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Red tape, spices and property: 6 essential articles for life in France

Handy bureaucracy and employment hacks, renovation grants and replacing a stolen carte de séjour - and what’s behind France’s apparent aversion to spicy food - all the answers are here, in our latest round up of must-reads from The Local.

Published: 5 November 2023 08:08 CET

Red tape, spices and property: 6 essential articles for life in France

Piments d'Espelette (Photo by PATRICK BERNARD / AFP)

The legend is true – France’s bureaucracy can be beyond cumbersome – but as more processes move online there are an increasing number of shortcuts that will save you time when it comes to admin tasks.

7 handy shortcuts for French bureaucracy

In France, the distinction between a primary residence and a secondary residence (or holiday home) is very important and makes a big difference to important things like taxes and visas. So, here’s what you need to know.

Explained: Is your French property a main residence or a second home (and why it matters)?

Linked to the above – sort of – are you looking to renovate your home in France? You might be eligible for assistance from the French government, especially if you’re doing work on the heating, windows or insulation.

GUIDE: French property grants you might be eligible for

If you’re a foreigner living in France, you may need a carte de séjour to prove your right of residency – but what happens if this precious document is lost or stolen?

What to do if your French carte de séjour is lost or stolen

Busy working in France for L’Homme? Let us introduce you to the ‘convention collective’. It’s a very long document written in densely-worded legal French – but if you can bring yourself to read it, you might benefit from extra days off work, financial bonuses and perks for healthcare.

Why you really should read your French ‘convention collective’

It’s one of the most common questions from new arrivals: where can I find a proper curry or some really good spicy food? French cuisine is, rightly, renowned, but there is one aspect that new arrivals to the country often find disappointing – the lack of spice. So what lies behind this apparent aversion?

Burning question: Do the French really hate all spices?

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Why washing your car in France can lead to a €450 fine

For many car owners, warm weather means time to finally give the vehicle a good wash.

But motorists in France should know that washing your car, motorcycle or other vehicle at home can actually be against the law in France – with some regulation even covering activities in your own driveway or garden.

Failing to respect the rules can lead to hefty fines.

What does the law say?

There are two levels of regulation that affect car-washing – the Environmental Code and local regulations, but both of them are concerned about the same thing; the environmental impact of the runoff from your car washing.

During summer you also need to check if there are any drought restrictions in place, as some of these also ban any type of car-washing.

In 1979, Paris became one of the first cities in France to pass legislation restricting where you can wash your car. The original Paris law states “Car washing is prohibited on the public highway, riverbanks, harbours and quays, as well as in public parks and gardens”.

READ MORE: ‘Drive like a woman’: France targets male drivers in new road safety campaign

Since then, most départements across France have adopted similar decrees, which cover car-washing on public land – roads, pavements, parks or similar.

In order to find the rules in your area, contact your local préfecture (or ask the mayor), but most areas now have a ban on car-washing on the public highway, with a penalty of a third-class fine of €450.

However there is also the Environmental Code, which operates on a national level, and that can cover even your own private property such as a driveway, garage or garden.

The Code states that “direct or indirect discharge of harmful substances into surface or groundwater is prohibited”.

This can affect wastewater from washing a vehicle as certain chemicals in car wash detergents, as well as any runoff motor oil, can have negative effects on local flora and fauna. Runoff can happen from both public and private land, which is why the Environmental Code has a wider scope.

Violating the rules on discharging harmful substances into water carries a maximum penalty of a two-year prison sentence or a fine of €75,000. Judges can also order defendants to carry out restoration of the environment that they contaminated.

The penalties are even harsher if you live in a coastal area where the runoff would go directly into the sea or ocean, or if you live next to a conservation zone. In this case, fines can go up to €100,000.

We should point out that these maximum penalties are more likely to be applied to companies which have been found to be polluting the local watercourse, rather than motorists washing their car, but the fines do have a large range.

So where can I wash my car?

First, you can go to a car wash (une station de lavage). Not only do car wash stations use less water than you would washing the vehicle at home (50 to 60 litres per vehicle instead of 200-300 litres at home), they also treat the wastewater.

As a result, car washes do not risk polluting the waterways.

They are very common in France and include automatic car-washes, staffed car-washes where someone else does the hard work or the more common self-service type (usually coin operated) where you wash the car yourself use their pressure hoses and soap. These are often found in supermarket car-parks or at out-of-town shopping centre car parks.

Second, you can look for a designated car washing area. These would allow you to wash your own vehicle manually. They have special steps in place to treat the runoff water in compliance with environmental regulations. You can ask your mairie where these are located.

And finally, an alternative is to clean your car without using any water at all. To do this, you can purchase special wipes. There are also special dry-cleaning options, including sprays that you put onto your car, leave for a few seconds so that the dirt is absorbed, and then wipe off using a microfibre cloth.

Drought

During periods of drought, local authorities have the power to restrict non-essential water usage, including things like watering your garden or filling your swimming pool.

These regulations apply to any type of car-washing – on public or private space, or at a car-wash – and take precedence over any other local rules.

You can check to see if your area is under water restrictions by going to the French government website vigieau.gouv.fr and typing in your home or rental address. The website will inform you of what (if any) restrictions are in place, the penalties of failing to respect them, as well as offering government advice for how to decrease your water usage.

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