What is the application process?

The starting point as with other visas is an application online and an appointment to drop in documents, as described at the end of chapter 2.

This can all take up several months.

You will come to France on a VLS-TS visa, which should be validated within the first three months at on the Anef site.

For most visas, the fee is €200 per card, as you can see at this website by choosing La validation de votre VLS-TS and then Montant du timbre fiscal électronique correspondant à ma situation.

The amount is payable in timbres-fiscaux, a method that is used for various official formalities.

Traditionally, these are bought at tabac shops but an online version is available.

There is also an obligatory medical in France – see chapter 3.

You should then apply for a carte de séjour temporaire ‘visiteur’ from four to two months before the end of the visa’s validity period.

Applications can be made online at the same website as above by clicking Je demande ou renouvelle un titre de séjour.

As long as you have regular pension income coming in, you should be able to renew this card annually despite the fact that it is described as a ‘temporary’ card.

Visa specialist Allison Lounes said: “Generally speaking they won’t take the visitor visa rights away from someone who is established here.

“I know Americans who have been retired here 15 years and still do this but I know others who receive a 10-year card after the fifth year without even asking for it. It can depend on who is looking at your file.”

Declaring your income and paying any due taxes regularly in France will be one point they would look for, she said.

As mentioned, the ‘visitor’ card has to be renewed annually, at least until you have totalled five years of living in France.

Obtaining a resident’s card will mean fewer formalities in years to come.

How to prove income requirements 

When you apply for a visa, you must show that you have sufficient money coming in and healthcare arrangements for your stay. This is in addition to other points such as what your accommodation in France will be. For this, house deeds, a notaire’s certificate of purchase, or a rental contract, for example, are appropriate.

The same information will be needed for the one-year residency card you need later on.

A single person will usually be asked to show that they have regular income equivalent to the net (that is, after social charges) French monthly minimum wage. This is currently €1,426.

Official websites are vague about how this applies to couples. However, official sources previously confirmed to The Connexion that couples are not asked to have double this amount.

We were informed that individual factors, such as property ownership, play a role in the assessment. For example, homeowners are viewed as having fewer financial outgoings than renters, which may affect the threshold applied.

Savings can also be taken into account to reduce the amount of ongoing income required. However, the overall amount available to the couple should be enough for them to have a “decent and autonomous” life.

Visa specialist Allison Lounes of Your Franceformation told The Connexion that typically, in the case of a couple, a few hundred more euros per month than the French minimum wage may be asked for.

It was rumoured that conditions had been toughened in 2022, with around €2,000 per month being asked for as a minimum according to unofficial sources. However, French diplomatic sources told The Connexion that there had been no change in policy.

Proof of means can include current account bank statements from the last three months, showing a balance with sufficient funds, as well as pension slips.

Applicants who are supported by a spouse or civil partner should provide a marriage certificate or civil partnership certificate, along with the spouse or partner’s bank statements.

Other proofs of funds could include credit or debit card statements or travellers’ cheques.

Applicants are free to bring any other documents reflecting the funds at their disposal when they attend the interview.

This could include rental income, savings account statements, dividend income, or any other evidence from the last three or more months.

What is required for healthcare cover? 

Visa applicants have to demonstrate how they will be covered for their healthcare needs after moving to France or during their stay, if this will be temporary. The requirements differ for Britons and other nationalities due to arrangements agreed after Brexit, which partially maintain the pre-Brexit status quo for UK nationals visiting or moving to France.

Britons

British state pensioners can use the S1 form system, an EU mechanism which continues under the post-Brexit agreements.

Under this arrangement, people who are state pensioners of one country can have their healthcare in another country paid for by the country that pays their pension.

S1 applications for British people of state pension age are made to Overseas Healthcare Services (telephone 00 44 (0)191 218 1999 or email s1applications@nhsbsa.nhs.uk).

It is possible to apply for an S1 90 days before a person leaves the UK, and it can be sent to a UK address. You should therefore be able to obtain it before a visa interview.

The Ehic system for healthcare on visits to another EU country was also maintained after Brexit. Similarly to the S1, this allows a traveller to be covered for necessary healthcare needs arising during a trip to another EU country, up to the usual healthcare cover levels for a national of the country itself. The costs are later refunded by their country of origin to the country being visited.

The UK now issues a version called the Ghic, which functions in the same way.

These are accepted by the French consular services for Britons applying for temporary long-stay visas for trips of up to six months in France.

The Connexion asked if a Ghic/Ehic health card may also be used by S1 holders who have moved to France while waiting to be registered in the French healthcare system. However, advice from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) is now that such S1 holders should use a Provisional Replacement Certificate (PRC) instead when they need healthcare.

They can call Overseas Healthcare Services (number above) to request this document, and it can be sent by email to them or directly to the health establishment where they are being treated.

A PRC is a temporary version of an Ehic/Ghic. It gives the same rights and lasts for the duration of the treatment or four weeks, whichever is shorter. If the treatment is longer, the person should apply for another PRC.

A spokeswoman for NHS Business Services Authority, which runs Overseas Healthcare Services, said: “A PRC should only be applied for at the point of treatment. It cannot be applied for in advance.”

Early retirees and other nationalities

Britons who are early retirees, as opposed to state pensioners, and both retirees and early retirees of other non-EU nationalities, will need to show that they have comprehensive private healthcare insurance lasting at least for the first year in France as part of their visa application.

Private health insurance costs around £2,000 per person per year, depending on age and medical conditions.

You will have to show a policy that is valid for at least one year, with cover of at least €30,000.

Private insurance ensures that the person is covered while applying to join the French healthcare system.

You may be able to take out a policy that can be cancelled early if you are accepted into the French system quickly.