Inflation
0.94 %2025 · latest annual observation
Exact values
- 2020
- 0.48 %
- 2021
- 1.64 %
- 2022
- 5.22 %
- 2023
- 4.88 %
- 2024
- 2 %
- 2025
- 0.94 %
YOUR COUNTRY GUIDE
🇫🇷 France
View on Google MapsParis and Lyon: city life, culture and family routes.
Start with a cityEutouring · 2013 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Original
Cost
Plan for your household and city
Residency
Long-stay visitor: no professional activity
Jobs
Covered route conditions, not a hiring forecast
Safety
No formal advice-against-travel flag — not a safety guarantee · FCDO · 2026-09-12
Economy
Inflation 0.9% · 2025 · World Bank
Climate
Temperature and humidity by city
Healthcare
Route insurance; clinic directory pending
Taxes
Household composition changes the tax calculation
A CLOSER LOOK
Cities & places
- Paris · Seine and Eiffel Tower
Eutouring · 2013 · CC BY-SA 4.0 - Paris · Cour Carrée, Louvre
Zairon · 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 - Lyon · Saône riverbanks
Romainbehar · 2018 · CC0 1.0
Guides & practical tips
All destination guides
General practical guide
Apostilles before moving: prepare the right documents
Build your document folder without unnecessary translations or return trips.
General practical guide
Business relocation abroad: plan before incorporating
A practical business-relocation plan covering personal status, demand, separate budgets, licences, reporting and the first customer.
Inside this destination guide
Housing & everyday life
Open the housing section for rental considerations and living conditions.
TRAVEL SAFETY
Before you travel
No advice against travel
This is not a safety guarantee: risks vary by area and route.
About this warning
Source: the UK Foreign Office. Advice is for British nationals; entry rules for your passport may differ. This is travel advice, not crime statistics.
Publisher updated: 2026-08-11 · Retrieved: 2026-09-12 14:49 UTC
Warning in English
Wildfires in France There is a high risk of wildfires during the summer season from April to October. For advice, visit the wildfires section on the Safety and security page.
Latest change (English)
Updated information on European Entry-Exit System (EES) (‘Entry requirements’ page).
© Crown copyright · OGL v3.0
Everything for your decision
Open a topic. Unverified coverage is clearly marked.
Overview
Paris and Lyon: city life, culture and family routes.
Paris
Compare apartments and nearby suburbs by the school and work journey. Ask whether heating is individual or communal and what charges include; a panorama cannot show building quality.
Lyon
For housing near the Rhône and Saône, check address-level flood exposure. Choose a neighborhood and bedroom count before budgeting: Paris prices cannot simply be reused here.
Choose a city, then explore residence options, documents and housing below.
Visa & residency
Long-stay visitor: no professional activity
Residence & citizenship
Residence and citizenship are separate procedures. A passport follows a separate citizenship decision.
VLS-TS visitor: no professional activity
Living resources, accommodation, insurance and an undertaking not to work. Validate a VLS-TS after arrival. Not a universal remote-worker route.
Checked: · Primary source
Eligibility depends on nationality, status, family and documents. Years are a pre-application residence condition, excluding time to obtain the initial status and processing.
Long-stay visitor: no professional activity
For private stays longer than three months; not a universal remote-worker visa.
- The visitor route requires living resources, accommodation, medical cover and an undertaking not to conduct professional activity. Do not build a work plan around a visitor basis.
- If issued a VLS-TS, complete the required online validation after arrival. Holding the long-stay visa does not remove that step.
Primary sources: France-Visas · long private stay
Cost of living
Household, rent, school, transport and relocation
Your family and routines
Citizenship and purpose are saved with your profile; this calculator does not determine visa eligibility. Check route conditions separately. Conditions
Who's coming
Adults
2
Children
1
Child 1
Housing & bedrooms
Bedrooms, excluding living room
2
Suggested bedrooms: 2. Adults in pairs; children under 8 can share, older children follow your room preference. A planning suggestion, not a legal rule.
Transport & pets
Cats
0
Dogs
0
Jobs & business
Conditions of the covered route, not employment probability
For private stays longer than three months; not a universal remote-worker visa.
Residence conditionsEconomy
Currency, inflation and investment with observation dates
ECONOMY & CURRENCY
What the annual data shows
Historical World Bank observations. Not today’s exchange rate or an assessment of current military or political conditions.
Real GDP growth
0.84 %2025 · latest annual observation
Exact values
- 2020
- -7.44 %
- 2021
- 6.88 %
- 2022
- 2.72 %
- 2023
- 1.44 %
- 2024
- 1.19 %
- 2025
- 0.84 %
Local currency per dollar
0.88 LCU/USD2025 · latest annual observation
Exact values
- 2020
- 0.88 LCU/USD
- 2021
- 0.85 LCU/USD
- 2022
- 0.95 LCU/USD
- 2023
- 0.92 LCU/USD
- 2024
- 0.92 LCU/USD
- 2025
- 0.88 LCU/USD
Foreign direct investment
2.17 % GDP2025 · latest annual observation
Exact values
- 2020
- 0.73 % GDP
- 2021
- 3.3 % GDP
- 2022
- 4.02 % GDP
- 2023
- 0.59 % GDP
- 2024
- 1.65 % GDP
- 2025
- 2.17 % GDP
How to read these indicators and their limits
FX is an official annual average; parallel markets, fees and restrictions are excluded. FDI measures net investment flows, not the appeal of a property or business; values can be negative. Inflation and GDP growth do not measure personal living costs, safety or hiring prospects.
World Bank · 2020–2025 · CC BY 4.0
Taxes & money
Household composition changes the tax calculation
Household composition changes the tax calculation
The 0 / 11 / 30 / 41 / 45% rates are marginal and interact with household quotient rules.
- Residence can follow the home or main stay, professional activity or center of economic interests; a treaty may change the outcome.
- The 2026 filing-season scale concerns 2025 income. Its thresholds are not final thresholds for 2026 income. Household shares, relief limits and social charges require separate review.
Primary sources: Impôts · French residents · Service Public · income tax scale
Housing
Heating: what adequate warmth means
Heating: what adequate warmth means
A minimum 18°C rule applies to certain housing; the building’s age matters.
- For housing permitted after 1 June 2001, heating must allow at least 18°C at the center of each room. Older housing must allow normal heating; the same numerical rule does not automatically apply.
- Before signing, ask who controls communal heating, what charges include and how reconciliation works. Inspect windows and ventilation, especially in children’s bedrooms.
Primary sources: Service Public · minimum heating temperature
Safety
Official advice; city crime statistics not yet verified
The warning summary above shows retrieval dates and regional scope. It is FCDO advice for British nationals, not a crime ranking.
Read travel warningsClimate & surroundings
City temperatures, humidity and seasons
CLIMATE & HOME
What the seasons feel like
A daily mean includes the night. It is not a heat ceiling: individual days can be much hotter.
NASA POWER: modeled outdoor relative humidity, roughly 50 km grid. Not an apartment sensor or a particular day’s weather. 2001–2020 · Data
NASA POWER · 2001–2020. Temperature is a daily mean, not a daytime high. Climate, not a forecast. A model grid cell, not an urban station. Terrain and neighbourhoods can differ.
Paris · long-term climate, not a forecast
Warmest month · daily mean19.3°C
Coldest month · daily mean3.0°C
Winter comfortCheck heating
Jan3.0°C daily mean92% outdoors · NASA model1.7 mm rainfall / day
Housing: questions before signing
There is a cool season here; heating provision varies by home.
- How is the bedroom heated, and can you control the temperature overnight?
- What did electricity and heating cost in winter? Request actual bills.
- Are there drafts, wet walls or a musty smell? Request video of corners and cupboards.
- When was the boiler or heat pump last serviced, if installed?
Wildlife: what to consider
Local species for this destination are not verified yet. Tropical wildlife is not assumed to be present everywhere.
City encounter frequency is not quantified: no percentages or frequent/rare rating is available. Inspect the property, screens, drains, waste, standing water and seasonal warnings. Sources of differing dates checked 12 September 2026; categories can overlap.
Natural risks & signals
Hazards vary by region
Hazards vary by region
Heat, flooding and wildfires; mountain areas have separate seasonal hazards.
- Do not apply southern wildfire exposure to all of France. Check flood exposure by address near rivers and avalanche or route conditions for mountain trips.
- Match home and travel cover to the relevant hazard. This card is not a current disaster warning.
Primary sources: FCDO · France safety and natural hazards
Healthcare & insurance
PUMa: work or lawful residence
PUMa: work or lawful residence
Eligibility depends on work or stable, lawful residence. Workers can obtain immediate affiliation once their application is accepted; people without employment generally need three months of residence. A visa alone does not establish active health coverage.
Family & children
Compulsory education from age three
Compulsory education from age three
Education is compulsory from three to sixteen, including école maternelle. State and private schools are available. Home education requires authorisation on limited grounds; an online school does not remove those requirements.
Transport & infrastructure
Non-European licences: exchange or test
Non-European licences: exchange or test
On a normal relocation, non-European licences are generally recognised for one year after establishing normal residence. Continued driving requires an eligible exchange or a French test. Students and certain UK licences have separate rules.
Laws & documents
Visitor evidence: resources and living arrangements
Visitor evidence: resources and living arrangements
Use the personalized France-Visas checklist rather than one list for all nationalities.
- Prepare passport and application, financial-resource evidence, accommodation and health insurance. Evidence of your socioeconomic circumstances and the no-work undertaking is also required.
- Check each family member’s application and relationship-document requirements separately. Confirm translation, legalization and document-age rules with the consular checklist.
Primary sources: France-Visas · required supporting evidence
Cities
Paris · Lyon
Two cities, two different scenarios. These are starting points, not a finished neighborhood ranking.
Paris
Compare apartments and nearby suburbs by the school and work journey. Ask whether heating is individual or communal and what charges include; a panorama cannot show building quality.
Lyon
For housing near the Rhône and Saône, check address-level flood exposure. Choose a neighborhood and bedroom count before budgeting: Paris prices cannot simply be reused here.
Practical tips
General checklist; a country-specific collection is pending
Rule updates
Visas and expat life: date, source and next action
Sources checked: 2026-09-12. An editorial selection, not automatic monitoring of all legislation.
Seven calendar days through 2026-09-12 · by primary-source publication or update date. Newly published verified records reload every five minutes; sourcing and review are currently editorial.
No verified items match this filter
This does not mean no rules changed. We do not fill the feed with unverified stories. Check upcoming changes or all verified records.
Sources & data coverage
Reviewed:
- France-Visas · required supporting evidence
- Impôts · French residents
- Service Public · income tax scale
- Service Public · minimum heating temperature
- FCDO · France safety and natural hazards
Dates and limitations appear with each dataset. This guide is not a substitute for individual legal and tax review.
Practical answers before moving
France: what goes into a family living budget?
Example for two adults and a seven-year-old: a two-bedroom rental, private school and public transport. These are editorial assumptions, not verified prices. Deposits, relocation, vehicle purchase and taxes are excluded.
- Paris: 6,883 USD/month: housing 2,484 USD, groceries 1,092 USD, utilities 286 USD, education 1,200 USD. The remainder covers transport, insurance, leisure and reserve.
- Lyon: 4,985 USD/month: housing 1,380 USD, groceries 936 USD, utilities 247 USD, education 850 USD. The remainder covers transport, insurance, leisure and reserve.
Which cities should I compare before moving?
A minimum 18°C rule applies to certain housing; the building’s age matters.
- Paris: Compare apartments and nearby suburbs by the school and work journey. Ask whether heating is individual or communal and what charges include; a panorama cannot show building quality.
- Lyon: For housing near the Rhône and Saône, check address-level flood exposure. Choose a neighborhood and bedroom count before budgeting: Paris prices cannot simply be reused here.
Where should residence planning start?
For private stays longer than three months; not a universal remote-worker visa.
What should families with children consider in this country?
Education is compulsory from three to sixteen, including école maternelle. State and private schools are available. Home education requires authorisation on limited grounds; an online school does not remove those requirements.
Country sources and recorded review dates · Methodology and limitations