Tax, health and stuff... am i right in thinking

10 weeks now till we move from Sussex to the Tarn.


From everything I hear the whole paperwork thing in france is, for want of a better word, "trying". Both me and the Husband have lived and worked in numerous countries so we have some experience of being all at sea in a foreign land. But a little more preparation doesn't hurt!


So in a broad brush strokes kinda way am i right in thinking...


That your employer applies for a social security number for you, you get a temporary one, and in theory you get the real one in 3 months - though it's actually more like 6?


BUT how do you get a number if you're self-employed?


That there's no PAYE, and you jointly file your income tax return for the previous calendar year in May, and pay your tax the following year in 3 lots


Oh and you also have to pay a community tax in Oct / Nov


I know this is a minefield, and since we're having the summer off I'm leaving finding a local accountant, solicitor, general expert until then.


Just trying to get a heads up


ta



hello Heather - goodness it seems like another lifetime when i posted that! ‘The Move’ (for it deserves parenthesis) went well from what i can remember through the haze! Husband, dog, 2 cars, truck and 2 drivers, all our worldly possessions made it to the south of france. the new tenants adore our house in sussex, and after camping in a holiday villa for 6 weeks we moved to our fabulous house near Revel… so we’re not a million miles from you - and actually the husband has been wall building quite near Albi. me and the dog have been dozing in the sun… are you still selling / moving?

teresa

La Maison Verdigris

Teresa hello, how did the move go in the end??? We have a house near Albi.

hi Teresa, you can always convert from Auto-E to another company set up if you think you are going to go over the threshold. Check out Valerie's site www.startbusinessinfrance.com she talks about the different regimes on her forum.

Suz

www.UK4Me.co.uk

UK Stores delivering Overseas

cheers sarah,

that's all very interesting... tax wise it looks like we should do a little more investigation before registering tony as self employed via auto-e - thanks. we have time anyway - tony'll be more than pleased to NOT work for a good while...

I've got the E106's on the way too. We've been living in Ireland too - so quite used to paying for health care up front. I always used to save up my various maladies and get them done in one hit!

Hi there

Just to say be careful about auto-entrepreneur. If you earn below their platform you pay no charges, however if you earn more you will pay HIGHER charges than if you were registered under another statute. The French gov did a massive marketing campaign last year and I know several people who fell into this trap.

Unless the law has changed in the last two years, getting an ss number is dead easy. Apply in the UK for an E106, take it with your passport to the Caisse Primaire Assurance Maladie in Castres (I can give your their details) and they will quickly set you up with a temp ss number and carte vitale whilst they process your file after which you will receive a permanent number and carte vitale. I found them friendly and efficient. The E106 means the UK will reimburse France for your healthcare for a period of 2 years after which point you are taken on by France and need to sort out healthcare according to whether you are salaried or self employed.

Dont forget the french health service only covers a percentage of the cost of most treatments so you will need a private healthcare plan to top up. Emergencies, cancers etc are 100% covered by the gov but most visits to the docs, dentist etc will only be paid in part (around 70% I think). Also, the system requires that you pay at each consultation and are then reimbursed. Top up private healthcare plans are called Mutuels - you should be able to find lists on the internet, if not I can recommend mine Santevie UMT.

Healthcare is free if you are unemployed and receive job seekers allowance or income support.

All of the organisations that you will need to contact are in Castres and close to eachother.

Hope that helps a bit!

thanks so much Cefn - that's great!

Im on to the auto-ent site now - and thanks also to the magic of google translate I can just about work my way through it

cheers

Teresa

Thanks for the heads up Steve - all understood!

Teresa

Be warned. When a deadline is given for a declaration or a payment, you must respect it or there will be a fine (10%). I learnt the hard way on my first year's payment and had to get my secretary to use all her charms to get me let off on the basis I was an ignorant foreigner.

Brilliant Steve, thanks

thanks for kind words about www.littledogdiscs.co.uk

Tis more my husbands thing - but i'm getting some good design practice in getting it to work!

I'll mail Chris and say hello. I see he's a stonemason too - same as tony... they'll have much to talk about!

Hi Teresa - just looked at your site - looks great - make sure you get in touch with Chris Nurding (he’s an SFN member) as he is a DJ and currently getting back into promoting old school nights over here C x

>>That there's no PAYE, and you jointly file your income tax return for the previous calendar year in May, and pay your tax >>the following year in 3 lots

Tax for 1st Year is declared in May of the 2nd Year and paid in full in Sept of 2nd Year. You pay tax on 2nd Year in Yar 3 and that can either be monthly or in 3 lots.

>>Oh and you also have to pay a community tax in Oct / Nov

You have two taxes to pay if you own property, Tax d'Habitation and Taxe Foncieres, only the Tax d'Habitation if you are renting. Both come at the end of the year if I remember correctly

Can't help with the SS Numbers as we've been here too long.

Can also recomend Valerie's site www.startbusinessinfrance.com

Steve

Suzanne - thanks so much. That's a brilliant informative reply to a waffly question. The start business site looks great and i'll be able to get a ton of info from there. Love the look of your site too. Perhaps when we're a bit bigger our music site Little Dog Discs might be welcome?

Teresa x

www.littledogdiscs.co.uk

Hi Teresa

It depends on your earnings, the easiest way to be self employed is auto-entrepreneur (no accountant needed). This automatically registers you with all the relevant tax bodies & should set you up with a social security attestation & eventually when pigs fly you will get a carte vitale (we're still waiting for this little green card over a year!).

An excellent resource is www.startbusinessinfrance.com

Suz

www.UK4Me.co.uk

UK Stores delivering overseas