How hard is it to settle in France?
France frequently ranks among the top countries to visit, but when it comes to settling in it often suffers in comparison to other countries.
The website Expat Insider releases an annual survey of the experiences of people moving countries - and in the 2023 survey France is ranked 33rd out of 53 destinations when it comes to setting up and working abroad.
The answers are taken from an online survey of 12,065 people, representing 171 nationalities and living in 172 countries or territories, including France.
And the reasons they gave probably won't come as a great surprise to any foreigners in France. According to Expat Insider's survey, the primary challenges with settling in France are; the need to speak French, complex administration, and workplace culture.
Language - Over half of those surveyed (59 percent) said that it "is difficult to live in France without speaking French" - compared to an average 32 percent across all the countries represented in the survey.
Consistently, France has ranked in the bottom 10 for countries based on how easy it is to live there without speaking the local language.
Part of the issue is that many foreigners found French to be difficult to learn - just 35 percent said it was 'easy'. However, the necessity of the language has pushed foreigners to persevere more to acquire the skill.
Of those who do speak French, 70 percent said that they 'speak fairly well or very well', which is much higher than the average score of 55 percent across countries.
READ ALSO How easy is it to move to France if you don't speak French?
Administration - France also came in the bottom 10 (45th out of 53) for administrative matters. More than half of respondents (53 percent) said that its difficult to deal with local bureaucracy.
Opening a bank account was one area many struggled with - under half of respondents said it was 'easy'.
The country has improved in some areas, such as its digital infrastructure according to the survey.
This stacks up with the figures - in 2013, the French government launched a €20 billion plan to make sure that all households and businesses across the country had access to very high-speed broadband, and that goal was achieved. By the end of 2021, 99 percent of households and businesses had been equipped with it.
Despite those changes, many administrative matters are still time consuming and require in-person meetings. One respondent, an American expatriate, said "[French] government websites are not easy to use. You have to go to the préfecture to renew your visa, which is long and frustrating.
In a 2021 survey by The Local on foreigners' experiences in France, several mentioned bureaucracy as a challenge. One reader, Weronika Lasko referred to French admin as a "pure nightmare" and others, like Pavan Puli, advised that for "any administrative assistance it takes a lot of time to get done".
Adjusting to French work culture - While many respondents noted their satisfaction with job security, placing the country among the top third among those in the survey, several were still unhappy with the work culture.
READ MORE: What you need to know about French working culture
This is one area that tended to come as a shock to those first settling in France - only 38 percent said that local work culture was conducive to self-employment or flat hierarchies.
Nevertheless, 66 percent of people who responded to Expat Insider's survey said that overall, they would rate their job satisfaction positively. On top of that, France is one of the best countries in Europe for paid time off. Even though Austria tops the charts for the most (38 days per year) time off-work, France comes in a close second with 36 days total.
The formality and stricture of the French workplace can come as a shock to newcomers, as a previous survey by The Local revealed.
One reader, Megan Collins, told The Local: "In the UK people would generally rather start earlier, have 20 minutes for lunch and finish earlier in order to get home, but the French seem fairly happy to have a longer lunch and stay late. That's just how it is".
Once you are settled...
France performed well in many aspects of life that start to take shape once you have settled in, having crossed the initial barriers.
In some areas that are important when first moving - like being able to make friends or the perceived friendliness of locals, France remained squarely in the middle of the pack. It scored 35th for the 'easiness of making friends' and 39th for 'friendliness of locals'. But these did not seem to deter respondents from still ranking France in 14th place for quality of life.
READ MORE: How to make friends with your French neighbours in rural France
For readers, some of the reasons that inform this ranking were: medical care, food, hobbies and climate/ environment.
Medical care - In particular, French healthcare stood out as top notch, ranking in the top 10 (6th place). France placed third in affordability of medical care, making it among the best destinations in the world.
A strong majority of respondents (84 percent) were also satisfied with the quality of care - France ranked 6th in this area. Another American living in France told Expat Insider: "The health care is simply excellent".
In regard to the amount of practising medical professionals, as of 2022, France performed better than both the United Kingdom and United States, with a higher number of medical doctors and nurses per 1,000 inhabitants. France's 6.5 physicians per 1,000 people is also higher than the EU average of 4.9.
Food and culture - Respondents were particularly pleased with the availability of "green goods and services", ranking 6th among the 53 nations surveyed.
One Latvian said: "I like the fact that people spend a lot of time outdoors, plus the food, the wine, the people in general and the quality of life".
For those who enjoy being outside, France does have a lot to offer in terms of nature - almost 10 percent of mainland France is protected as national parks. From forests to mountains, and oceans and even volcanoes, there is something for everyone to see and enjoy.
Overall, regarding food, 84 percent of respondents said they were satisfied with gastronomy in France and the range of food choices.
A Taiwanese respondent told Expat Insider; "The French are obsessed with gastronomy - just like me. I love the culture of the market and butchery. And I love the apéro culture".
READ MORE: How your food and drink habits change when you move to France
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The website Expat Insider releases an annual survey of the experiences of people moving countries - and in the 2023 survey France is ranked 33rd out of 53 destinations when it comes to setting up and working abroad.
The answers are taken from an online survey of 12,065 people, representing 171 nationalities and living in 172 countries or territories, including France.
And the reasons they gave probably won't come as a great surprise to any foreigners in France. According to Expat Insider's survey, the primary challenges with settling in France are; the need to speak French, complex administration, and workplace culture.
Language - Over half of those surveyed (59 percent) said that it "is difficult to live in France without speaking French" - compared to an average 32 percent across all the countries represented in the survey.
Consistently, France has ranked in the bottom 10 for countries based on how easy it is to live there without speaking the local language.
Part of the issue is that many foreigners found French to be difficult to learn - just 35 percent said it was 'easy'. However, the necessity of the language has pushed foreigners to persevere more to acquire the skill.
Of those who do speak French, 70 percent said that they 'speak fairly well or very well', which is much higher than the average score of 55 percent across countries.
READ ALSO How easy is it to move to France if you don't speak French?
Administration - France also came in the bottom 10 (45th out of 53) for administrative matters. More than half of respondents (53 percent) said that its difficult to deal with local bureaucracy.
Opening a bank account was one area many struggled with - under half of respondents said it was 'easy'.
The country has improved in some areas, such as its digital infrastructure according to the survey.
This stacks up with the figures - in 2013, the French government launched a €20 billion plan to make sure that all households and businesses across the country had access to very high-speed broadband, and that goal was achieved. By the end of 2021, 99 percent of households and businesses had been equipped with it.
Despite those changes, many administrative matters are still time consuming and require in-person meetings. One respondent, an American expatriate, said "[French] government websites are not easy to use. You have to go to the préfecture to renew your visa, which is long and frustrating.
In a 2021 survey by The Local on foreigners' experiences in France, several mentioned bureaucracy as a challenge. One reader, Weronika Lasko referred to French admin as a "pure nightmare" and others, like Pavan Puli, advised that for "any administrative assistance it takes a lot of time to get done".
Adjusting to French work culture - While many respondents noted their satisfaction with job security, placing the country among the top third among those in the survey, several were still unhappy with the work culture.
READ MORE: What you need to know about French working culture
This is one area that tended to come as a shock to those first settling in France - only 38 percent said that local work culture was conducive to self-employment or flat hierarchies.
Nevertheless, 66 percent of people who responded to Expat Insider's survey said that overall, they would rate their job satisfaction positively. On top of that, France is one of the best countries in Europe for paid time off. Even though Austria tops the charts for the most (38 days per year) time off-work, France comes in a close second with 36 days total.
The formality and stricture of the French workplace can come as a shock to newcomers, as a previous survey by The Local revealed.
One reader, Megan Collins, told The Local: "In the UK people would generally rather start earlier, have 20 minutes for lunch and finish earlier in order to get home, but the French seem fairly happy to have a longer lunch and stay late. That's just how it is".
Once you are settled...
France performed well in many aspects of life that start to take shape once you have settled in, having crossed the initial barriers.
In some areas that are important when first moving - like being able to make friends or the perceived friendliness of locals, France remained squarely in the middle of the pack. It scored 35th for the 'easiness of making friends' and 39th for 'friendliness of locals'. But these did not seem to deter respondents from still ranking France in 14th place for quality of life.
READ MORE: How to make friends with your French neighbours in rural France
For readers, some of the reasons that inform this ranking were: medical care, food, hobbies and climate/ environment.
Medical care - In particular, French healthcare stood out as top notch, ranking in the top 10 (6th place). France placed third in affordability of medical care, making it among the best destinations in the world.
A strong majority of respondents (84 percent) were also satisfied with the quality of care - France ranked 6th in this area. Another American living in France told Expat Insider: "The health care is simply excellent".
In regard to the amount of practising medical professionals, as of 2022, France performed better than both the United Kingdom and United States, with a higher number of medical doctors and nurses per 1,000 inhabitants. France's 6.5 physicians per 1,000 people is also higher than the EU average of 4.9.
Food and culture - Respondents were particularly pleased with the availability of "green goods and services", ranking 6th among the 53 nations surveyed.
One Latvian said: "I like the fact that people spend a lot of time outdoors, plus the food, the wine, the people in general and the quality of life".
For those who enjoy being outside, France does have a lot to offer in terms of nature - almost 10 percent of mainland France is protected as national parks. From forests to mountains, and oceans and even volcanoes, there is something for everyone to see and enjoy.
Overall, regarding food, 84 percent of respondents said they were satisfied with gastronomy in France and the range of food choices.
A Taiwanese respondent told Expat Insider; "The French are obsessed with gastronomy - just like me. I love the culture of the market and butchery. And I love the apéro culture".
READ MORE: How your food and drink habits change when you move to France
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