Financial and Administrative Guide: Moving to France 2025

Dreaming of a life filled with fresh croissants, stunning architecture, and rich culture? Moving to France is an incredible adventure, but the initial administrative hurdles can feel overwhelming. I've been through it all, and I created this no-nonsense guide to walk you through the essential first steps, from finding your apartment to getting your phone connected.

This guide is built on my personal experience to help you save time, money, and headaches. Let's get you settled in!

Table of Contents

• Finding Your Home: How to Rent an Apartment or House

  • Website to find your apartment or house

  • Furnished vs unfurnished apartments

  • The need for a guarantor

• Getting Around: The Smart Way to Buy a Car

  • Forget the Dealership: Use an Auto Mandataire

  • Websites for shopping for new or used cars

  • Obtaining insurance for your car (Bonus / Malus and using your overseas driving record)

• Managing Your Money: Setting Up a French Bank Account

• Transferring Money to France: how to get the best rate and avoid High Bank Fees

• Powering and Insuring Your Home & Getting Connected: Utilities

• Staying in Touch: Your French Mobile Phone Plan

Finding Your Home: How to Rent an Apartment in France

Your new French life begins with a place to call home. The rental market here has its own set of rules, but it's simple once you know where to look and what to expect.

The Best Websites for Apartment Hunting

• SeLoger.com: This is the best place to start. It's one of France's largest real estate portals, featuring professional listings from agencies. It gives you a great overview of what's available in your desired area.

• Leboncoin.fr: Think of this as the French version of Craigslist or facebook marketplace but more organized, it used by everyone. Here, you can find listings directly from landlords (particulier à particulier), which can help you avoid costly agency fees. As with any direct-to-owner site, just be sure to proceed with caution.

Furnished vs unfurnished apartments:

When renting in France, you'll encounter two main types of leases: furnished (meublé) and unfurnished (vide or non meublé), and the legal differences are significant. An unfurnished lease is designed for long-term stability, with a standard minimum term of three years. This gives the tenant strong rights, but requires a longer notice period of three months to vacate (though this can be reduced to one month in designated high-demand "zones tendues" like Paris). The security deposit (dépôt de garantie) is legally capped at one month's rent. In contrast, a furnished lease is built for flexibility, with a standard term of just one year (or nine months for students). This makes it ideal for expats, students, or those on temporary assignments. The tenant only needs to give one month's notice to leave, and the landlord can ask for a security deposit of up to two months' rent. By law, a "furnished" apartment must contain a specific list of essential items, including a bed, cooking facilities, a refrigerator, and a table, making it truly move-in ready.

The Biggest Hurdle: The French Guarantor (Garant)

This is the most common roadblock for expats. Nearly every landlord or agency will demand a garant—a French resident or company that co-signs your lease and promises to pay your rent if you can't. Without a local employment contract or family in France, this is nearly impossible to secure on your own.

Fortunately, you are not stuck. Modern services now exist specifically to solve this problem for expats and newcomers. I have found that Cautioneo offers the best price for guarantor services at 3.5% and accepts overseas pensions / savings accounts to justify your ability to pay.

➡️ For a complete breakdown of how to rent without a traditional guarantor and a comparison of the best services, check out my full guide here

Getting Around: The Smart Way to Buy a Car

While France's public transport is fantastic, a car offers the ultimate freedom to explore hidden villages and breathtaking landscapes. Here's how I saved a significant amount of money and bought my car 100% online.

Forget the Dealership: Use a Mandataire Auto

A mandataire auto (auto broker) is a game-changer for car buying in France. These professionals source new or nearly-new cars from across the European Union, often at a substantial discount compared to local dealership prices. They handle all the complex importation and registration paperwork, making the process incredibly smooth. Some even offer to deliver the car to your house (for a fee). We had a friend in France who we were staying with and through the mandataire Tabor we bought a Hyundai Kona hybrid for over 5000 euros less than the local dealership and did it all online.

Websites to use for Car Shopping in France:

If you are looking for a new or used car, the main websites to search for cars in France include:

https://www.lacentrale.fr/

www.lagrus.fr

➡️ Learn exactly how I bought my car online and why it's the most cost-effective method in my detailed article here

Important Warning: Don't Rely on Credit Card Insurance for Long-Term Rentals!

I've seen people online suggest using their credit card's rental car insurance for a multi-month rental while they shop for a car. Be extremely careful! Most credit card policies limit their collision damage waiver (CDW) coverage to 30 consecutive days, or 60 days at the absolute maximum. If your rental period is longer, you could be completely uninsured. Always read the fine print of your policy before relying on it.

Obtaining insurance for your car (Bonus / Malus and using your overseas driving record)

One of the biggest shocks for expats buying a car in France is the high cost of initial car insurance, unless you are coming from the United States in which case you will find the rates extremely cheap regardless. This is because most insurers will start you at the default rate, ignoring your years of safe driving history from back home. In the French bonus-malus (no-claims bonus) system, this means you begin with a neutral coefficient instead of the discount you deserve if you had no claims in your home country. However, there is a major exception: insurers like MAIF and other tranditional insurance companies will actually take your overseas driving and insurance record into account. By providing a letter from your previous insurer, you can potentially start with a significant bonus (discount), saving you hundreds of euros from your very first year. Online discount insurers often do not provide this service in my experience.

➡️ I explain the exact process in my guide here: How MAIF Accounts for Overseas Insurance Records.

➡️ For more strategies on lowering your premiums and even getting cashback, see my post on Saving Hundreds on French Car Insurance.

Managing Your Money: Setting Up a French Bank Account

Opening a bank account is a top priority. However, you'll quickly run into a classic "chicken and egg" problem: most French online banks require you to already have a French IBAN to open an account. Here is my proven two-step strategy to get around this.

Step 1: Get Your Foot in the Door with Revolut

Revolut is the key. It's one of the few financial institutions that allows you to open an account without a pre-existing French IBAN. This will provide you with a French IBAN you can use immediately for deposits, initial payments, and setting up other services.

Step 2: Transition to a Full-Service French Online Bank

Once you have your Revolut account and are more settled, I recommend opening an account with a true French online bank for better local services, checkbooks (chéquiers), and investment options.

• For most non-Americans: Fortuneo is a fantastic and full-featured online bank which I have been using for over a deacde.

• For Americans: Monabanq is generally more accommodating to the complex FATCA reporting requirements for U.S. citizens.

➡️ For a complete overview of the best banks for English speakers in France please see my different articles:

Revolut Vs Wise: here

Revolut Packages: here

Best Online Banks: here

Overall Banking Section: here

How to Transfer Money to France and Avoid High Bank Fees

When it comes to transferring money to France, using your old bank is a costly mistake. To avoid hidden fees and poor exchange rates on your currency exchange (especially when sending USD to EUR), your best options are modern financial services like Wise and Revolut. Both offer transparent, low fees and use the real mid-market exchange rate, ensuring more of your money arrives in your French bank account. While both are excellent, they serve slightly different needs—one might be better for pure, low-cost transfers, while the other can provide you with a crucial French IBAN to get started. For a detailed comparison to see which service is the perfect fit for your situation, check out my in-depth Wise vs. Revolut analysis for France. I personally have both a Revolut and a Wise account and if I need to transfer money to France I use my Schwab account which offers free wire transfers. If you have a very large amount to transfer to buy a house for example, I would suggest looking at alternative services such as Schwab or Fidelity in the United States. Feel free to DM me if you have questions on large transfers.

Powering and Insuring Your Home & Getting Connected: Utilities

You have the keys! Now it’s time to get the lights on, getting insured, and getting the Wi-Fi running.

Electricity, Gas, and Water: Choose Your Provider and Save!

The energy market in France is deregulated, meaning you are free to choose your provider. You don't have to stick with the historical provider, EDF. By shopping around, you can find much better rates.

After researching my options, I switched to Primeo Energie and was able to save 20% on my electricity bills. It was a simple switch that saves me money every single month.

➡️ See my step-by-step process and learn how to get a bonus for signing up in my post here

Unlike electricity, setting up your water and gas contracts requires a slightly different approach. How you pay for water (l'eau) depends entirely on your city and building management. For example, when I lived in Rennes, I had to sign a contract directly with the municipal water authority. However, in our Paris apartment, the water usage was included in our monthly building fees, known as charges de copropriété. Always ask your landlord or real estate agent how water is billed for your specific property.

Furthermore, if your home uses natural gas (gaz de ville) for heating, hot water, or cooking, you must sign up for a separate gas contract. This is not automatically included with your electricity. We chose EDF for our natural gas supply because they offered a fixed-price contract for two years, protecting us from market volatility. Our plan is to regularly check for better deals and switch if a more competitive offer becomes available. You can explore similar fixed-rate options, like EDF's Avantage Gaz 2 ans offer, to better manage your budget.

Don't Forget Renter's Insurance (Assurance Habitation)

In France, securing renter's insurance, known as assurance habitation, isn't just a good idea—it's a legal requirement for anyone signing a lease for an unfurnished apartment. Your landlord will require proof of your policy before handing over the keys. This insurance primarily covers your civil liability (responsabilité civile), protecting you against damages to the property (like from fire or water leaks) and to third parties. The great news is that this essential coverage is surprisingly affordable. Many expats assume it will be a major expense, but it's one of the easiest and cheapest administrative tasks to complete. I personally chose MAIF for my policy, and my comprehensive plan costs me less than €20 per month, providing complete peace of mind for a very small price.

Internet: The Best Value for High-Speed Fiber

When it comes to internet, Free.fr consistently offers the best value for money. They are known for competitive pricing and bundling incredible value into their packages.

I personally have the Freebox Ultra package for €49.99/month. This single bill includes ultra-fast fiber internet, a Wi-Fi 7 repeater, and subscriptions to Netflix, Disney+, Amazon Prime Video, Canal+, etc.. It's an unbeatable deal. If you don't need the streaming services, free offers packages starting at 19.99 euros a month.

➡️ You can even get cashback on your new internet plan. I explain how in this article here

Staying in Touch: Your French Mobile Phone Plan

Having a working French phone number the moment your plane lands is a game-changer. It simplifies everything from navigating with GPS to contacting your landlord.

My Top Recommendation: Free Mobile

I highly recommend Free Mobile, especially for expats. Their biggest advantage is that you can sign up online and activate your eSIM while you are still in your home country. This means you are connected from day one.

The best plan for most people is the €19.99/month plan. It includes a large data package for France and the EU, plus unlimited calls to mobile phones and landlines in the United States and Canada.

Pro Tip: If you also have a Free.fr fiber internet plan, this mobile plan is discounted to just €15.99/month and get 11 euros cashback on your subscription using Poulpeo cashback with a 5 euro referral bonus here

Moving to France is a journey, and the initial setup is just the first step. By following these tips, you can navigate the process efficiently and get straight to the best part: enjoying your new life in this beautiful country. If you had specific topics you would like me to address, feel free to e-mail me at mybestmoneylife@gmail.com and I can add them to the guide.

You can find the full France blog for English speakers here