EXPLAINED: What you need to know about living on a boat in France
Living on a boat in France may seem a dream - but unfortunately you still need to think about boring things like residency and tax. Here's how to make your dream into a reality.
River rights
First of all, if you want to stay somewhere for any length of time, you will need an occupancy agreement from the local river authority - that may be Voies Navigables de France, Compagnie Nationale du Rhône, the local chamber of commerce, communal port, or private port.
The agreement (a Contrat d’Occupation Temporaire du domaine public - known as a Cot) will specify where you can moor your boat (which, in turn, depends on its size), and the conditions under which you can do it. The cost of this agreement varies between a few hundred euros to a few thousand euros.
It is important to know that the Cot covers the residents of a houseboat, rather than the houseboat itself, and is therefore not transferable from owner to owner if the houseboat is sold. In theory, then, you could buy a houseboat, then not be permitted to stay in it. However, anyone who buys a boat with a Cot in place has a more-than reasonable chance of getting it renewed.
Residency
This brings us to residency - there's a popular misconception that living on the water means that you don't need a visa or residency card, but in fact this is not the case.
The residency rules for people living on a boat are broadly the same as for people on land - if you are not a citizen of an EU country that you must either limit your stays in France to 90 days out of every 180 or get a visa. If you want to tour the waterways of Europe, be aware that the 90-day limit applies to the whole Schengen area.
You can apply for a residency card using the address of the berth or marina where your boat is moored, along with supporting documentation such as proof and ownership and insurance of the boat. You may also need an attestation from the harbour master or marina owner that your boat is moored there.
Mooring
The idea that you can puttle along a waterway, then stop wherever you like is a lovely one - and, in theory you can do that, as long as you don’t moor your boat to a tree.
In reality things are not that easy. Where you want to park your boat matters - and vary from place to place. But you can expect to pay anywhere between €2,000 and €10,000 a year to moor your boat.
Licence
If your boat has an engine that is more than six horsepower, you will need a boat licence - even if you rarely move your vessel. And that means you will have to pass a theory test and a practical course at a specialised school to get your captain’s permit.
And if you want to navigate the inland waterways of France, you will need an additional permit. The most basic permit will set you back about €500 - but expect to pay up to €1,500 if you plan to travel in your home.
Maintenance
Houseboats, like houses, need maintaining. And, like houses, this can get expensive quickly. You will have to repaint your houseboat every few years. Count on spending €10,000 in total on dry docking, refitting and painting.
A compulsory hull inspection is due every 10 years - at a cost to the owner of up to €2,000, plus dry-docking costs. And the advice is similar to keeping your car serviced in between CTs: don’t wait 10 years between inspections.
Insurance
Having a navigable boat means you’ll pay around €1,000 to €2,500 in insurance costs, before contents insurance.
Taxes
In general, you should not have to pay taxe foncière if you own a houseboat - though, in 2018, the Conseil d’Etat ruled that tax offices can decide on a case-by-case basis whether a houseboat is more house or boat, based in on how permanent its mooring is.
If you are living on your boat in France, then you are classed as a resident and will have to complete the annual tax declaration like everyone else, even if you have no income in France - full details here.
Utilities
You may face some issues getting your houseboat hooked up to all the utilities - electricity, phone and internet services, water - for the first time. But these are not insurmountable. The best advice, as it always is, is to contact your current suppliers for assistance, and the local water authority.
An increasing number of places also make it a condition of their Cot that wastewater is collected at a designated point and taken to a local treatment works, rather than being dumped into the river.
You will also need to set up a permanent address to receive mail - some marinas offer this service, or you can contact La Poste.
Prices
The price for a boat, like everything else, varies in different areas, with Paris unsurprisingly coming out as among the most expensive locations.
As recently as 30 years ago, a converted barge moored on the banks of the Seine one of the more affordable addresses in the capital. For €50,000 or so, and a few thousand more converting an old péniches into something habitable, owners got around 100m2 of city centre property for a fraction of the price of their chic neighbours.
Since then, however, prices have got a little higher - a large péniche on the river in the 16th arrondissement was on the market for more than €1.8 million recently, and another for more than €1.7 million.
One boasting about 100m2 living space in the 15th, meanwhile, was for sale for €520,000.
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River rights
First of all, if you want to stay somewhere for any length of time, you will need an occupancy agreement from the local river authority - that may be Voies Navigables de France, Compagnie Nationale du Rhône, the local chamber of commerce, communal port, or private port.
The agreement (a Contrat d’Occupation Temporaire du domaine public - known as a Cot) will specify where you can moor your boat (which, in turn, depends on its size), and the conditions under which you can do it. The cost of this agreement varies between a few hundred euros to a few thousand euros.
It is important to know that the Cot covers the residents of a houseboat, rather than the houseboat itself, and is therefore not transferable from owner to owner if the houseboat is sold. In theory, then, you could buy a houseboat, then not be permitted to stay in it. However, anyone who buys a boat with a Cot in place has a more-than reasonable chance of getting it renewed.
Residency
This brings us to residency - there's a popular misconception that living on the water means that you don't need a visa or residency card, but in fact this is not the case.
The residency rules for people living on a boat are broadly the same as for people on land - if you are not a citizen of an EU country that you must either limit your stays in France to 90 days out of every 180 or get a visa. If you want to tour the waterways of Europe, be aware that the 90-day limit applies to the whole Schengen area.
You can apply for a residency card using the address of the berth or marina where your boat is moored, along with supporting documentation such as proof and ownership and insurance of the boat. You may also need an attestation from the harbour master or marina owner that your boat is moored there.
Mooring
The idea that you can puttle along a waterway, then stop wherever you like is a lovely one - and, in theory you can do that, as long as you don’t moor your boat to a tree.
In reality things are not that easy. Where you want to park your boat matters - and vary from place to place. But you can expect to pay anywhere between €2,000 and €10,000 a year to moor your boat.
Licence
If your boat has an engine that is more than six horsepower, you will need a boat licence - even if you rarely move your vessel. And that means you will have to pass a theory test and a practical course at a specialised school to get your captain’s permit.
And if you want to navigate the inland waterways of France, you will need an additional permit. The most basic permit will set you back about €500 - but expect to pay up to €1,500 if you plan to travel in your home.
Maintenance
Houseboats, like houses, need maintaining. And, like houses, this can get expensive quickly. You will have to repaint your houseboat every few years. Count on spending €10,000 in total on dry docking, refitting and painting.
A compulsory hull inspection is due every 10 years - at a cost to the owner of up to €2,000, plus dry-docking costs. And the advice is similar to keeping your car serviced in between CTs: don’t wait 10 years between inspections.
Insurance
Having a navigable boat means you’ll pay around €1,000 to €2,500 in insurance costs, before contents insurance.
Taxes
In general, you should not have to pay taxe foncière if you own a houseboat - though, in 2018, the Conseil d’Etat ruled that tax offices can decide on a case-by-case basis whether a houseboat is more house or boat, based in on how permanent its mooring is.
If you are living on your boat in France, then you are classed as a resident and will have to complete the annual tax declaration like everyone else, even if you have no income in France - full details here.
Utilities
You may face some issues getting your houseboat hooked up to all the utilities - electricity, phone and internet services, water - for the first time. But these are not insurmountable. The best advice, as it always is, is to contact your current suppliers for assistance, and the local water authority.
An increasing number of places also make it a condition of their Cot that wastewater is collected at a designated point and taken to a local treatment works, rather than being dumped into the river.
You will also need to set up a permanent address to receive mail - some marinas offer this service, or you can contact La Poste.
Prices
The price for a boat, like everything else, varies in different areas, with Paris unsurprisingly coming out as among the most expensive locations.
As recently as 30 years ago, a converted barge moored on the banks of the Seine one of the more affordable addresses in the capital. For €50,000 or so, and a few thousand more converting an old péniches into something habitable, owners got around 100m2 of city centre property for a fraction of the price of their chic neighbours.
Since then, however, prices have got a little higher - a large péniche on the river in the 16th arrondissement was on the market for more than €1.8 million recently, and another for more than €1.7 million.
One boasting about 100m2 living space in the 15th, meanwhile, was for sale for €520,000.
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