Contracting in France
Discussion
Bonjour chaps,
Im being touted to go sell myself in France. Anybody else contract there and know what the tax situation is like? Need to work out whether Im better off staying in Munich or hitting Toulouse.
And no quality of life is irrelevent, Im a w
e, I only care about the money. Besides quality of life is on the "fking awesome" scale in both places.
Im being touted to go sell myself in France. Anybody else contract there and know what the tax situation is like? Need to work out whether Im better off staying in Munich or hitting Toulouse.
And no quality of life is irrelevent, Im a w
e, I only care about the money. Besides quality of life is on the "fking awesome" scale in both places.
A common lawyer said:
I'd say it's worth getting proper advice from a proper accountant.
Agreed. Not an expert, but here is a brief summary of French income taxes.http://www.sjdaccountancy.com/about/ourservices/co...
France has a reputation for being a high tax country, but I understand there are loopholes that can be exploited if you're canny. Recently, Ryanair (who else?) got hit with €9m of fines and backdated taxes for structuring its pilots' contracts to avoid paying French taxes.
http://www.theguardian.com/business/2013/oct/02/ry...
Speak to an accountant as you will have to register as a business because you are providing a service.I would have thought it more beneficial to "live" and be registered elsewhere and just work in France if you can.Added to that if you are resident in France you have the healthcare issues, RSI payments etc.
Before you do anything in France speak to a good accountant,one that is familiar with the English way of saving you money and not just collecting revenue for the state.
Before you do anything in France speak to a good accountant,one that is familiar with the English way of saving you money and not just collecting revenue for the state.
Another option is to work for an umbrella company who will deal with social charges etc but between these charges and the management fee you will do well to get back more than half of what you bill.
an example
http://www.cadresenmission.com/
an example
http://www.cadresenmission.com/
Where are you working? I am at Linde in Pullach, have a place near Holzkirchen (can live far away as have car with me!).
Not had a tax bill yet as only been here since October and started Freelancer status in January though hoping to get contract modified so I can work a couple of days in the UK every fortnight and can go back to UK terms!!
Not had a tax bill yet as only been here since October and started Freelancer status in January though hoping to get contract modified so I can work a couple of days in the UK every fortnight and can go back to UK terms!!
I don't really know anything about tax in France is the only appropriate thing I can start with, but I did think the tax you paid was down to what you agree with the Mairie. A pilot I know lives in France and has to restrict his days (nights more accurately I think) in the UK to avoid being resident here. He flies long haul from London, so commutes there to start his work flights. Apparently the Marie only expects him to pay tax on the proportion of his flying time spent over France - which must be tiny.
Makes me wonder if you could host some SaaS on US servers and persuade a Mairie that your income was earned there so they wouldn't tax you on it. Equally, it makes me wonder if they'd change their mind, or their successor would take a different view.
Makes me wonder if you could host some SaaS on US servers and persuade a Mairie that your income was earned there so they wouldn't tax you on it. Equally, it makes me wonder if they'd change their mind, or their successor would take a different view.
No one would choose to live in France as a tax efficient base. Social charges are enormous.
If you live there more than 180 days a year, or it's your primary residence, or simply if you spend more time there than any other country, then it is a legal requirement. At that point your world-wide income is also assessed - so no non-dom status like the UK has.
So your only hope is not getting caught, therefore discussing it with your Mairie would be a really dumb starting point.
If you live there more than 180 days a year, or it's your primary residence, or simply if you spend more time there than any other country, then it is a legal requirement. At that point your world-wide income is also assessed - so no non-dom status like the UK has.
So your only hope is not getting caught, therefore discussing it with your Mairie would be a really dumb starting point.
Edited by rdjohn on Wednesday 22 January 09:53
[quote=rdjohn]No one would choose to live in France as a tax efficient base. Social charges are enormous.
quote]
Absolutely, income tax isn't much different to the UK, but social charges are a much bigger grab.
Keeping your head down is all very well but how about those little bits of paper one needs to access certain services? Attestation de domicile for example, and for something or other I had to get a document from the local public treasury to show I had paid my taxes. Need a loan, where's your Revenue Fiscal de Reference? Best one I've seen is presentation of proof that folk have done their "national service" when applying for a provisional driving license!
Steve
quote]
Absolutely, income tax isn't much different to the UK, but social charges are a much bigger grab.
Keeping your head down is all very well but how about those little bits of paper one needs to access certain services? Attestation de domicile for example, and for something or other I had to get a document from the local public treasury to show I had paid my taxes. Need a loan, where's your Revenue Fiscal de Reference? Best one I've seen is presentation of proof that folk have done their "national service" when applying for a provisional driving license!
Steve
Chaps, Ive had property in France for over 20yrs, the wider aspect of this and the normal rules of residence Im well aware of. The rules of it in fact already rule my life.
Rather than general I was hoping for explicit knowledge of folks who had wed themselves in France. I dont mean permie, living there, only residence etc. I mean contracting as a mercenary whoring bd and how the specific rules apply. What taxes I can expense against, how much and whether a Hearth & Home rule exists as per Boscheland, etc.
Rather than general I was hoping for explicit knowledge of folks who had w
ed themselves in France. I dont mean permie, living there, only residence etc. I mean contracting as a mercenary whoring bd and how the specific rules apply. What taxes I can expense against, how much and whether a Hearth & Home rule exists as per Boscheland, etc.DJRC said:
Chaps, Ive had property in France for over 20yrs, the wider aspect of this and the normal rules of residence Im well aware of. The rules of it in fact already rule my life.
Rather than general I was hoping for explicit knowledge of folks who had wed themselves in France. I dont mean permie, living there, only residence etc. I mean contracting as a mercenary whoring bd and how the specific rules apply. What taxes I can expense against, how much and whether a Hearth & Home rule exists as per Boscheland, etc.
I'm afraid the answer is that residence / living there have a big impact. How are you going to run it? Through a company? Could you run as an auto-entrepreneur (less than 50k€/yr, I think...)?Rather than general I was hoping for explicit knowledge of folks who had w
ed themselves in France. I dont mean permie, living there, only residence etc. I mean contracting as a mercenary whoring bd and how the specific rules apply. What taxes I can expense against, how much and whether a Hearth & Home rule exists as per Boscheland, etc.Gassing Station | France | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff