Hi all,
Apologies for probably re-hashing an old question but up to date advice always welcome! I am a UK citizen married (3 years only though) to a German. We want to move to France permanently next year. I’ve done all the research on this, mainly thanks to this great forum, but still have grey areas and the notorious government visa ‘wizard’ leads me down dubious avenues - I’ve read here about the famous dropdown box issues and have similar issues, in my case there is no place to find a way to apply for my specific case. Only ‘family reunion’ which does not apply. Anyway, given that we have other horrible logistical issues, I am probably going to hire an immigration lawyer. I know there are hucksters out there and really need someone who I can trust. All recommendations gratefully received.
With many thanks, Matt
There are several people on here who have done this, and may remove the need for an immigration attorney. Unless you get to an appeal stage (which shouldn’t really happen in your circumstances) they are a bit of a waste of money. The process is designed to be done my the applicant, and only you can get the necessary documents so what does a lawyer add?
There is the infamous translation issue on some French government websites. If you have your browser set to automatically translate pages to English, or even if you do it manually within the browser, that can cause weird issues with form filling. If you are translating pages then try it without. This caught me out once quite a while ago.
Jane thanks, get your point but a) we’ve only been married for three years and have no documents (only date-stamped photos) to prove we’ve been together for the needed five and b) my income requirements via a small annuity now fall short of French rules by 2,000 euros a year. When I get my state pension in 2030 I will be well above however. These are my grey areas, so I thought with the right lawyer maybe I can overcome this. While we would buy a house for cash and come to France with circa 100k and securities another 60k (the latter I believe is not taken into account by the govt.) not sure this is enough. We are not too rich!
That’s why I am prepared to hire a trusted lawyer, even though I can imagine the cost.
Thanks!
Thanks hairbear will try that!
How?
As I understand it (and others will correct if wrong ( @George1 @Helenochka ) as a spouse of a non French EU national you come here and apply for your residence card within the first 3 months. And then wait a long time
Well Jane, I hope you are right and thank you. But my understanding is that in my situation I need to prove I’ve been together with my wife for five years, plus I need circa 18,000 income. Neither of these issues would be a problem in 2030 but not today. That’s my challenge - I think. If your fellow contributors (and I have read their great advice on here) can advise accordingly I’d be forever grateful!
Thank you!
You don’t need any visa at all and it would be a complete waste of money to hire a lawyer.
You would simply* move across and then, after 3 months you would apply for a carte de séjour as an EU family member, providing proof of resources and proof of health insurance.
You can basically move back and forward quite freely so long as your with your EU spouse.
*I’m ignoring things like customs for you possessions and so on but even that isn’t terribly complex.
Google translate plug-in for Chrome used to be a regular offender for this.
I found pointing a tablet or smartphone running a translate app at the PC screen while Herself was driving the PC worked nicely on the “info” pop-ups where you click on a “?” to get help with what the form wants you to enter in the related field.
John thanks, but per my earlier post I am short on annual income (I am retired) by 2k a year for now, but no problem when I get my state pension 2030. One of my grey areas is, if I bring circa 100k cash into France does that mitigate the situation. I’ve read in some places it will, in others it won’t !
Cheers!
John, further to my other reply you helpfully raise something I had not considered - customs. We are moving from Spain, not UK. Will we be charged for our possessions? Thanks a lot!
Nope and you won’t need any paperwork unless your bringing a vehicle but that’s also trivial.
I’ve noticed that people here don’t seem to mention asking the British embassy in Paris for help. I imagine there are reasons for this?
As you suggest, it’s very much dependent upon the specific préfecture on how flexible they are in taking cash and assets into account.
In principle, it’s the EU citizen that has to demonstrate that they have adequate resources to support the spouse which might be helpful to you, or not.
If you do Facebook, they’re are some very good groups on this topic, where you’ll be able to search for posts related to the area that you’re thinking of. I can provide some links if helpful.
The embassy doesn’t really deal with this topic as it’s a matter for France and the EU.
John et al,
First thanks, got it and will proceed accordingly. I am on all the Facebook groups but actually have found that this forum is the best.
The embassy question just raised is interesting. The UK embassy in Paris does not offer any advice on visas etc. it specifically says so on their website. Interestingly, the French embassy in Madrid DOES allow you to process visa applications including biometrics etc there! Not consulates though…
It’s main role is to foster French-UK relations and business. It will help UK nationals in difficulty but in a very limited way and has no role in French immigration.
Totally correct Jane. But I think it’s great that French embassies are willing to help with short term visas at least, which obviates the need to use the government website…
There is no way to apply on the visa wizard for your specific case because you do NOT need a visa as the spouse of an EU citizen and being a citizen of a visa-exempt country (UK). The length of your marriage is of no importance. The only conditions on FOM are that you have comprehensive health insurance and adequate income.
If you meet the conditions you simply show up and apply through ANEF online…and wait.
Do you currently have 1606 euros in income/month for the two of you? If you have that you should be OK now. The spouse may be limited to one-year CdS unless it can be proven that you won’t become a burden to the state.
Thanks a lot for this. Our annuity is only 1,350-1,600 it’s from the UK and obviously fluctuates. Naturally I can show past bank statements. Plus we will buy a house for cash and have circa 100k cash in the bank after that, plus 60k in shares and in 2030 31,000 income.
Gulp. Sorry for battering you with figures. Do you think this might be enough? Thanks!