I moved back to the UK but still visit France - can I keep my French residency card?

Reader question: I returned to the UK on a permanent basis on July 1, 2025 but still go back to visit every three months or so. I have been showing my carte de séjour on arrival and departure, should I actually be doing this and for how long?

This depends on the carte de séjour that you hold. If your card is the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement permanent residence card, rules are different from ordinary French residency cards. 

This 10-year card does not require you to come back to France every few months in order to keep it valid. Under the Withdrawal Agreement, the right of permanent residence can be lost after more than five consecutive years’ absence from France. 

Therefore, moving back to the UK on July 1, 2025 would not immediately mean you lose your rights. The key question is whether you remain outside France for more than five consecutive years. 

However, the situation is different if your card is the five-year Withdrawal Agreement residence card. 

This card is for people who have not yet completed five years of residence in France. To reach permanent residence status, you must maintain continuity of residence. 

In this case, temporary absences should not exceed six months in each year of residence in order for continuity not to be broken. One absence of up to 12 consecutive months may be justified for important reasons such as serious illness, pregnancy, study etc. 

Now, if you have a standard French carte de résident, then the card becomes invalid if the holder leaves France and resided abroad for more than three consecutive years. 

Meanwhile, if you own a carte de résident longue durée-UE, then once again, different rules apply. 

It becomes invalid if the holder resides outside the European Union for more than three consecutive years. It can also become invalid if the holder resides outside France for more than six consecutive years. 

However, it may also be affected if the holder obtains long-term resident status in another EU country. 

Other residence cards, such as vie privée et familiale, salarié or passport talent, depend on continuing to meet the conditions under which they were granted, such as employment, family circumstances or another qualifying situation. 

One thing to remember: residence rights and tax residence is different

Keeping a French residency card does not automatically mean that France still is your tax residence. 

If you have moved permanently to the UK, you should update the relevant organisations including: 

• the French tax authorities

• Caisse primaire d’assurance maladie (Cpam) if you were registered with the French health system

• pension organisations

• Caf or other social services if relevant

• banks, insurers and service providers where necessary

However, you might still have French tax obligations if you keep a property in France, or receive French income.