Deep Dive with Shawn

Leaving America E3: Spotlight On France!

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What if you could wake up tomorrow in a country that has peaceful protests without military intervention? Where healthcare is a right, not a privilege? Where a five-day hospital stay results in no bill, and where life moves at a pace that prioritizes enjoyment over hustle? This isn't fantasy—it's daily reality in France.

France beckons Americans with its seductive blend of art, food, architecture, and a profound dedication to leisure. But beyond the postcard-perfect landscapes lies something perhaps more valuable: a society structured around human dignity. Universal healthcare that actually works. Cities designed for walking, not driving. Public transportation that connects you to all of Europe for less than the cost of dinner in Manhattan.

In this comprehensive exploration of relocating to France, we dive deep into practical realities. We discuss the visa pathways that make France more accessible than you might think, from the long-stay visitor visa requiring about €17,000 annual income to specialized options for entrepreneurs, remote workers, and retirees. We break down surprising affordability factors, where cell phone/internet bills run €30 monthly and quality healthcare coverage costs less than many American co-pays.

French expat specialist and star of House Hunters International Adrian Leeds, and immigration attorney Daniel Tostado share insider perspectives on everything from housing markets to healthcare navigation. They reveal how the French bureaucracy, while challenging, ultimately delivers services that transform quality of life. "I certainly enjoy the good healthcare," Leeds explains. "When I was in the hospital I didn't have to think about whether my insurance was going to cover it... None of that. Done. Automatic."

The cultural transition presents perhaps the greatest challenge. Yet for those willing to adapt, the rewards are immeasurable: safety, beauty, community, and liberation from many anxieties that define American life.

Featuring:

Adrian Leeds

Daniel Tostado

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Email: deepdivewithshawn@gmail.com

Music: 
Majestic Earth - Joystock

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Follow Deep Dive:
Bluesky
YouTube

Email: deepdivewithshawn@gmail.com

Music:
Majestic Earth - Joystock



Tim Marting (Citizen Remote):

Citizen Remote is a global mobility company. In essence, we help with visas, taxes, accommodation, insurance. We also have a social community. We have over 20,000 members. Our big thing is understanding the complexity within visas. So obviously we do a lot of everything, but right now we're really niching down on helping people with visas because that's the first part of the process that people encounter when relocating abroad. Obviously, the next year you're going to have to do taxes, so you can use us for that. You're going to have to get insurance up front, so you can use us for that. But visas is quite complex and we essentially have immigration teams on the ground in over 35 different countries and we're growing that number every day.

Shawn:

If you've been following this series, you know that last week we talked about some of the easiest European countries for Americans to relocate to Portugal, spain and Latvia but today we're dedicating an entire episode to just one country, one of my favorite countries in Europe, a place that's a lot easier to get to than you might think. We're going to be talking about the world's most visited country with the world's most visited museum. It's also the country where you can legally marry a dead person and if you haven't figured it out already, this one might give it away the country where it's illegal to name your pig Napoleon. Today's episode is all about France. France is seductive for all the usual reasons art, food, architecture, wine that costs less than water and an enduring obsession with leisure. But it's also a country that takes itself and its rules very seriously. That includes immigration. You can't just roll in, order a café creme and declare yourself a local, but if you're willing to play the game, france offers a deeply rewarding lifestyle universal health care, walkable cities, generous vacation time and real work-life balance. You just need to get through a little red tape and possibly several civil servants who are on strike or might be soon.

Shawn:

In this episode, we'll explore the most common visa options for Americans, talk through the cost of living in various parts of France, explain how the French healthcare system works and spoiler brilliantly and break down the cultural nuances that might just make or break your new life abroad. I'm your host, Shawn C Fettig, and if you've ever thought universal healthcare sounded less like socialism and more like something you'd pay cash for, right now you're absolutely in the right place. Remember, for the purposes of this series, I have converted all monetary values to US dollars. Keep in mind that exchange rates fluctuate, so all amounts mentioned are reflective of reality at the time of recording.

Shawn:

To stay updated on the latest episodes, follow, like and share Leaving America on the Deep Dive with Shawn podcast feed, wherever you get your podcasts. If you've been side-eyeing the unraveling of American life and have stories about plotting your escape with a croissant in one hand and a visa application in the other, or you're just curious how many pastries you can eat in France before it's considered cultural immersion, email us at deepdivewithshawn at gmailcom. All right, pack your bags. This is Leaving America.

Adrian Leeds:

I'm a single woman. I can go anywhere at any hour of any day and feel safe. That's a very big deal, very, very big deal. It means I'm not living in a paranoid world at all, right? No, I could go on and on and on about all the benefits of living in this kind of a culture. I have access to all of France and, living in this kind of a culture, I have access to all of France and all of Europe because of public transportation, very inexpensively. I just had a flight from Naples to Nice for 20 euros. Where are you doing that? You know, I haven't owned a car in 27 years, in 30 years, 30 years. I don't miss that at all. I love being a pedestrian.

Adrian Leeds:

I get a lot more exercise In the South. When I'm in the South, I have a Mediterranean diet, so I'm eating the best diet right you can get. I feel healthier. I know I'm going to live longer. I don't know what else can I tell you. It's not bad. No, no, no, no, no. As I said from the beginning, though, the toughest thing is the cultural crossing. It's the hardest part. Everything else is really a piece of cake. Just to kind of get used to understanding the way the French think and how to deal with them, because you know we're coming from our default mode, which is so different.

Shawn:

That was Adrian Leeds, resident real estate advisor on House Hunters International French locations and founder of the Adrian Leeds Group, which helps people to live and invest in France and understand the laws, customs and language, mentioning just a few of the reasons she loves living in France. There's a reason France has long captivated the American imagination, whether it's the lavender fields of Provence, the sunny sea-swept charm of Nice with its pastel facades and pebbled beaches, or the glittering pull of Paris at dusk. I could go on, but why would I when Adrian Leeds can do a better job of name dropping some of her favorite places in France?

Adrian Leeds:

I think Paris is number one. Paris is the cultural mecca of the planet, if not France for sure. And if you want an insane life, you can have it in Paris. Paris is, of course, the most expensive place to live in France, but mostly because of the real estate. The rents are the highest and property purchase, you know, property costs are the highest. My second top spot in France is Nice. Nice is one of the most gorgeous places on the planet. It's a city of about 325,000. It has an international airport. The weather is the best in the country. It has a city of about 325,000. It has an international airport. The weather is the best in the country. It has fabulous healthcare. It has a huge American community. Now, in the last 10, 15 years it's really blossomed. And there's, I mean, the French Riviera. Is the French Riviera, let's face it right, not bad After that, I think there are some other really interesting cities.

Adrian Leeds:

After that, I think there's some other really interesting cities, believe it or not. I like Lille and I know Lille is a real sleeper. Nobody thinks about Lille. It's in the north, the weather's not that great, it's cold and rainy, but Lille has TGV access 30 minutes to Brussels, an hour, to Paris, an hour and a half to London and two and a half to Amsterdam, so you have this sort of immediate access to major cities even though you're living in a small town in a way, and two and a half to Amsterdam, so you have this sort of immediate access to major cities even though you're living in a small town in a way, and it has a very large Anglophone population, which is quite interesting.

Adrian Leeds:

The other cities that I like are Aix-en-Provence. Aix is a beautiful and cultured city and it has a large student population, has a nice community, nice American community, and it's 30 minutes to the Marseille airport, which is international. And then there's Strasbourg, which has an international community because it used to be the seat of the EU, and I like the entire region of Provence. If you're willing to drive Otherwise the other cities, you really don't need a car at all and that's a big deal. So these are my top cities in France for great places to live.

Shawn:

For American expats, france offers more than just a postcard-perfect backdrop. It's a lifestyle deeply rooted in art, history, food and that elusive concept of joie de vivre. In France, life is savored Morning markets, long lunches, centuries-old cathedrals and a national reverence for beauty in the everyday. Whether you're drawn by world-class healthcare, the robust public transportation or the idea of living in a culture that values leisure as much as labor, france has an undeniable pull. It's not just a change of scenery, it's a reimagining of how life can be lived. But to move there, to actually live there, there is some paperwork, some bureaucracy, just like pretty much anywhere.

Shawn:

France doesn't have a simple move-here visa, unlike Portugal's D7 or Spain's non-lucrative visa, france's approach is a little more bureaucratic and a little more demanding. But don't panic. With some planning and patience, there are accessible options for most people, whether you're looking to retire, work, study or just live your best expat life drinking pastis in Provence. This is Daniel Tostado, french immigration lawyer and founder of Cabinet Daniel Tostado, dedicated to helping clients obtain French visas, residency permits and French citizenship, explaining many of the routes available to Americans in search of a French visa, and then we'll dig into some of the most popular.

Daniel Tostado:

So I generally say there's about 30 different visa options, but that it's not worthwhile to think or memorize what are the various 30, that I basically break it down into four different types of visas.

Daniel Tostado:

There are student visa, the long-stay visitor visa, which we'll be talking about today because it's, I think, the most important one for Americans moving to France. Relationship-based, whether one's married to a French or EU national and then work Work as an entrepreneur, which is a viable route into France, or work as an employee, which is actually a pretty hard route to try to make that move here into France and so that I would say slightly more than half of my clients make that move on that long-stay visitor visa, which is saying I'm not going to be taking a job that belongs to a French person, and then I've got stable finances, housing and health coverage and with that they let you make the move here to France. And the finances is the most important part, and their threshold is 17,000 euros, one seven over the course of the past 12 months coming your way. So that works out to be slightly less than 2000 euros a month of revenue and most Americans have that amount of money coming their way.

Shawn:

And as such, you can qualify for that visitor visa.

Shawn:

The long stay visitor visa, or the visa de long séjour visiteur, is probably the most common visa route for Americans who just want to live in France without working.

Shawn:

It's perfect for retirees, remote workers with non-French clients or anyone with passive income or savings.

Shawn:

You're going to need to show proof of sufficient income, and this usually means at least the equivalent of the French minimum wage, about $1,600 per month, but the more you can show the better, so think $2,250 to $2,800 a month per person.

Shawn:

To be safe. You're also going to need to show proof of accommodation, so a rental agreement, lease or a month per person. To be safe, you're also going to need to show proof of accommodation, so a rental agreement, lease or a notarized letter from a host, and you'll have to have private health insurance that's valid for at least your first year in France. And then you need to promise not to work in France unless you later change your status. This visa is typically valid for one year and it has to be obtained before you arrive in France. That means applying through the French consulate in the US serving your region, not after you've landed and fallen in love with the smell of fresh croissants. Once you're in France, you can apply for a carte de séjour, which is a residence permit, and you can renew it annually for the first few years, and after five years of continuous residence, you may be eligible for permanent residency or even citizenship. Daniel Tostado explains how this works in practice.

Daniel Tostado:

The requirements around. That is showing significant sufficient health care, sufficient housing, sufficient finances, and the finances is more than 17,000 euros coming your way in the past 12 months. The healthcare has a line of travel insurance that covers you for a 12-month period. The housing could be a couple of different things, including getting an Airbnb of three months. So I find it very doable to get that documentation in order and then a couple of weeks to prepare the case file, a week and a half to prepare, to receive, have the constant process and approve it, and then you're off over here to france living your best french life.

Daniel Tostado:

That category is valid for one month, sorry, one year. After one year you renew it for another year. So it goes annually, year year, year, year after five years you can get the 10-year card, and the 10-year card is really good because it has um implicit work authorization in case you wanted to sell art on the weekends or in case you wanted to start a company in France, and it gets the authorities offered back for 10 years, and it means you can stop emailing your nasty immigration lawyer for a little bit. So yeah, it's win-win all around.

Shawn:

If you're a freelancer, entrepreneur, artist, researcher or tech worker with a project or job offer, the talent passport might be your golden ticket. There are several subcategories, but they all have one thing in common they're designed to attract skilled professionals to France and they come with more flexibility than the basic long-stay visa. Some examples include and literally pardon my French here profession artistique et culturelle for artists, writers, musicians and performers with a portfolio and income. There's also the Créateur d'entreprise for entrepreneurs investing in or creating a French business, the Salarie qu'elle fait for high-skilled professionals with a French employment contract, and the Chercheur scientifiqueifique for researchers and academic collaborators. Most talent passports are granted for up to four years and they often include work authorization for spouses, which is a huge plus, but they do require more documentation, like a business plan, contracts, tax forms and a CV. It's more work, but it offers more autonomy and long-term potential. It's more work, but it offers more autonomy and long-term potential.

Shawn:

If you've always dreamed of taking courses in art history or pastry making or political philosophy in Paris, or you're eyeing a full degree program at Sciences Po or the Sorbonne, the French student visa is perhaps your best option. It allows you to study and also work part-time up to 964 hours per year, which is about 20 hours per week. To qualify for the student visa, you're going to need an acceptance letter from an accredited French institution, proof of income or financial support about 700 US dollars a month minimum and then health insurance, though most students qualify for public coverage once they're enrolled. This visa can be a really smart entry point into France if it applies to you, because after graduation, you may be eligible for a job search or work visa if you find employment in your field. There's also the Profession Libérale visa, which is a little more obscure but potentially powerful. This visa is designed for self-employed individuals who want to set up a freelance or consulting business in France, and to get this you're going to need a detailed business plan, financial projections and income expectations, and also proof that your services are needed in France and that you can support yourself. Think of this as France's answer to the digital nomad visa. Only it doesn't call itself that and it expects you to be a little more formal about it.

Shawn:

After five years of continuous legal residence on most visa types, you can apply for permanent residency or French citizenship. If you're married to a French citizen, that timeline drops to two years. To naturalize, you'll need to be able to speak French at a B1 level, have a clean criminal record and also provide evidence of integration into French society, like work, social ties or community involvement. And France also allows dual citizenship, so you don't have to give up your American passport. So those are the most common doors into France. None of them swing wide open, but with the right documents, a little strategy and a healthy tolerance for paperwork, you can absolutely make it happen. Once you've found your way in, the next question is how much is it going to cost you to actually live in France? And this is where you might be surprised. Here's Daniel Tostado again giving a basic overview of the cost of living in France.

Daniel Tostado:

A lot of the areas in which France is very affordable is in areas which we didn't think as Americans to look for affordability. So my cell phone bill is 15 euros a month. My Wi-Fi is 32 euros for our household. Healthcare in France is a human right and so it comes out of one's paycheck, so I'm not paying out of pocket for private health insurance. When my wife gave birth last year here in France, we had a five-day hospital stay and it came out to a grand total of 400 euros, and that was just the extra surcharge of having a private room rather than a shared room. So I would also compare it to the food costs of it. That when I go back to my hometown of San Diego and I look to buy a little tub of guacamole, it might cost $10 or something really high. Compare that here to France, where everything is affordable food-wise.

Daniel Tostado:

The average French salary is €2,000 per month and that then has a trickle-up impact on any American moving up here to France that we're going to find things very affordable. That a nice soiree in France might be a tub of hummus for four euros, a baguette for 120, a bottle of wine for five euros. You sit down along the Seine River, watch the sun go down, you know that's your soiree for less than 10 euros, so there's a great affordability to it. That also has an impact on real estate. So if you're looking to rent in Paris, you could pick something in the center of Paris for you know, about 1300 euros. You know, try to find me something like that in San Diego, in Seattle, anywhere you might want to live. It's just not going to be comparable. And that's on the renting side. On the buying side, you can start to find, you know, one room or two room apartments somewhere as of 300, 400, 500,000 euros, two-room apartments somewhere as of 300, 400, 500,000 euros.

Shawn:

France has a reputation for being expensive, but that depends on where you live and how you live. Paris is Paris. You're not going to find a charming Montmartre flat with a view of the Eiffel Tower for $600. But many smaller cities and rural areas offer fantastic value and you shouldn't overlook them. I've been to many places in France and while Paris was my entry point, I found many other places to have their own charm and culture and beauty. That makes them very appealing. So let's walk through some of the essentials. In terms of housing, paris is going to cost you about $1,700 to $2,800 a month for a modest one-bedroom apartment in the city. Obviously, it's going to be cheaper if you go further out into the suburbs or if you share the same size. Apartment in a city like Lyon or Bordeaux or Nanta is going to cost you about $1,025 to $1,600 a month. In places like Provence, normandy or Occitanie smaller towns $700 to $1,150 a month is going to get you a full house or apartment. Rents are typically quoted monthly and leases often require one to three months rent up front, and many landlords also expect a French guarantor, which can be a hurdle, though there are some workarounds like deposit services and expat-friendly agencies hurdle, though there are some workarounds like deposit services and expat-friendly agencies. Electricity, heating and water will cost you about $115 to $230 a month, depending on the season and the region, and then internet and cell phone is going to be about $35 to $55 a month for a decent fiber plan. A week's worth of groceries for one is going to run you about $45 to $80, depending on how fancy your cheese selections get. And if you want to eat out which, frankly, you do, it's France. A boulangerie lunch is going to cost you about $6-$9, a casual bistro dinner is going to be about $17-$28, and then if you want a Michelin star splurge, well, that's going to cost you.

Shawn:

France is very well known for its public transit. A monthly transit pass in Paris is going to cost you. France is very well known for its public transit. A monthly transit pass in Paris is going to cost you about $95 a month. In Lyon, marseille or Toulouse, it's going to cost you about $35 to $68 a month. Traveling by train, the SNCF, can be expensive without discounts, but France offers excellent rail passes, including the Carte Avant-Age for regional and national discounts.

Shawn:

If you're a single person living outside of Paris and not trying to recreate a New York lifestyle. You can live very comfortably on $2,050 to $2,850 a month. In Paris you're going to want to be closer to $3,400 a month to breathe easily, but that's still far cheaper than the average cost of living in San Francisco, new York or even parts of suburban Seattle, and it comes with much better cheese and wine. So the rent isn't free and the bureaucracy is real. But in France your money gets you something many Americans feel is missing Dignity in daily life, a society that doesn't expect you to hustle yourself into burnout just to survive.

Shawn:

But if you're just like any red-blooded American, you're thinking about healthcare costs. This is the crown jewel of the French system. French healthcare is one of the most consistently praised aspects of French life. It's not just good, it's elegant in its efficiency, thorough in its coverage and unbelievably affordable to anyone used to the American system which, let's be honest, often feels like a medical escape room with no clues and a $10,000 bill at the end. This is not true in France. Listen to Adrian Leeds describe her own experience with the French healthcare system.

Adrian Leeds:

I certainly enjoy the good healthcare I've had the most. The good healthcare. I've had the most amazing experience with healthcare. Most people know that, since I write my newsletters, that I was very sick early in the year with the flu and I was in ICU for four nights and in the hospital for two weeks and the care I had was amazing. Three months later I still don't have a bill. I don't have and I don't even have a record of it. I have, I mean I have records of what happened to the hospital, but I have no financial record from them and I may never see a single penny paid for that. I appreciate that, thank you, and I never had to worry about it. When I was in the hospital I didn't have to think about whether my insurance was going to cover it or how I was going to deal with that Turn in the claims. None of that Done Automatic.

Shawn:

So this is how it works. If you're moving to France on a long-stay visa, you'll need private health insurance to cover your first year, and there are plenty of international providers offering comprehensive expat policies that satisfy French visa requirements. You'll typically pay $55 to $115 a month, depending on your age and coverage level, and this private policy covers doctor visits, emergency care and hospitalization, but it won't integrate you into France's public system just yet, and the public system in France is where the true beauty of French healthcare is. Daniel Tostado explains.

Daniel Tostado:

One of the things I like to joke about French public health care is that they've got this radical lefty notion that health care is a human right and so any person moving to France who lives here for more than 90 days so longer than the tourist stay can qualify for French public health care, including any one of the visa categories I may mention, including the long stay visitor visa, including student visa and so forth, and that we, as Americans, would be well to recognize that we have the most expensive health care system in the world and that, necessarily, every other country has a more affordable model. And then, on the US side, it's not yet a public option, it's still essentially a private market versus, for example, france, where everyone in France is in the public health care system, and when you have an approach like that, that means that the healthy and the sick alike are all paying in, and so that can lower overall costs. I would also then point out that doctors earn a lot less in France than they do in the US, so whether it's the pharmacology, the cost of medicine, or whether it's the cost of receiving medical care, the costs are significantly lower. So let's just say for hypotheticals, that you're visiting France as a tourist and you don't have any insurance whatsoever and you pop in to see a doctor.

Daniel Tostado:

The starting cost of seeing a doctor out of pocket is 30 euros and that is actually sometimes lower than the copay of an American seeing a doctor on the US side who has health insurance. Once you get French public health care, that covers 70 percent of costs. So then that 30 euro visit drops down to nine euros, which I think is very doable. And then on top of that French very often opt for a top of insurance which is called a mutuel, and that then covers 100 percent of your medical costs. You're paying nothing out of pocket and mutuals might cost.

Daniel Tostado:

With my law firm we offer to the employees because we happen to under French law, and it costs them 13 euros a month. So I think that we as Americans can always be afraid of healthcare costs abroad and in France, and it's just not that costly. One of my friends coming from a developing country in Madagascar, coming from Madagascar, had to get picked up by the ambulance and I was very afraid of the cost of that because I know how much that can cost on the US side. He's not very financially stable and then the ambulance cost 400 euros.

Shawn:

After you've lived in France for three consecutive months and can demonstrate legal residency and income, you can apply for PUMA, france's universal healthcare program. This system is managed through L'Assurance Maladie and once you're accepted, you receive the famous Carte Vitale, a little green card that changes everything. With a swipe of your Carta Vitale, you gain access to France's highly subsidized healthcare system. Doctor visits will cost you about $28 upfront, and then 70% of the visit is reimbursed by the state. A specialist is going to cost about $57, and that's partially reimbursed. For a hospitalization, typically 80% is covered by the state and most prescriptions are cheap or fully reimbursed. To cover the remaining 30%, most residents get a mutuella, a top-up insurance policy that often costs about 34 to 57 US dollars a month. If you're asking what the catch is, there isn't one really. You'll be expected to stay up to date on paperwork, find a médecin traitant that's a regular doctor and maybe wait a bit for a specialist, but the care is high quality and universally acceptable and, best of all, medical bankruptcy doesn't exist in France. So, yes, healthcare is one of the major reasons people not only move to France but stay, and once you get that carte vitale, you'll likely find yourself wondering why you ever put up with the American system in the first place.

Shawn:

But a French address and great health care doesn't automatically make you French. So that brings us to one of the most delicate topics of all integration. You've got the visa. The baker has started asking if you want the usual. You've even mastered the art of saying bonjour before asking anything, but that doesn't mean you've cracked the French code, because France isn't just a place. It is truly a culture, a philosophy, a way of being that prizes conversation over convenience, logic over emotion and style over practicality. It couldn't care less about your zip code, but God help you if you try to cut the cheese the wrong way. I know that a lot of Americans, when moving to non-English speaking countries, question how well they can get along if they don't speak the local language, and the answer for most places is that you can probably get by with a minimal grasp of the local language in the larger cities, but it's going to be difficult outside of the cities and in certain circumstances this is also true of France. Adrian Leeds explains what you need to know.

Adrian Leeds:

In all honesty, okay, depending on where you are. If you're in any of the urban areas, almost everyone is going to speak English or some amount of English. Now I don't advocate speaking no French or not learning it. That's not what I'm saying. It's just that you can relax. You know, learn a little bit of survival French, take some courses, make an effort. But if you can walk into a restaurant, sit down and order a glass of wine in French, understand what the menu has to say and things like that, and be polite, you can really get by very, very easily If you make no effort. Not so good.

Shawn:

So, while you can probably get by with little French in the cities, my advice would be to learn the basics, especially if you plan to stay in France longer than a few months. You don't need to be fluent on arrival, but the more effort you put in, the easier and more rewarding your experience will be, Because French bureaucracy runs on language. Friendships deepen through language and even the ability to order at a cafe with some confidence will shift how you're perceived and how you perceive yourself. Online tools like Duolingo and Babbel are fine starters, but consider real lessons, either locally or online with a tutor. Many towns also offer integration classes and if you ever plan to apply for citizenship, remember you'll need to reach B1 proficiency, which is conversational fluency. When it comes to social rules, French people are famously formal, at least at first. The idea of talking to strangers in line at the grocery store is borderline offensive, and I've learned this the hard way. But don't mistake reserve for coldness. It's just a different cultural approach. Adrian Leeds has a theory about this.

Adrian Leeds:

We have two completely different legal systems. The US is based on English law, which is based on what's forbidden. France has Napoleonic code, which is based on what's allowed. Let's think about this when you know what you can't do like steal or kill or whatever okay, which is the English law, american system then anything outside of that is okay. It's just wonderful, it's legal, perfect, it's very open-minded, out-of-the-box thinking. But with the Pollyanna Code you got to follow the rules. Anything outside of the rules is forbidden.

Adrian Leeds:

Now you take these two concepts. That means we think completely differently from the get-go on every aspect. And it's not that we're always thinking about law, but it's the way we live. So the French are always following the rules and they live inside their boxes. They don't color outside of the lines, don't color outside of the lines. We, on the other hand, are always thinking outside of the box and coloring outside of the lines.

Adrian Leeds:

And so you take those two ideas and they clash all day long in almost every single situation. And it seems that if you think of that, when you're coming across a clash that makes no sense to our logical way of thinking, we have to say, oh, wait a minute, let's stop and think oh, they're just following their rules. That's why they're doing this, even though it doesn't make sense to us. This is where I start. I learned the idea of this from a diplomat many years ago and I've never seen it. I've never seen this written or analyzed or discussed other than me. I'm the only one who thinks about this, but I apply it every single day and it works for me. This concept that we think completely diametrically opposed and that's a big deal.

Shawn:

Here are some essential norms Always say bonjour when entering a shop, office or waiting room. There are no exceptions to this. Use vous instead of to, unless invited otherwise. It's better to be too formal than too familiar. This next one is really tough for me, especially being an American.

Shawn:

Don't rush the meal. Lunch is sacred, dinner is sacred, and asking for the check too early is a social misdemeanor. And don't be surprised if the check doesn't arrive at your table immediately after eating. It always seems to me in France that they pay an inordinate amount of attention to you while you're ordering and eating and then suddenly disappear when you're ready to leave. It's actually a really nice way of saying slow down, relax, enjoy the moment. Also, dress well, even to go to the post office. France isn't about being fancy, but it is about caring how you present yourself. If you want to make French friends, don't expect it to be immediate, but when you do, it's real. Your neighbors may not chat with you right away, but over time, through school events, community activities or just consistent small talk at the market, but not in the checkout line, genuine bonds can form. But don't expect it to happen overnight. Don't expect it to happen without some work on your part. Daniel Tostado has some practical advice.

Daniel Tostado:

I made a YouTube video how do you make friends in France?

Daniel Tostado:

And I think the right answer is that the French aren't looking to befriend you, but the expat community is, so that, as I was trying to say, a long conversation to be had, but that the expat community is also really strong, whether it's Democrats abroad, the American church, various writing groups, various kind of clubs, alumni groups that are here in France.

Daniel Tostado:

There's a lot of different ways to plug in and find people that are like-minded, that are similar in age, similar in education and professional background, who have the same level of French as you do, but also the same level as English, and that's where a lot of people make their friends, and that the younger one is, the better. It is to plug into the French academic system and make friends through French schooling, because I don't always think the French befriend their colleagues from work and I think the French can be relatively challenging to befriend and that I would say, after nine years being here, I still struggle with, and the French friends that I be friend are the more cosmopolitan, internationally inclined French people. So, yeah, it's a matter of what your passions are and what your passions are, you just kind of apply them to the French side of things, whether it's rock climbing or hiking or you know doing things, but in the French context.

Shawn:

If you want to meet people, try some of these things Join a language exchange or volunteer for a local charity. If you want to meet people, try some of these things Join a language exchange or volunteer for a local charity. Take a cooking or art class or get involved with your neighborhood associations. France has clubs for pretty much everything and, yes, there are thriving expat communities, especially in Paris, bordeaux, lyon and smaller towns like Annecy or Montpellier. Just don't fall into the trap of only hanging out with other Americans. I'm assuming you didn't move to France to talk about Costco and Target runs. So is France easy? No, is it worth it Totally? The more effort you make, the more rewarding the experience becomes. And if you play your cards right, one day you might trade your residency card for something a little more permanent. So let's say you've been living in France for five years. You've survived the bureaucracy, god bless. You mastered the metro, become mildly addicted to escargot and even stopped being surprised when your local bakery closes for a four-week August vacation. This is a real thing.

Shawn:

So what's next? You might be ready to apply for French citizenship and with it the rights and privileges of an EU citizen. To apply for citizenship through naturalization, you need again, five continuous years of legal residence in France, proof of stable income and housing, french language ability at B1 level, a clean criminal record, and you have to demonstrate integration into French society through work, community involvement or family ties. And, like I said earlier, if you're married to a French citizen, the timeline drops to two years, assuming you live together in France. The application process is detailed and, yes, bureaucratic. It involves interviews, language testing and a review of your knowledge of French values and history. You will sit for an interview with an immigration official who will ask about your reasons for applying your lifestyle in France and even current events. Think of it as a citizenship oral exam with a side of cultural quiz. But don't panic, they're not looking for perfection, they're looking for participation. Can you discuss French life, politics, culture? Can you explain why you want to become French? If so, you're well on your way and, as I mentioned earlier, france allows dual nationality. So if you become French, you can still hold on to your US passport if you choose to. And with French citizenship comes a European Union passport allowing you to live, work, study and retire anywhere in the EU, from Ireland to Italy to Estonia, etc.

Shawn:

Citizenship isn't for everyone, but for those planning to stay long-term, it's a powerful step toward belonging, and in France, belonging being part of something bigger than yourself is something the culture takes very seriously. So you might be asking yourself is France right for me? And it might be if you value a rich, sophisticated culture, excellent infrastructure, universal healthcare, access to the rest of Europe and long meals, slow mornings and local markets. But even if all of these boxes are checked, you still have to be honest with yourself. Are you okay navigating some complicated bureaucracy? Can you commit to learning the language? Are you open to cultural differences and maybe even learning to enjoy them? If yes, then France isn't just a place to move, it's a place to live All right. Next week, we're traveling south to Latin America, where countries like Mexico, costa Rica, ecuador, uruguay, argentina and others offer affordable living, flexible residency and plenty of sunshine. This is Leaving America, because sometimes home isn't where you started.

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Shawn C. Fettig

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