Moving to another country involves far more than just packing your bags and finding a place to live – the immigration process can be an administrative labyrinth. We asked the experts at Immigration specialist company Oui Immigration to share their essential visa info for moving to France.
Moving to France? What you need to know
Virginie Le Baler and Gonzalo Aguirre of Oui Immigration have both been through the immigration process personally, so they understand better than most how complex and disorientating it can be, especially when another language is involved.
“Organising an immigration process is much more than filling in administrative forms” says Virginie. “For us it means entering into someone’s personal life, sharing their doubts and joys and accompanying them into their new life. We use our expertise of immigration challenges, its technical hurdles and its challenges, but above all, we become your ally and your cheerleader. We can’t help getting involved, because your case means almost as much to us as it does to you – we get that it’s not just a process, at the heart of it all is you – and your new life.”
Essential visa info for moving to France
17 different types of visas – whether you want to retire to France, work in France, study, set up a business, short-stay, long-stay move as an investor, or as a family, or even want to get married in France. Different forms. Different paperwork. Frequent changes in immigration law. Online systems that aren’t easy to use. Deadlines to meet.
“If that’s not enough” says Gonzalo, “how different departments handle each application is constantly evolving, so just when you think you’ve grasped what’s required, the requirements can change.”
Oui Immigration emphasise that it’s absolutely critical that you apply for the correct visa. It sounds obvious they say, yet a considerable percentage of people make mistakes right at the start that either see their visa application rejected, or they have problems down the line. For instance, people who move to France on a retirement visa, then want to run a tour, or a B&B and go ahead on the retirement visa. It’s definitely going to be a problem without the right paperwork – you need to complete a “change of status” application in that case. But if you don’t know this, it’s easy to get it wrong.
And when it comes to applying for the right type of visa to work in France, there are several variations, for instance working in France – there are 4 types of visas, some of which require a business plan (if you are aiming to create a company) to be submitted with your application – in French of course.
Moving to France starts with the right paperwork
Another big issue for applicants is the supporting documentation required – from proof of income to proof of healthcare insurance. It’s not always clear what’s needed, and there’s a huge amount of misleading information on the internet. But get just one document wrong – and your application will fail.
“It’s not a tick box exercise when you apply for a visa” says Gonzalo, “it’s different for every single person – not just for you but for the administration people who process your application for visas, for a residency card, to start a business etc. Officials don’t just look at what forms you’ve filled in and the paperwork, they consider the bigger picture too.”
If the thought of all this makes your blood run a little cold, don’t despair, because help is available. And it’s the type of help that quickly gets to the heart of what visa you require and then makes sure you get it. Oui Immigration have helped hundreds of people to go through the process of moving to France. They totally get that you want to focus on your dreams and your new life, and they’re with you all the way – from start to finish.
You can find out more or book a consultation by visiting their website: oui-immigration.com
