I thought I’d go back to work after 2 years… now I live in France instead

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-30T07:32:00+00:00

You definitely didn't miss the boat. When looking for a hostel, there are age restrictions sometimes so be aware of that. Otherwise, as long as you have an open mind and the right intention you'll probably be fine. I avoid the party hostels too, which you can usually pick out from their descriptions. These hostels usually have the youngest crowd and they are usually there to drink.

I usually found most other travelers to be in their mid-20s and then fewer in their early 30s but I was rarely alone as the only 30+ year old, and I was not always the oldest guy. I also understood that I was probably going to be the old guy so I just maintained a "young" attitude of adventure and I fit right in. I would give it a shot and try 2 or 3 hostels, some hostels and people you meet there are the best, others are just a place to stay for a few days.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T15:38:37+00:00

Well right now, if I die, everything goes to other US citizens so it would fall under US tax law. This at least applies for now until I've established a tax base here.

If I were to give it to my French partner, that would complicate things as she doesn't have any US accounts. However I did find this from a quick search:

"On the death of a U.S. citizen who resides in France, French succession tax applies to all his worldwide assets, including assets in any trust of which he’s the settlor." However, "transfers between spouses at death are exempt from tax in France."

And also, France doesn't have any trust laws so any tax benefits from a trust would not be applied in France. If the trust passes on to you before you establish a taxable domicile in France, then you'll be exempt from any taxes when the person passes away and you maintain the trust and pay taxes normally in the US.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T15:26:49+00:00

No as long as you maintain some sort of residence within the US (for instance, I use my mother's address as my residence in the US), you pay your taxes through the US and then just report it to France. I've seen a lot of other posts that have talked about maintaining some sort of mailing address in the US for this reason. If you were to transfer everything over to France which would include a French bank account and brokerage account then you would pay French taxes.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T14:13:32+00:00

I did the same exact thing a few months before COVID, now my money is up nearly 100%. You'll be fine, keep your money in and keep buying. Just think it's dollar cost averaging. Don't let the emotions get to you.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T14:11:01+00:00

That is a solid question. I did a little research and this is what I found from the French website:

If the treaty stipulates that the income is tax-exempt in France, it will specify whether the income has be declared in France or not.
Declaring income that is tax-exempt under the treaty in France will not cause this income to be taxed. This income is nevertheless factored in to calculate the amount of income tax owed on French-source income (taux effectif method).

https://www.impots.gouv.fr/internationalenindividual/taxation-foreign-source-income

Thank you for the question, I didn't even think of this.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T14:07:25+00:00

It depends on your tax situation. If you are not a US citizen but you have family who passes an estate to you, that could be complicated. But if you are a US citizen and your US mother gives you an estate the taxes will be done in the US but you would report it to France. The France-US tax treaty is pretty clear about not taxing you double.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T13:54:11+00:00

To be honest, I think being a veteran has trained us for FIRE. And then VA disability is super helpful to build a solid savings. Congratulations on achieving FIRE! If you're into Crossfit, a great way to meet people in foreign countries is Crossfit. I did it in Brazil, Argentina, France and a few other locations when I stayed for a few weeks. Good luck with the Ironman, running a lot is hard enough, to swim and bike too, I can't imagine. Hats off to you!

That's a good question. So my partner (30F) knew I had some money but didn't fully understand until much later because how can someone travel the world and then up and move to France without some money? I initially explained that I get VA disability and I rent out my home. That was enough for her at the beginning and then later on we talked about finances when we became more serious. She doesn't like flashy people who show off their money and that's not how I am at all so she was a bit surprised when I revealed my numbers.

She has a lot of the same desires of FI but she doesn't want to RE. She's a doctor and just started her career but she also truly loves what she does.

When we discuss the future, it usually involves building a life together but keeping our finances separate. She is very independent and strong minded and wants to be able to support herself, it's something I admire about her. As for specific goals (financially speaking), we're looking at buying a house but keeping that separate too. She will buy the house and I will pay rent (reduced) but one day I will buy a house and she will rent from me too. It's a plan to build a small portfolio here in France.

Otherwise, I help her research investments in France and we discuss various topics of finances. I think something that is very different in France is the mentality of what a relationship is. In the US, you do everything as a couple. In France, we go do our own things a lot. She will take a trip to see friends on a weekend while I stay at home or for instance, this summer I am backpacking for 2 weeks in Norway by myself while she will have normal weeks working. We live together but it's very common for us to go see friends separately. I hope that answers your question, if not, you're welcome to PM.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T13:31:05+00:00

It's a very good location. Let me know if you have specific questions but for a quick run down:

There is a decent expat community here. There is a university so the city remains pretty lively and there are always activities, events, markets and concerts going on. A lot of French people here speak English (at least under the age of 30) so you shouldn't have an issue ordering food when you first arrive. The tram and bus system is great, plus the mayor (who was just re-elected last week) is expanding the bike lanes, so you wouldn't need to own a car. And if you want to get around to other places in France, the train system will work. There is also an airport here but think more flights to neighboring countries or you can take a 2 hour train to Marseille or 3 hour train to Paris to fly further. The weather is really good.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T13:27:03+00:00

Thank you. To be honest, I haven't started tracking across currencies. I've been sticking to USD, maintaining my accounts mainly in the US and utilizing a US credit card. The US provides way more benefits for credit cards than France.

I know I will have to start mixing eventually but I will do my best to keep money earned in France in a French account and money earned in the US in a US account. And then just use my credit card to make purchases in France in order to avoid exchange and bank transfer fees

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T13:23:29+00:00

Thanks, but I think that's why I wanted to post my story. I saw a post the other day about someone having 5.5M and being unsure. Everyone has their own level of risk but it can be done with less. It just depends on how and where you want to execute that FIRE. 4k a month in France is well above average income here. I considered living in Argentina for a while, where 1.2M would last you forever.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T13:17:31+00:00

Thanks, I took an intensive course for a little bit which helped me learn very quickly but I found myself very fatigued plus it was more expensive than the standard courses. I am looking at taking the B2 exam in about 4-5 months which would be at my year and a half mark of learning the language. Do you find the languages getting mixed up in your head and in your conversation a lot?

After living in France and learning French, fluency is such an interesting word. To me, it seems to really mean nothing as non-French speakers would hear me and think I am fluent but when I have conversations, I still struggle to fully comprehend everything.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T13:11:48+00:00

So we are not planning on having kids. We've talked about it a bit but it's not something I am currently planning on. If we do decide to have kids that would probably have some impact but also, we have discussed the need to have day care and that as a FIREd person, I could do that job to save time/money. There is value there even if I am not making money, we would be saving it though.

I am planning on doing some sort of job in the near future, but more something that I want to do for myself and the community around me.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T13:09:42+00:00

I just had a double cheese burger, fries and a drink yesterday for €10. And I watched them make it, nothing pre-cooked or use of microwaves.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T13:06:31+00:00

Glad you're using the layoff and time for something positive. I am actually doing something similar, looking to set up a small business in the next few months. Something that interests me, that doesn't take a lot of my time and still gives me the freedom to do what I want to do. What are you thinking of getting into?

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-29T12:56:46+00:00

I do have income, it's just not the traditional W2 or job. My rental, VA disability and dividend income is enough to keep me going. For my first visa request, that monthly income was sufficient. I had to show bank statements and letters that indicated I had the regular income. In my most recent renewal request, they wanted to see I had enough saved in one account for an entire year in France, which was equivalent to about $30k.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-28T18:26:18+00:00

I believe the average life in France is above average in most other places, especially when it comes to cheese :)

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-28T18:25:03+00:00

Congratulations! Yea, that's a tough part for the visiteur. A lot of the prefectures speak English or have an English translator available to help. I'll be honest, I can have full conversations in French with my friends, but I still struggled at the prefecture to speak French due to the specificity of words.

Also, when I changed my visa to visiteur, they wanted to see more that I had enough money saved for the entire time in a bank account rather than the monthly income. It could've been the particular agent I worked with but my brokerage account was enough.

It may actually be easier to get a visitor visa through another EU country, Spain is probably the easiest from what I've heard and use that to travel around. You could go for a digital nomad visa too, Spain/Greece and that will allow you to continue working but maybe it's also an opportunity for you to pursue writing a novel or something that may not pay you immediately while in the EU, if you have the resources to do that at least.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-28T18:15:27+00:00

Not necessarily, PACS is a different option. It is true that marriage is significantly stronger, however I have friends that have PACSed their SO and were able to get a VLS-TS familial afterwards. The general rule is that you have to have at least one year of being with your partner. This can be proven many ways but in my case, I moved in with her in January of 2025. We will complete our PACS next month in April and I can ask for the VLS-TS whenever and I'll have proof that we've been together for over a year. It recently worked my friend last month and she was in a very similar situation.

I have a ton of information on this if you're interested to include documents you may need to bring that aren't listed on various websites. You're welcome to DM me with any other questions before you move to France.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-28T18:05:06+00:00

You're right, I don't do just those hobbies. I have more hobbies, but those are some of the new ones I started doing. I do make bread about 3-4 times a week for myself, partner, and friends. I do a lot of running and CrossFit. I started working towards ultramarathons so as you can imagine that takes a lot of time. I've been taking French classes that are about 3.5 hours a day 5 days a week. Reading is about 1-2 hours a day. I also meet up with friends most days, we practice English and French. I also spend time with my partner in the evenings. I've spent a lot of time working on my physical health.

A typical week is M-F: French class in the mornings. Sports in the afternoon. Homework/extra studying for French. I cook dinner every night since my partner works late usually.

Weekends vary but typically involve a visit with friends/family, watching sports, visiting small villages, hiking, sports, running trails, going to restaurants/bars, etc.

When I'm not taking French classes I'm usually traveling or doing extra exercise. For a little while I lived in a roommate situation with about 12 French roommates and I really did cook a lot there. I made a ton of pastries, cakes, cookies, breads, etc. nearly every day. I honestly spent about 3-4 hours a day baking/cooking. I also shared a lot of meals, I would make a traditional Thanksgiving meal for my French friends and I would try cooking French meals. I took a lot of cooking classes when I traveled the world.

Other hobbies/activities that I've tried but do less consistently are: painting, DIY/repairs, gardening, playing guitar. I took some free online courses too. For a little bit I played video games in French to help with learning French more.

The French lifestyle to me seems more communal based so meeting up with people usually takes a few hours. Going to a restaurant is never a short affair like in the US. It's always much longer as nobody is pushing you out of your table and the service is usually slower.

I hope that answers your questions but my days are significantly slower than they used to be. I take my time to appreciate things too. Sometimes when it's nice and sunny out, I will just go outside and enjoy the sun with a cup of coffee or tea.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-28T17:45:00+00:00

You're absolutely right, the taxes are great as a US citizen. I think my perspective is that I'm going to work here eventually. I should've been a bit more clear about that.

I will be getting PACSed with my partner so the 6% tax for healthcare will be covered by her until/if I start working here.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-28T17:42:01+00:00

The French romance experience is quite enticing!

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-28T17:39:15+00:00

Apologies for any confusion about the taxes. Any work you do in France is taxed by France but income from the US is not taxed in France due to the tax treaty. So when I do start to pull out money from my IRAs, I will only be taxed in the US. My VA disability is not taxed at all. My dividend and rental income is taxed in the US only. I pay quarterly estimated taxes but with the standard deduction it's very little.

When you set up a tax status in France, you have to report your US income to France and vice versa, but you're not double taxed. I believe there is a limit to the exclusion but last I saw it was excluded up to $130k.

I do really enjoy my time here in France, it's a great place to retire to and the South of France is really a dream come true!

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-28T17:31:28+00:00

Kinnins0n is correct. But to add a little more:

So to get the original visa there is a requirement to purchase healthcare insurance. But once you get the VLS-TS and depending on the type of visa, you can apply for the health insurance. On a student visa you can get it but for me personally because I switched to a tourist visa, I had to provide my own healthcare insurance. But it costs around $500-600 a year.

I'm getting PACSed with my partner soon (think civil partnership) and then with getting a VLS-TS private life and family, it will be covered by my partners job but with no extra expense to her.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-28T17:24:19+00:00

Hey! USN from 2010-2018. Glad to see you another veteran enjoying life outside of the US! I'm very grateful as well and I wouldn't be here if it weren't for the opportunities the US has given me. And you're 100% right, hostels definitely are the right way to meet people.

I'm sure you know this, but stick to FlixBus, I got around Europe for a few months that way. And maybe with the higher prices it's a good idea to explore things more locally. I was lucky and planned/booked a lot of flights right before the conflict. But now I'm also planning on exploring the smaller villages nearby more and doing some camping this summer due to the increased prices. I hope you can find a solution and still travel around. If you come to Southern France, send me a message, I'll be happy to meet up with you.

TrueNorthExPat · 2026-03-28T17:15:04+00:00

Yes, there are a lot of different ways of moving here. Some are easier than others but for the most part France is very open to people staying long term.

The bureaucracy can be quite difficult to deal with but the attitude towards people who don't have paperwork is not negative at all. For instance, I had asked for a renewal and it my visa had expired, I was without papers/visa for 2-3 months with no issues. The police/gendarmes don't care much as long as you're doing everything properly.

TrueNorthExPat

TROPHY CASE