6 Things I Wish I'd Known Before Moving To France 

1. The French Administration, lots of paperwork, All USA/UK docs must be recent & translated into French by a State Authorized Translator, A recent copy. 2. Bank Accounts for Americans in France. 3. No Credit Cards. French use debit cards mostly. 4. Taxes as a USA Expat. 5. Resident Training, keep all docs proving you have taken it. 6. Getting my French Driver's License.

One of the most unbiased reflections on moving to another country… bravo! Thanks for sharing.

Great advice. My wife and I are considering moving to France next year and these are exactly the kinds of things we need to know.

Most interesting and helpful to one who is considering moving to France.

Wow! I am so glad you shared all of this. This was extremely valuable for me. Thank you!❤

Thanks so much for posting. This was really informative and instructional. I especially liked your responses to others' comments

Thank you for this pertinent information. I am in the process of buying a house south of Carcassonne, near Quillan. I didn't know the bank would be tricky, thanks for the heads up. I should be moving myself and my cats next spring, after I get a visa. There is a visa office in Miami near where I live so I don't have to travel to DC or NYC to submit my initial paperwork. Also, and lucky for me, FL reciprocates with France for driving licenses. I supposedly just go turn mine in and they'll issue me a French one. I hope this one challenge is less although it flies in the face of all my administrative contacts in France over many decades. I used to have to get work permits for myself and team members and no matter how many times I did it there was always something slowing it down. Anyway, thanks again. I can't wait to be done where I am and start this new chapter of my life in a place where beauty is so valued and society is served by the state.

Thank you. This gives me major anxiety, but I needed to know this. Better now than next year. I do have a French girl friend who is helping me along.

So very very helpful, thank you🇲🇫

Even as a French I make sure to keep all my documents, both digitally and on paper. You will not regret getting that organized :)

Your video was excellent. I’m married to a French woman and one day might move to France but it won’t be for another 5 years from now. This video is definitely preparing me what to expect in the future. Keep up the amazing work..:)

Enjoyed this, thanks. I’m a regular visitor to France and do a lot of driving. You are absolutely right that being a seasoned US motorist, driving since age 14 in my case or whatever, is not at all adequate preparation. If it’s any consolation, priorité a droite is said to be the leading cause of accidents even among the French themselves.

A wonderful and edifying video .. my move from Oregon would have been smoother having your insights. Thank you for sharing. -Daniel (Paris - Rue Monsieur le Prince)

soon im moving to france hopefully these will help thank u🎉

Yes it’s true . I’m from Toronto and I was able to open a bank account at credit agricole because my boyfriend is french ! I mined back but I still have my french account .

if you 'just'moved to France, I guess there is a lot of things you learn 'down the roads, I'm living20 years in Norway now and even I learn new things now. That's the fun living in another country

I also have experience of living abroad. In any non-english speaking country, ALL documents have to have an official translation. But you're right to point it out because many emigrating couples are uni-nationals (unlike the mixed marriages of yourself and myself). Those couples are absolutely fraught with problems from day 1 (to start with they don't even have the legal protection afforded by domestic marriage). In your case, the language element helped cement the relationship in the first place. So, that's also a head start. But the majority of those couples think it's all going to be plain sailing with the click of a finger, based only on their experience in English back home😊. To a small extent, it will depend on the country they're moving to, but I should emphasise categorically - SMALL is the key word here. Uni-nationals - don't get carried away with the prospect of anywhere non English unless you have the language skills of this lady. Make plans for intense schooling when you move into your new home country - far from a head-start, you'll be starting at an "end start".

for the bank thing. If your bank in the US have a relation with an french one, it may be easier to open a account (in Euro currency) in this french bank via your bank in the US before coming here. Once installed in France, you can change bank if this one don't please you.

Hello, thank you for this very interesting video. France is a beautiful country with many very positive things, but also, as everywhere, negative aspects. For example, homeschooling has recently been practically banned, while it's an interesting way of educating children.

Thanks for this video. Do you happen to have an accountant you've had a easy experience with? I've been here 3 years and switched twice and talked to several more but haven't gotten to the feeling I miss from NY.

Impressive how much fluent you are in English.🙃 Ce genre de réflexion (cette vidéo), les points de vue argumentés (expliqués concrètement) fait par les gens d'une autre culture, c'est toujours (quand c'est bien fait, en tout cas) intéressant. Pouvoir changer d'angles de vue, c'est toujours important.

driving license IS a very serious thing in Europe, not only in France.

In France a birth certificate extract can be asked as proof of life, as in France if someone die, it's reported on the birth act. So the birth certificate would report that this person is also dead.

One thing that’s shocking to me as a French, is us people living abroad still need to report to the IRS, even tho they work abroad. That’s kind of weird. In France if you leave France you are cut off from the French tax system (impôts)

What's really strange (and frustrating) is that some US states have an agreement with France to honor their driver's license (for one year). My state, California, surprisingly to me, not among them.

Luxury hotel dan resort...❤❤❤

If marreied and then divorced , will i need copies of both ? My divorce decree is about 20 pages. Thanks for all the info, planning move in about 15 months and trying to square everuthung up before hand.

I asked several other people and they said they didn’t need to have their documents translated for their visa application. What were you applying for that you needed them? Thanks!

Bonjour! Does one need to have all those documents translated into French for their visa application? What do people need the translated documents for? Thank you for sharing your wisdom!

Rule number 7 here in France we have what is "System D" what that means is as a rule there are really no rules there more like suggesting and excepting to all rules! Rules can very from to day to day from person to person however not all rules fall under the rule of exceptions. Rule one many rules are not written down on paper any where and your really not allowed to guess you should know them; now I can hear you from here: How do I know the rules if no one tell or there not written down, as I said your not allow to ask questions you should know the rules that is why we call it System D! it is up to you to figure this out by yourself with next to nothing to help, and to ready for the unforeseen, and you are never ready, but you act as if you are ready to do what ever is needed I was lucky to get one paper done a day in one office at any one day it can be harder if your American and you speak little French, but it not always helpful if your American and you speak French with no American accent because then their think you Trump rich and that is bad! In other words there is no way you could know any of this until you do any of this yourself because part of the art of System D is no one does the same way twice because your guessing without letting them you guess because you not allow to guess right and yet that is all you do some times! My mother who is more French than me was helpful but not like it help a lot because she grow up with System D I did not, for her it was like no big deal yet for me it was a trainwreck because I a duel citizen French/American who spoke fairly good French, but without know my conjugations and verbs yet I was born in Paris, in other words many people thought I was Trump rich who was a snob or I was a bad French fake acting like an American snob I was nether I was nearly deported by the Police because I did not know my conjugation with the level of French I knew I learn French with my mother I never did any schools in France even though I did live here in France I was on American army bases back in the day! What I am saying is learn System D things will be a lot easy on everyone make due with what you have, and some times you make it up! Of all the cities in the states New York City comes closer to France than any other city stateside you will still need to blind jump good luck and peace to you both!

For your initial Visa, did you need to get a newer birth certificate or could you use the one you had on hand? Do you anticipate needing newer birth certificates, newer marriage license, etc every time you renew your Visa? Lastly, was the civic class in French? Thanks!

How can I find out more of #5. ? Resident training

Is resident training required? How do you sign up for it?

Brilliant! The French are brilliant with their use of the birth certificate as a "living document". That seems like such an obvious thing and I have never heard of it being done before. Can you imagine the ease for historians in the future when they want to learn about this time period? My mother was a geneologist and let me tell you that the amount of study to track down these details is pretty time consuming.

US consulate in France website is full of great resources and recommendations

Gee, why can't I use my US Visa credit card all the time? I've used it when I travelled there and I had no problems.

I adore France.

Why couldn’t use your passport to travel?

How can someone in the US find out which states qualify for French drivers license?

L'administration avec un grand AAAAAAAArgh !

Truducteur [quoi?]

An expat gets a house. An immigrant gets a home. I hope you see yourself as an immigrant.

Origin of difficulty in opening bank accounts for US citizens in France: In 2010 Obama imposed that ALL US citizens residing abroad have to file an annual FATCA ("Failure to report foreign financial assets on Form 8938 may result in a penalty of $10,000 and a penalty up to $50,000 for continued failure") and FBAR. It was supposedly to stop the mega rich from hiding their wealth offshore (it hasn't) but what it did was screw over English teachers, nannies etc. and everyone had to hire expensive ex-pat accountants. French banks were suddenly compromised. Even Democrats Abroad were shocked as the only other country in the world doing this is Eritrea, a small dictatorship in Africa.

About the bank problem....it's a US problem more than a french problem. FATCA IS the problem ! as an american coming into a french bank (or anywhere else in the wolrd), you are a pain in the ass...honestly for the bank clerc i am, you are. We've got special procedures for americans that we don't use a lot, wether you're american or our parents are or you're born in the US...specials procedures. Imposed to us French and the rest of the world by the USA. Any bank in the world that break this this fatwa...sorry, fatca law will be punished with billions $ fine !!

Living in France since 2006. I don't speak French at all. There was never any resident lessons. The French driver's license is easy to get. Just read the rules first and apply when you are eligible. It took me about 2 minutes to get a French Driver's license. Do not pay the thousands of euros they charge to get a license. Regarding marrying a French, that was a brave thing to do. I recall France telling workers they were going to take a days wages from their pay check to fund workers for the elderly. This is why it is a taboo to discuss money. Your money belongs to France anytime France wants it.

What about the '' American Dream '' ?? The Land of the Free ?? Not that appealing anymore to you ??

is that marriage cert issued when you got married or notarized copy has to be less than 3 months? it's hard for americans to open bank account across europe or anywhere abroad because of the bank is obligated to report to the us government and they need to verify the w 9 form you filled. you have to report account balances from all your banks to the us government every year