Tag: paris

Preparing your move: visa, wealth management, money transfer, real estate

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This video, “Preparing your move: visa, wealth management, money transfer, real estate,” offers a comprehensive overview of the essential steps and considerations for Americans planning a move to France. The key takeaways across the four topics are summarized below.

The full discussion on these topics begins with the visa process around [05:28].

1. France Visa and Relocation

Alison Grunt Lunes, a visas and relocation expert, emphasizes that securing the right visa is the critical first step:

  • Long-Term Strategy: Your visa choice must align with your long-term goals (e.g., eligibility for a 10-year residence card or naturalization) [07:08].
  • No Digital Nomad Visa: France has no dedicated digital nomad visa. You cannot legally work remotely for a foreign employer without a visa that enables you to work and requires a proper setup for paying French taxes and social charges [07:48]. Renewals are subject to increased scrutiny by the Prefecture to ensure your income aligns with your visa type [07:43].
  • Tax Residence: Residing in France full-time means you must establish tax residence there, as opposed to attempting to be a tax resident elsewhere [08:45].
  • Key Visa Types:
    • Visitor Visas: For those who do not intend to work. A renewable visitor visa establishes tax residence from the day you arrive [11:02]. A temporary visa (up to 12 months) is not renewable or extendable in France [11:08].
    • Self-Employment/Business Visas: Options exist for those who want to be self-employed (e.g., Micro-Entrepreneur), but they often have income caps and require demonstrating potential clients in France [13:00].
  • Health Coverage: For a visitor visa, you must show proof of a private health insurance policy for the first year [01:12:26]. If you are working, registering your business or employment immediately begins the process of getting you into the French healthcare system [01:13:56].

2. Wealth Management and Tax Planning

Alex Ingrim, a financial and cross-border planning expert, covers the complexities of being a dual US and French taxpayer:

  • Dual Residency: As a US citizen, you are liable for US taxes on worldwide income (citizenship-based). In France, you will become a tax resident (residency-based) [02:24].
  • Favorable Tax Treaty: The US-France double taxation agreement is highly advantageous for US citizens [02:40]:
    • Retirement: Income from US retirement accounts (401k, IRA, Social Security, US defined benefit pensions) is taxed only by the US, and you receive a corresponding French tax credit to avoid double taxation [02:49].
    • Investments: US-domiciled investments (like US ETFs, mutual funds, and stocks) can also benefit from the treaty, often resulting in capital gains being taxed at lower US rates [02:53].
  • Critical Complications:
    • Estate Taxes: French estate taxes are significantly higher and apply at much lower exemption thresholds than in the US [02:54]. You must consult a specialized French estate planning lawyer.
    • Trusts: Trusts are generally recognized as transparent in France and require extensive reporting, making trust-based planning difficult [02:58].
    • Financial Products: Local French tax-mitigation strategies (like the Assurance Vie) are often not US tax-efficient [02:54]. You must ensure any advice works for both US and French tax systems.

3. International Money Transfer

Ellen Fond, a money transfer expert, discusses how to handle the financial logistics:

  • Exchange Rate Risk: Fluctuations between the US Dollar and the Euro can significantly impact large purchases like property (e.g., a currency shift could result in an 18% difference in purchasing power) [03:40].
  • Securing Rates: You can use a money transfer service to lock in an exchange rate for future transfers using forward contracts, which is useful when you have a closing date set for a property purchase [04:11].
  • Bank Services: These services can save you 3-4% compared to using standard American banks for overseas transfers [03:50]. They can also help US citizens secure an appointment to open a local French bank account, a process that can be difficult otherwise [04:16].

4. Real Estate and Property

Tom Isdown, an architecture and planning consultant, explains the process of buying and developing property:

  • Purchase Timeline: The standard process (search, offer, signing contracts) takes at least three months, but the reality is often between three and six months [05:58].
  • The Compromis de Vente: This initial contract is a crucial document. You have a 10-day cooling-off period after signing to withdraw without penalty [05:32]. You can (and should) insert conditional clauses (e.g., contingent upon securing financing or receiving planning approval for renovation) to protect your deposit if the property doesn’t meet your needs [05:08].
  • Notaire’s Role: The Notaire is a state official who ensures the sale is legal, but they are neutral [05:27]. They do not act as your individual advocate or attorney to advise on due diligence, property condition, or the insertion of protective clauses [05:12].
  • Due Diligence is the Buyer’s Responsibility: Unlike in the US, property inspections or structural surveys are not standard [05:51]. You should hire professionals (architects, surveyors) to check for structural integrity, hidden costs, and urban planning hurdles (e.g., confirming a barn can legally be converted) before signing the final deed [05:57].
  • Costs: Expect to pay agency fees (typically 6-8%) and Notaire fees (which cover stamp duty tax and the Notaire‘s services), totaling about 7-8% of the purchase price [05:43].

Contact Information

For more information, you can find the experts’ resources using the following links and details:

  • Alison Grunt Lunes / Your Transformation: Author of Foolproof French Visas and offers consultations and free Q&A sessions.
  • Alex Ingrim / Liberty Atlantic: Provides cross-border financial and tax planning advice.
  • Ellen Fond / Currency Direct: Offers consultations for money transfer planning.
  • Tom Isdown / French Plans: Offers architecture and planning consultancy for property projects.

You can watch the full video here: Preparing your move: visa, wealth management, money transfer, real estate

Preparing your move: visa, wealth management, money transfer, real estate

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Paris Again 4: Tuesday, May 13, 2025 – Champs-Elysees

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Woke up to flickering of trees at the balcony. The sun rises in my room. Something prevents me from closing the curtains in Paris…. a phobia of some sort .. an anxiety of separation from Paris, a fear of missing out. Our airbnb is on Mont Martre. Mont Martre is hill overseeing Paris, with the Sacre Decoer at the center of this hill. Streets draw circles around it and layers, and we are at the first layer after the church. Although we are on the first floor, but our balcony looks at the top of the buildings beneath us on the second circle. The tree tops reach our balcony. We can touch them with our hands. It is rare that you get to touch the top of a tree if you are not a bird or dreaming.

I don’t know what depression hits me when I am about to leave Paris. Perhaps because I am someone else in Paris, who I like. I am a writer… a poet…I would say a philosopher, but I hate philosophy. I glide over the streets like I am floating. The walls know me. They are alone when I am not here. I feel like an adopted son when meets his biological mother here. She has her life, and he has his, but there is a sad bond that we both avoid to talk about. She is exhausted and so am I. It makes her bitter that everyone is here but me. The streets are filled with them, but I am her son. They all see her, but she only sees me.

I write as if no one will read, nor do I want anyone to read this. I publish because vulnerability is the essence of writing, and without publishing, it is not vulnerable. But I wish nobody reads, because it is too personal, and who wants to read anyways when there is TikTok.

We got a fresh baguette from the closest boulangerie and a piece of brie cheese from the closest fromagerie, and some olives from a Tunisian grocery store owner, and sat in the park behind the basilica eating. Abe fed the pigeons again. He is fascinated by his ability to condition them fast, and he looks around to see if others are sharing his fascination, but in Paris, no body is fascinated by any other. The place has a spell and presence, that make us almost invisible in it.

After we were done, we walked back to the apartment and rented bicycles (Lime) and drove them down to Eiffel tower. It is Abe’s first time, and he must visit it. All the grass area was seiged. There were heavy presence of police and what looked like army. Long lines were in place to go up the tower. The sky was cloudy, and african immigrants roamed the place selling chinese souvenirs and wine. We walked to a nearby coffee shop and patisseries and they were very bad and commercial. Restaurant servers tried to pull you to their restaurants from the sidewalk.

Then we took the bicycles again toward the Champs-ร‰lysรฉes, where we are scheduled to have dinner with the famous and huge Arab Poet and thinker, Adonis at 7PM. We reached the avenue at about 6PM, which gave us an hour to walk around. I entered a fragrance shop called ….. and the girl from Argentine, who knew Pablo Neruda, greeted us and showed us the perfumes. They were all between 200 to 400 euros, which means I will never buy them in my life. But nevertheless, I took the tour of smelling all the various sections, from the smoky and wooded, to the floury to the citrusy and fruity.

From Dior to Louis Vuitton … walking all the way to the Arc du Triomphe, strolling on the Champs-Elysees is a conflicting experience. I don’t like luxury or luxurious attitudes. For me, it doesn’t matter what level of wealth I have, if I am traveling in a plane, I will not travel First Class. I can’t stand the feeling of sitting down on a wider seat while others pass by you to their chicken coups and looking at you. Also, who cares about 5 inches extra and is it worth double or triple the price of economy class? If the First Class seats are reduced to economy, perhaps there every seat can have an inch extra. At any case, I don’t like luxury nor does it make sense to me. I understand fashion, but fashion should be accessible, not selective.

The number one real estate location in the world is 1 Champs-Elysees Avenue, which is Qatar’s embassy. With the price of that embassy, you could have empowered a million non-profit and civil Arab organizations that would change the Arab world. Nevertheless, I still appreciate them owning a valuable monument that will forever appreciate in the foreseen future of our world.

I watched as the Door man let people in and out of Dior. It is walking into a dream. It is beautiful, but inaccessible… inspirational, but unreachable. But there must be Dior in the world so there can be fashion. It is the divine of fashion that all other fashion strive towards. This avenue is the capital of merchandising. It is the epic of what the graphic design and commercial art have produced. It is a show of strength between these brands, that represent much more than a company for profit … Versace, Cartier, Boss, Gucci, Armani; They represent dreams of women and fantasies of men. They represent the tension between classes and the disorientation of the conscious of capitalism.

There was a gathering of some sort at the side of the Qatari Embassy…it looked like it is for veterans. The presence of armed forces under the Arc was noticeable. Protests usually start from there, so it is understandable.

At the end, we walked to the Ajami to meet Adonis.

Paris Again 2: Monday May 12, 2025

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Today, I was more like a tour guide for Dr. Ibrahim Atallah. Let’s see Paris. Well, it should start with Notre Dame du Paris. Just reopened after year of restoration after the fire, the line went fast, but the amount of people was still very large. Although no phones allowed, it was impossible to enforce that with hundreds of tourists taking pictures and videos. We actually walked in while there was some sort of a service or prayer being recited. The priest kept hushing the tourists to no avail. Tourism took over the Church. People visiting the house of God overwhelmed those who are praying to him.

The priest was white bold with a white golden-ornamented robe. He had a large belly that pulled the robe from the front upwards. He stood infront of the sculpture of Marry and prayed in french repeating the same prayer over and over. Maybe they were hailmeries. I don’t know.

Tourists still crowd the place with their phones and plastic sneakers. At Shakespeare and Company, there was a line to get into the book store. As for the cafe, they have a rope that closes the door now, and they have to let you in. The place is so small, and i can imagine the employees being overwhelmed with waiting tourists. I doubt that most tourists know the value of this place. We ordered a flatwhite and a lemonade, and it rained. We stood under a canopy drinking them, then walked to the park across and sat. We noticed a mostly green colorful parot on the tree. Tourists were stopping to take a photo of it. I wonder if it is a run away parot. It won’t survive much once the craws get to it. The pigeons had a common left foot injury for some reason. Abe kept trying to feed the pigeons from his hands. It wasn’t difficult to condition them to do so. They exceeded his expectations…. his American expectations at least.

When we returned our cups to the cafe, the book store had no line, so we walked in. I ended up buying “Flirting with French” by William Alexander. I can not resist my affinity to books. I have to feed my urges every once a while with purchasing one.

I am writing this few days after, and my memories now are starting to mush together. We walked to to the Jewish Quarter where we ate a falafel. Abe spoke to them in Hebrew, which he spoke better than them. We sat in a cafe afterwards that had few drunkards playing music, and drinking something from large plastic water bottles that was dark… probably homemade wine.

We walked to the historical movie theater, Le St Andre Des Arts, across of Chez Lebanese in Saint Michele and watched a movie titled Bring Them Down with Christopher Andrews. It was a powerful thriller about confused masculinity, trauma, vengeance, and a bunch of ugly themes. I didn’t like it, although it is very well done.

The night ended with a saj sandwich of Jibny for 6.8 euros.