8 HUGE misconceptions about life in France that are WAY off base

While the mere mention of France may evoke images of berets, fancy food, and leisurely strolls along the Seine, the reality of life in France is quite different from the clichés painted by popular imagination. Reality is nothing like what we see in the movies 99% of the time. It’s only normal, though, to not know what real life is like somewhere else if we haven’t experienced it for ourselves.

Let’s get into some of the biggest misconceptions I’ve heard over the years about life in France. I’m here to set the record straight!

8 HUGE misconceptions people have about life in France

1. That income taxes are 45%.

There’s this huge misconception that income taxes in France are 45% or more  and people regularly bring this up — just the other day on FB actually — especially people who don’t live in France and never have. They almost say it in a way that has an undertone of, “Gotcha! You’re an idiot for living in France because taxes rob you blind!” 

We are all entitled to our opinion, of course, but let’s get the FACTS right first.

There are several types of taxes in France including income tax, property tax, inheritance tax, etc. as well as social charges. But no, income taxes are NOT 45% of your earnings. Just no. Let me set that one straight right off the bat.

I’m taking this right from the official public service website. France has a progressive income tax that assesses each bracket of your income differently. You pay zero income tax on earnings up to €10,777. The portion from  €10,778 to €27,478 is taxed at 11%. It goes up from there. Only if you make over about 168k do you pay 45% and it’s only on that portion above 168k, not the entire amount.

The vast majority of French people make NOWHERE near that amount. A good salary in France outside of Paris is 4,000 euros/month net…. not even close to 168k/year where you’d encounter a 45% tax rate. Less than 1%  of people fall into this category.

On top of that, French-Property.com explains that a nice chunk of people pay ZERO income tax because of tax credits and incentives: “Only 44% of inhabitants in France pay any income tax at all; only around 14% pay at the rate of 30%.” Things that help? Be the sole breadwinner for your family, donate to charity, make energy-efficient improvements to your home, etc.

Before moving to France, my taxes in the U.S. were significant as a self-employed person, so when you add U.S. income tax and self-employment tax (flat 15.3%) together with my monthly American healthcare premium, what I was paying back then is not so different from what we pay now. 

I’m not a tax professional and of course income taxes are more complicated than this. Some people’s particular situations mean they incur a wealth tax or subject them to other reporting requirements that increase their tax burden.

As a couple with no kids, Tom and I don’t get the same tax credit as a family with three kids. 

The other thing that confuses people is the difference between social contributions (les cotisations) vs. income tax. They’re not the same thing.

As a self-employed person, I pay both social charges and income tax. If you’re an employee of a company, the company takes on the majority of the social charges automatically. But they still get paid, hence why French salaries are often lower than comparable American ones for similar jobs.

Anyway, for your everyday middle class person, taxes in France are not ridiculous. They’re not nothing, but they aren’t the numbers you see people casually throwing around. Facts matter.

All that said, maybe the most important part is that taxes and social charges we pay in France don’t go into a black hole. There are benefits we receive in return. Healthcare, unemployment, maternity/paternity leave and family benefits, affordable higher education, and so much more. It’s a completely different system than what we have in the U.S. and it’s not an easy apples to apples comparison.

Personally speaking, I don’t mind paying into the system for the greater good of all. Let me quote JFK, “A rising tide lifts all ships.” Buuuutttt to be completely honest, if I was a high net-worth individual bringing in well over 168k/year, maybe I’d feel differently.

2. That I have to pay taxes in both France and the U.S.

I do not pay taxes in France and the U.S. As a permanent resident of France and a U.S. citizen, I am required to file a tax return in the U.S. for as long as I remain a U.S. citizen and earn over the filing threshold. That doesn’t mean I have to pay taxes in the U.S., though.

Thanks to a double taxation treaty between France and the U.S., any earnings a person earns in 2023 up to $120,000 are excluded from taxation in the U.S. So if you earn your money in France, even a great French salary, as long as it’s under $120k, you owe zero of it to Uncle Sam because you pay your taxes in France. You still have to file a return though.

As I said, I’m not a tax professional so please consult an accountant to go over your particular situation. 

3. That you have to be a French citizen to live in France (or that I am one, and it’s automatic).

Being a citizen or permanent resident of France means you can legally reside in France, but they aren’t the same thing. I’m a permanent resident of France on a carte de séjour (equivalent of a Green Card) since my husband is French. I have the right to live, work, and pay taxes in France.

Becoming a French citizen is not automatic and you don’t have to become a citizen to live in France. I have not pursued citizenship yet because it’s a rather long, tedious, expensive process and it would change nothing about my day-to-day life. I could have started the process, though, after 4 years of marriage.

The only thing it would change other than giving me a French passport in addition to my American one is that I’d have the right to vote in France. Becoming a citizen is not a huge priority for me at the moment, so it’s not something I’m rushing to do. Any extra money we have goes toward flights to visit family or toward maintaining our home.

But the citizenship option is there for me if and when I want to pursue it. 

4. That all French women are fashionable.

There are fashionable French women for sure. They exist. In big cities, you’ll definitely find more fashionably dressed women than you would in a small rural town. But there are loads of French women who don’t really care about fashion at all.

You’ll find French women who are dressed to the nines in the latest fashions at all times and others who couldn’t care less about whether they’re wearing Louis Vuitton, H&M, or something they bought 10 years ago. Plus, a whole bunch in between the extremes.

Overall, the French look more put together than the average American and elevate their casual style a bit, but that doesn’t mean everyone is fashionable or has a big budget for fashionable clothes — or that they care about looking fashionable!

If you want to know what to wear in France, read this. I set the record straight and even link to some pieces you’ll love wearing!

5. That all French people are a certain way

Let me piggyback off my previous point. I used to think of the French in terms of outdated clichés. The media is great at helping us in that department.

I thought all French people — ok maybe not ALL, but most — were all classy people and great cooks who shopped only at the farmers market and were slim and fashionable with well-behaved kids.

Then I moved to France and had a bit of a wakeup call.

Before that, I had visited France once as a high schooler (and hated it, for the record). Aside from that, I had very little real-life experience with the French upon which to base my opinions. I had friends who visited France a bunch of times and told me all about the French in both flattering and not so flattering ways. I talk about all those stereotypes we need to STOP believing here.

After marrying a French guy and moving to France, little by little, the outdated clichés were replaced by actual life experiences that set me straight. What you see on vacation is not real life, or at least not the whole story.

The French are like any other group of people. Some are great cooks and others aren’t. Some people are cultured and classy and others aren’t. The French love McDonald’s. Some people live in public housing. Some are rich. Not everyone shops at the market. French kids scream too. Some people are overweight. I wrote about these French people myths here btw.

In retrospect, it seems like common sense now, but until I got firsthand experience, the outdated clichés were alive and well in my head. Emily in Paris keeps them alive for a lot of people as well! I honestly still hear them ALL the time…. hence this post.

8 Things people MAJORLY overlook when moving to France >>

6. That the French are lazy

I dedicated an entire post to this one, but the bottom line is that no, the French aren’t lazy. Can you find lazy French people? Sure, you can find lazy people anywhere. It’s not a particularly French trait.

The French aren’t workaholics and work to live, not the other way around. That’s a lot easier to do with job security via a work contract and the fact that healthcare isn’t tied to your employment.

Read the post I linked just above for more of my thoughts on that “lazy French” trope.

7. That French healthcare is free (and perfect)

I have a lot to say on this.

There’s a kind of peace that comes with knowing France views access to healthcare as a basic human right and not a privilege or benefit of working for a good employer. You won’t bankrupt yourself if you have an accident or major health diagnosis.

Another important point is that healthcare in France is NOT tied to your employment. If you lose your job or quit, you and your family don’t lose access to healthcare (nor are you forced to pay for something like COBRA).

But French healthcare is not free. Not even close. It’s not free at the point of service in most cases, nor is it free on the backend. It’s true that you will pay very little (by American standards) when you receive care and a lot of that is reimbursed, but going to the doctor in France is not free.

Here’s how it works (oversimplified just to give you the basics): You pay 25 euros directly to your general practitioner at the time of the visit. A percentage is automatically reimbursed to your bank account a few days later by France’s social security system. There are no health care plans where you choose your coverage and every French person has the same base fees and reimbursement, unlike the U.S. where the plan you have makes a HUGE difference in terms of coverage and cost.

Now, you do have the choice of whether or not you have supplementary insurance that you pay out of pocket called a mutuelle. In this case, an additional portion may be reimbursed, if you choose to have one. Most people do have one because the social security base reimbursement rates aren’t always great. Ours has decent coverage and it’s 152 euros/month.

You don’t have to look too far to hear about great experiences with the French healthcare system (I’ve had many) in the case of cancer diagnoses, major surgeries, childbirth, medication costs, etc. Many of my own readers have told me about how well they were treated in French hospitals and how affordable it was.

But none of that just magically happens. Healthcare is funded by social charges and taxes in France. Salaries tend to be lower than what we may be used to in the U.S. because the employer pays a huge chunk on the backend in social charges. 

But it’s not all unicorns and rainbows. Sometimes it can take a while to get an appointment with a specialist. If you’re a new patient and need to see a dermatologist in my area, a 6-month wait or more is the norm. It’s not much better for the dentist or ophthalmologist.

Here’s another example: Last week (early March), I FINALLY got an ultrasound after originally seeing my doctor back in September for something. The first appointment available was a 6-month wait away. When I first called to schedule it back in September, the books for 2024 weren’t even open yet.

Thank goodness it all checked out, but dang, certain types of diseases progress quickly and I couldn’t help but think a 6-month wait for some people could have detrimental consequences.

And of course you have bad doctors in France too, like anywhere else in the world. I’ve had a bunch of less than stellar experiences over the years too. France isn’t immune to that! Plus, things are just done differently than what you might be used to.

I was denied a prescription for an Epipen (even out of pocket, they cost a fraction of what they do in the U.S.) for my food allergy from my allergist because she felt it was unlikely I’d have an anaphylactic reaction. Since it’s a public system, some doctors are more hesitant to write prescriptions and order tests. The doctor is in charge… advocating for yourself might not be taken well.

You also won’t find urgent care chains in France like the super convenient for-profit ones we have in the United States. Yes, France has emergency care but I’m referring to one-stop walk-in shops with extended hours where you can see a medical doctor, get lab work or x-rays done all in one place without any bureaucracy for urgent but non-emergency matters.

In addition, dental care is not particularly well reimbursed — even with a mutuelle — and even less so once you need something like a dental implant, root canal, or crown.

Here’s a recent example: I wear a nightguard for my TMJ issue and the total cost to have one made was 350 euros. Half of it still came out of my pocket even with the sécu and mutuelle because it’s not a well reimbursed item. That’s not HUGE, but when you factor in how much we pay for healthcare, it’s not nothing either.

The cost of glasses is another example. If you want basic lenses and frames, you have some low-cost options, but if you want thin lenses for your strong rx that have a blue light coating and anti glare and all that plus nice frames, get ready to pay. My rx sunglasses (that are medically necessary) were 262 euros out of pocket just for the lenses. 

You’ll also pay out of pocket for therapy if you see a psychologist. While psychiatry appointments are covered by the sécu, therapy via a psychologist can get quite expensive and is often cost prohibitive. 

All of that said, let me return to my original point that healthcare is a basic human right in France and that counts for a lot — even if the system isn’t perfect.

8. That life in France is better for every foreigner than life in their home country

Every time I post on social media about a positive aspect of life in France (or even tell someone in real life), people will say something like, “You’re so lucky/I wish I could move there!/Must be nice!”

People have this impression that living in France is synonymous with a perfect, care-free life, like it’s some kind of prize that we’re all hoping to win that just fell into our laps.

There are so many reasons why someone might move abroad. We tend to romanticize living abroad in France but I think it’s damaging to assume that everyone living abroad has an easier, better, or happier life than they did in their home country. France has a lot going for it, that’s a fact, but it’s not a utopia.

Anyone who says otherwise either hasn’t lived here long enough or is lying.

Life as a foreigner in France long-term can be hard. I have never sugarcoated that. 

Also, people in France have problems like people anywhere. It’s so true that our problems follow us wherever we go. Divorce, financial issues, health problems, grief, addiction, and other life problems can happen anywhere and living in la belle France doesn’t make us immune to any of them.

I think it’s easy to assume the grass is always greener when we’re unsatisfied with the circumstances of where we are currently. I wrote an article about the problem with fantasy worlds and wrote, “The problem with only seeing a fantasy world is that it’s a farce with only one point of view. It’s only part of the story, of one story. We’re blind to the nuanced realities of life and the imperfections that make a beautiful story whole.”

***

Many of the misconceptions I’ve mentioned play into a fundamental difference in how the U.S. and France view society and our place in it. A recent article in The Connexion explains it so well: “The difference between the French Dream and its American counterpart is solidarity. It is an experience of communality not individuality, requiring the sacrifice of part of one’s liberty in the common interest…”

In France, we pay into the system for the greater good of all. It’s a mindset difference that is all about solidarity and improving the life for everyone. To live in France and to live well, you have to be on board with that concept. Otherwise, you’ll always be an outsider. And a very unhappy one!

Did you enjoy this post? Let me know in the comments and share it with someone who might also find it interesting. Merci!

---

PIN ME: