RETIRE IN STYLE: France's Healthcare, Visas, and Why It's Worth It!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 พ.ย. 2023
- We moved to Portugal and now travel in Europe whenever we want. Our recent visit to Paris sparked the idea of retiring in the land of croissants and vineyards, prompting us to share our journey. While our initial visit was to see family, the allure of France for retirement became undeniable. Despite budgeting and counting our pennies, the overseas adventures are undeniably worth it, proving that life is too short to delay such dreams. Dream of strolling through cobblestone streets, savoring world-class wines, and waking up to the aroma of freshly baked croissants. Whether you envision city living in Paris or a tranquil retirement in the countryside, France, with its rich cultural heritage and healthcare system, offers the perfect blend of Old World charm and modern comfort. From navigating visas to exploring healthcare options, we provide insights and encouragement for your own exciting retirement path. Bonjour to an exhilarating new chapter in the land of culture, cuisine, and endless exploration!
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Bom dia! Bonjour! We live in Portugal and that means we can live our dreams, travel Europe and stay inside our budget. We encourage you to explore because we know there is a way. Please come on over and join us on patreon at www.patreon.com/itllbefun
I'm retired and moving to France in January from California at 62. Started my VLS-TS application. Settling there for the affordable healthcare and slower pace of life. Thanks for sharing!
Bonjour Gilliantracy
We are happy you are here. Thank you for your support. Your new adventure in France is going to be wonderful. Our step daughter has been living in France for 20 years and never looked back.
Have a wonderful evening,
Alan, Leslie and Wolf
@@ItllBeFun Merci beaucoup!
We are 61, living in Carmel, CA and moving to France next summer. First, pet sitting in England for 5 months. Best wishes.
Sounds great!
How is it ? I am doing the same at the end of March. The tax treaty for retirees is amazing too. We are both moving from high-tax states (you CA, me NYC).
It's sad the degree to which healthcare costs are the main reason for Americans wanting to retire abroad.
Ola rexx!
It is sad to think that affordable Healthcare is such an issue in the US. It's not like we aren't willing to pay but it does need to be something we can manage without having to give up eating.
We like to eat!:)
Anyway thanks for watching and supporting our channel.
Have a wonderful day,
Alan
Amazing how many other countries seem to get the balance right.
@@ItllBeFunAgreed. It’s not a political issue. It’s a right and hence inherent to their culture.
I ( a Brit ) have lived in France since 2004 - Best move I ever made!
Our step daughter has lived there for 20 years and truly loves it. We get spoiled when we go with a built in guide so it is always a fantastic time. We keep saying we are now trying to find our next home.
So glad you're exploring and highlighting other areas in Europe for retirement. The end in the nhr is making us look at other options. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they will have reinstated the scheme in 5 years when I'm ready to retire. My top destinations have been Portugal, France, Italy and Spain. I love the more Central and Northern regions as well, but am looking for warmer climbs. Happy travels, and thanks for highlighting the pros and cons of other areas in Europe.
Ola Miranda,
We are so happy that you are watching. We waited a lifetime to get here and we want everyone to know they can build their dreams and that it is affordable to travel between the countries.
Thans for your support.
Alan, Leslie and Wolf
Eh.. We were in Paris from Oct 25 to 31, after a week in London and a week in Brussels. If you were there recently must have been around the time we were. Loved Paris. For off season it was pretty crowded. We were really lucky that there wasn't any serious rain to slow down our trip. Nice to hear that they have an extended visa program to try and stay for an year and visit much of Europe. Now that i heard about it I am going to explore that. The video brought back memories of the city hall, Pompidou center. Arc de Trompe, Louvre and all the beautiful sights. had a very good time in London and Brussels too. saw some really good deals on flights to Spain from Dallas for 440 RT, for Feb/ March time frame and taking a serious lookat it. Cheers!!!
Ola Cookmaster,
We left on the 24th!!! Next time we need to get our schedules together!. The rain didn't stop us. We just purchased some sweaters.and jackets and were off to the races!! We need to go back to London and we have never been to Brussels. Our list is so long!!!!!!
My wife and I were part of the Opening Crew for what was then known as Euro Disney (later Disneyland Paris), arriving in mid-December of 1991 and not returning home to the U.S. until the first week of June 1992. We had Disney housing (manufactured "cabin" housing in the campground) but had to more or less "live as locals" in terms of grocery shopping (regular runs to the Carrefour in Noisy-le-Grand and every Saturday morning in Lagny). We arrived in France early enough before the April opening to be able to enjoy the Loire Valley, the Champagne region, Normandy and even took the TGV to the Winter Olympics in Albertville. We took the RER into Paris frequently during our almost 6-month stay for visits to museums, historical sites and more shopping at Les Halles or center-city)...so, all in all, we were able to enjoy a lot of travel and absorb the sights, sounds and flavors in the midst of a very hectic work schedule.
One example of our many memories: The Davy Crockett Campground was actually located outside the "ring" of park and resort development, on the other side of the A-4, putting it closer to the town of Villenueve-le-Compte than to the park. My boss, an American ex-pat who was not only fluent in French but steeped in their culture -- and the second does not automatically follow the first) pointed out to us "That little town has 3 restaurants...and any American city would kill to have just one of them."
Ola! Great story. Thanks for sharing..
My husband and I visited Paris, Normandy, and Brittany last Spring. We had a wonderful trip. Thank you for sharing more trip and retirement locations in Europe.
Bom dia wellbeingandhealth
Thank you for sharing our journey with us. We truly appreciate your support.
Have a wonderful day
Alan
Inflation has tanked what seemed to be a decent retirement income. I have had to raid my annuity (taking huge penalties) and will not do that again. I have been looking at retirement in France as a fabulous alternative, even if it doesn’t mean living in Paris. I look forward to hearing more.
Olá Margaret,
Inflation has been no fun at all. We are sorry here you had to pull from your annuity. However planning a move abroad has really made a huge difference for us. It worth looking at from a financial perspective as well as the adventure!!! Join us at www.itllbefunretirement.com for our new moving Abroad program. And come join the It'll Be Fun Crew for monthly Online Meetups at www.patreon.com/itllbefun
We just returned from a long holiday to London,Paris, and Nice. Loved all cities but Nice was a favorite as it was not so crowded. We will be giving some conversations about staying in Baja ( close to the USA) or moving.
Ola Kathleen,
Thanks for your support. Wr have never been to Nice. It's another on our list. I think we need more time and money. It took us so long to get to this part of the world. It's wonderful!
Have a great day,
Alan, Leslie and Wolf
You should have visited Nice, Annecy, Toulouse and Montpellier !
Another time, Carl.
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel.
Alan, Leslie and Wolf
Ha! Yes Alan, that would be a nightmare for me too! Wolf, you had to go and turn a serious pose into a humorous one. 😂
Ola Chris,
We can't wait to meet you guys in person. You can ride in my car!!!!!
Thanks for your continued support!
Alan
@@ItllBeFun De nada! We are so looking forward to seeing you guys as well! And to hear that VeeDub motor pushing us up the hills will be worth the price of admission.
I'm in the same boat. Fingers crossed that some iteration of the NHR returns in the next 4 yrs.
Have to wait and see what happens.
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel.
Alan, Leslie and Wolf
Just got back from Paris and Nice, France. Paris was expensive and crowded not my cup of tea for retirement. But i really loved Nice!
Ola ConanNYC
Paris is fun to visit and we think living in the country side would work better for us as well.
Thanks for sharing your experiences.
Have a wonderful day,
Alan
Another suggestion to get more effortless administration done in France is to choose a county (département) with a smaller population. If the central city of your area is huge, you will have longer wait times and grumpier employees! This doesn't help if you are set on living in a big city like Paris, Marseilles, etc. but for those who want country living it can make all the difference. We are very happy to live in a "backwater" département!!
Bonjour Sarah
Merci. Sounds like the perfect idea for Alan and I. As well as others who don't want to live in the big cities.
Thanks for sharing. We appreciate your support.
Have a wonderful day
Alan
great video
Thanks, and thanks for watching and supporting our channel
Alan,Leslie and Wolf
Excellent video, Guys. It looks like you enjoyed your short visit but I doubt if you'd swap it for beautiful Madeira. Cheers!
You are correct, John. Thanks for the continued support.
Alan, Leslie and Wolf
The French Govt visa requires you to have private health insurance.Ibelieve they also require you to invest more than E500,000 in either real estate or business.
Thank you for sharing. Have a wonderful day.
Cool with the comments, and great content.
We appreciate you. Thanks for the continued support.
Obrigado
Alan, Leslie and Wolf
A, L and Wolf, Oui, Oui. Merci. Last time I was in France I had some amazing French onion soup. Did you have any good food while there? JP Porto
Ola JP,
We did! The food was fantastic! And the first thing we had was French onion soup. It was fantastic. Silly how good it is in France.
We will show some food footage in an upcoming video.
Thanks for your support.
Alan
The croissants were looking good. 👍
Yes they were!
Thanks for the continued support of our channel.
Alan, Leslie and Wolf
Thank you for your insightful videos. We are retired (I taught English), with modest income from pensions, social security, and our rented condo in Portland, Oregon. We just completed four months in Lviv helping a new school open. And we fell in love with the ''old-town" look of Lviv and Krakow. Where would you recommend that we begin our search for an apartment in France? My wife has MS, so healthcare and air conditioning is critical. Thank you!! Dean & Cindy
Ola DeanRamser,
Sounds like a wonderful 4 months you have had. You will want to put together a scouting trip that allows you to stay in 3 or 4 cities/ areas so you can get a feel for what speaks to you and your wife. For us we are looking in the south of France in the Dordogne area and we just visited Marseille, take a look at
Périgueux as well. There are many others areas you should read up on that are cost effective once you narrow them down based on language, safety, healthcare and adventure you will be off to the races. Let me know your thoughts and what appeals to you. Nimes? Grenoble?
You may just want to look at Paris, while expensive uou could live close and travel in Châteauroux.
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel.
Come join us on Patreon at www.patreon.com/itllbefun.
Have a wonderful day,
Alan
That makes sense. I am hoping to create the window to bring us to several towns to give us options for the future....@@ItllBeFun
not fair , i have been trying to do this for 5 years, got to leave usa, it’s not safe here anymore and i am fearful for november
Ola! We are still in Portugal. However we are researching and showing you the options available.
We have shown Greece, France, Spain and Italy as well as Portugal.
It is important when planning a life abroad that you do so because that is the dream you are running towards. No matter where you go it will not be perfect. It is good to be prepared to except and enjoy the change.
Have a wonderful day!
Arkansas would have been fine, but my family abandoned the farm my mom was born on. 😉
I actually have adult nephews who are French. Since I’m their unmarried aunt, without kids, they think I should move to France. It was a thought years ago, but I feel it’s a place for me to visit. Portugal somehow suits my sarcastic, chill personality. Plus, I’m a Californian. So, the weather. 👍🏾 France is very close to Portugal. My French and American nephews will enjoy visiting Portugal.
Ola nubianette
Thanks for sharing your story. We hope to see you in Portugal in the future! It'll Be Fun!
Have a wonderful day
Alan, Leslie and Wolf
Arkansas???? That’d be the death of me. Fiquei arrepiado 😮
Ola Mr S65
The bugs are big!!!! And they bite!
Excellent video! We are 66YO retired educators. We are thinking of seeing Paris before heading back to Portland. Your thoughts? Is it safe? Would you revisit Paris? Is it walkable? Thank you!!!! Dean & Cindy
Ola Dean
Absolutely! Paris is safe. Just put your wallet in your front pocket. And enjoy. It is not to be.missed no matter how many times you gave been there.
Have a wonderful day
Alan and Leslie
@@ItllBeFun Thanks Alan and Leslie!!
wolf is posing like a model. lol.... work it girl!
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel
Among the 4 countries that I visited in western Europe - I loved France. It's just so advanced and beautiful. But I truly found most of France pretty expensive. I preferred Colmar, Epernay, Nice, Menton, LYON, Avignon, Strasbourg, Rennes, Marseilles far better than Paris, where we felt truly unsafe. I would still choose France though among others including Italy & Portugal too.
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel. There are many nice areas in France. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Alan,Leslie and Wolf
France is beautiful but if you want peace and live in paradise you can't find better Tham Madeira.
Ola Helena
Yes it is beautiful in France and may be the perfect option for lots of folks. Living out in the countryside would be lovely. But as you know we chose Madeira.
Thanks for being here!
Have a wonderful day
Alan
what happened to portugal? unreal why french, i am french. where did you settle which part
We have a daughter and grandson who live in Paris. So France is something our son needs to review. Maybe someday in the future...
Half way through this video, the information was only a repeat from the beginning
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel.
Hello again. I am still researching the financial documents; does the income of the "monthly minimum" x 12 months suffice or must I have $50,000 in savings? Thank you!
Ola Dean,
It is a grey area. It was like that for us in Portugal as well. Since you will want to put together the strongest VISA application possible. If possible plan to show proof of income at the yearly minimum wage as well as place the amount in your bank account.
Hope this helps.
Have a wonderful day,
Alan
Thanks, Alan! We have much to learn. Dean & Cindy@@ItllBeFun
Too much smoke in france, most people smoke
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel. That is a concern.
Alan, Leslie and Wolf
31% of the population in France. It is not most of the people, but still a too high percentage, you are right. Yet, smoking is prohibited in every public spaces.
@@heliedecastanet1882 I was in France few months ago, literally didn't see people no smoking lol
@@mymaserati100stock4 I am French, from Paris. I made quick research. So I was actually wrong. The rate in France is 24% smokers. Less than 31% but stil quite high.
Compared with France, USA is 21%, UK 12%, Greece 31%, Spain 22%, Italy 23%, Portugal 25%.
So, except from the UK, you will probably not see people not smoking in those countries too 🙂
I've lived in Paris and Provence and if Trump wins in 2024, I'm planning to retire to the area around Aix-en-Provence. It does help to speak French, however (which I do).
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel.
If Trump doesn't win in 2024, I'll be moving to Portugal. I've been here on Madeira for 9 weeks looking for property. Just in case...
@@user-ok8dl2qi6t Portugal is a poor choice - they hate Trump and if he wins, you'll be inundated with insults. You might be happier in Russia, Belarus or Hungary.
@@victoriaguerin2851 hilarious!
I love France, and would definitely buy property there if I came into a lot of $$.
However, saying it has "world class health care", without any data to back it up, can be misleading.
First, I don't think you can say it is "free" if the government takes 20% of your pay to cover your health care (unemployment insurance, and old age pension, also). Most French citizens have private health insurance, also. This would indicate that state coverage has gaps.
As with many "free" health insurnce coverage, there is a long wait to get an appointment, usually 2 months or more.
Bom dia, Thank you for watching and for sharing your thoughts. It is hard to struggle. We have additional videos that provide additional information that maybe you would like better. Have a wonderful day!
I’ve only visited Paris and my plans are the same. If dumpster fire #45 is elected, not sticking around for the scorched earth policies
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel.
But you must learn to speak French, or it won't be fun
Thanks for watching and supporting our channel. That's very true.
Why Madeira? The Azores are so much cheaper like Terceira.
Ola Alan,
Great name!
The Azores are waiting for us!!!!!!! It is going to be fabulous.
Thanks for sharing and supporting our channel.
Have a wonderful evening,
Alan
Weather is better in Madeira. Madeira has more nonstop flights (from Europe) and is currently building a new large hospital. Many people speak English.
And we love it here. But we do need to visit the Azores.
@@cybilm133Terceira has a Major hospital and more speak English there because of the US base there.
@@alanmartins6349I’m from Massachusetts and I worked with people of Portuguese descent from the Açores mainly . When I think of islands that belong to Portugal, I always think of the Açores. There are two Portuguese consular post in Massachusetts to give you an idea of how large the Portuguese population is in my state.