UK vets charge around £100 (€118) for a certificate, although prices vary between practices.

Second-home owners

Although previously some French vets had been happy to issue certificates with only proof of an address in France, the French government has now clarified the rules on this, requiring that pets be registered within the French domestic registry in order to get an EU Pet Passport.

This can only be done if the pet is staying in France for more than three months. The three months must be consecutive, not over the course of a year.

UK pets’ owners will normally require a visa if they want to stay in France for more than three months at a time (unless they have dual nationality with an EU country) – find full details on the rules for people HERE.

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For members

LEARNING FRENCH

Vocab guide for the French property tax declaration

With the deadline to have completed the property tax declaration approaching, here's a look at all the vocabulary you will need to fill out the form.

Published: 19 April 2024 11:37 CEST
Vocab guide for the French property tax declaration

The property tax declaration must be completed by everyone who owns property in France – including second-home owners who live in another country.

You can find our guide to registering and filing your declaration HERE.

The form can be filled in either online or on paper and, naturally, it is in French – in fact it’s in the special kind of bureaucratic French reserved for admin tasks.

Here’s a look at how to translate it;

Personal details

It begins with asking for personal details from the property owner. If the property is owned jointly by two or more people, only one person needs to do the declaration, but you will need to list all the people who use it (more on that later).

Nom de naissance – this is your surname (family name) as it appears on official documents like a passport

Nom d’usage – this is the surname that you are known by. The reason that it’s on the form is that in France women do not officially change their names when they marry and documents like their passport or driving licence remain in their maiden names. However, they may be known in everyday life by their husband’s surname – for example the president’s wife is widely known as Brigitte Macron, but her passport will say Brigitte Trogneux (her maiden name).

For most people; their nom de naissance and nom d’usage will be the same. Correspondence will be addressed to you by your nom d’usage.

Prénom(s) – first names – if you have any middle names, include them.

Date de naissance – date of birth (in the format day/month/year)

Lieu de naissance – place of birth. This should be listed as it appears on your passport

Numéro fiscal – tax number. If you have previously paid property tax bills this number will be on the bill. If you have not yet received a bill and don’t have a tax number for any other tax tasks (eg the annual income tax declaration) the first thing that you need to do is request a numéro fiscal – full details on how to do that HERE.

Votre adresse de domiciliation – the address that you live at. For foreign second-home owners, this will be their address outside France, not the address of the French property.

N° – house number

Voie – street name

Complément d’adresse – any extra lines of the address, if applicable 

Code postal – postcode/ZIP code

Ville – town

Pays – country

Votre téléphone – phone number. If it is a non-French number, remember to include the country code 

Votre adresse courriel – email address

Si vous avez conservé l’usage de votre résidence principale et que vous êtes hébergé(e) dans un
établissement d’hébergement pour personnes âgées dépendantes (EHPAD), veuillez cocher la case – this probably won’t apply to many people but if you have moved into a care home or nursing home but are keeping your property as a main residence, tick this box.

Property details

The next section is about the French property that you are declaring

Cette déclaration concerne ma résidence principale – this declaration concerns my main residence (tick yes or no). This bit is important because it will determine which property taxes you pay. A property is your ‘main residence’ if you live there most of the time – for other uses (second home, holiday home, rented out property), tick ‘no’.

La nature de votre bien – Maison/Appartement – is your property a house or an apartment

Superficie – size in metres squared (this should be included in your property deeds)

Étage – number of floors

Porte – number of doors

Tick any of these that appy; Cave – cellar, Garage – garage, Parking – dedicated parking space (this doesn’t include a driveway, it’s more for city dwellers whose apartment may have a separate parking area), Piscine – pool 

Si vous possédez d’autres biens à une adresse différente, veuillez remplir une nouvelle déclaration
d’occupation – if you own more than one French property, you do a separate declaration for each one

Précisez l’adresse de votre logement (ou bien) concerné par la déclaration si elle est différente de votre
adresse principale – address of the property being declared, if different from your main residence. For second home owners, this is where you put the address of the French property. The format is as described above.

Property use

The next section is asking you what the property is used for.

Vous avez la jouissance de ce bien – you have the use of this property. You tick this if it is your main home, but also if it is a second home or holiday home. 

Vous occupez personnellement le bien depuis le – you have occupied the property since [date]. This date is the purchase date. This applies to second-home owners too, if you don’t rent out your property then you are the ‘occupier’, even if you are not always there.

Si vous occupez ce logement avec un conjoint ou un des indivisaires, veuillez préciser leur identité (ne pas déclarer les enfants mineurs) – identity of anyone that you share the property with. This would include your spouse or partner for couples who own property together, or any other co-owners or people who live with you as long-term tenants. You only need to include your children on this if they are over the age of 18.

Votre bien est occupé par une ou plusieurs personne(s) autres que vous-même – the property is occupied by someone other than yourself. You tick this if the property is rented out to someone else or someone else uses it as their main residence (even if they don’t pay rent). In this case you will be asked for their details plus the start date of their tenancy.

You will also be asked if the tenant is a personne physique or a personne morale – this has nothing to do with their physical appearance or morals, it’s whether your tenant is a private individual or a business or organisation.

Votre bien fait l’objet d’une location saisonnière ou de courte durée (contrat de location d ’un
meublé inférieur à 6 mois) [ne pas compléter l’identité des occupants] – your property is rented on a short-term or seasonal basis (contracts of less than six months) – this is what you tick if your property is rented out as a holiday home on a regular basis

Votre bien est vacant (il n’est pas occupé et vide de meuble) depuis le [date] – your property is vacant. This doesn’t apply to second homes, even if they are empty for a significant part of the year. In order to be classed as a ‘vacant’ property, it must be unoccupied and empty of all furniture. This usually applies to rental properties that are between tenants.

Je déclare ne pas avoir d’accès à internet – if you’re declaring on paper you will see this as the bottom next to the space for your signature. This is because the paper declaration is supposed to be available only to people who cannot file online, due to a lack of internet access. 

Don’t forget to sign and date your declaration before sending it back, if you are declaring on paper.

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