Moving abroad requires thinking about many details. In this article, we would like to present in a practical way the different steps to be taken by future expatriates to perfect their integration into their new life.
Employers can support their employees by offering various services.
Many companies organise a so-called «reconnaissance trip«: the employee and his/her spouse, if there is a partner, will spend 3 to 5 days in the future host country in order to evaluate the new living environment, both personally and professionally, before validating the decision to move abroad.
Given the high cost of international mobility, companies willingly resort to this famous «look and see trip» avoiding early returns that are so disastrous in human and financial terms.
During this trip, the employee will be able to meet his/her new manager in the country of expatriation, discuss the expectations of the mission and get to know his/her future work colleagues.
On a more personal level, the employee or the couple will be able to find accommodation or areas popular with expatriates, or even contact schools if they have children, and assess the possibilities for cultural and sporting activities.
The employer will pay for the travel, accommodation and catering costs for these days taken during working time.
Once the project has been confirmed by the employee, the company will work on the integration of the employee in the new place of residence by offering language courses if necessary, as well as intercultural training to enable the employee to understand the habits and customs of the country of assignment.
For his part, although accompanied by his company, the future expatriate must organise his departure.
In the case of removals, preparation will depend on what the company has in place.
Quite classically, the employee must present 3 removal quotes to his employer who will validate the service provider according to his policy (volume in relation to the size of the family, equipment not taken in charge such as a piano, caravan, etc., mode of transport used).
The employee should complete a full inventory of his or her belongings and attach photos for customs and insurance purposes.
It will list any items that need to be taken into storage.
Most often, it is difficult to leave with one’s car (problems with the car registration document, number plates, insurance).
It will be necessary to check that the driving licence remains valid in the country of assignment. Some countries require an international driving licence, while others require you to retake your licence locally or accept its validity for a limited period. It is recommended that you always have a translation of your driving licence into English in case of a police check.
If the expatriate’s nationality and/or that of a family member requires an immigration procedure, he/she will have to present his/her birth certificate and that of the persons accompanying him/her abroad, his/her marriage certificate if applicable and copies of his/her diplomas. Each document must be translated by a sworn translator.
It should be checked that the whole family has a valid passport.
Although not compulsory, registration at the consulate of the country of origin at the place of employment will allow you to be on the electoral roll to vote.
French travellers will also be able to register online on the Ariane portal of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs to be alerted on their mobile phone in case of a crisis and to be able to quickly contact their families and relatives in France.
The future expatriate will have to change his address and inform his family. They can take out a subscription with Ubidoca, the borderless mailbox (mail reception, scanning, storage and forwarding to the address of their choice abroad).
The employee will give his or her address abroad to the employer as soon as it is known. It must appear on pay slips or expense statements, particularly if pension contributions are paid in the country of departure.
Tenants will terminate their tenancy and request a certificate of transfer from the employer, allowing them to significantly shorten the notice period, while landlords will be able to search for a tenant if they wish.
Some will have to arrange the repayments of the home loan, if any.
The employee will then proceed to terminate his or her contracts (electricity, gas, water, etc.) and subscriptions (television, telephone, internet, magazines).
With regard to insurance, plan to cancel or even modify contracts, especially if the employee keeps the accommodation unoccupied during his or her assignment. Very often, the insurer will ask for an additional premium for vacant accommodation that is more prone to malicious visits.
From a financial point of view, it is advisable to meet with one’s banker in order to identify possible modifications to the bank account (transformation of a tax resident account into a non tax resident account). Depending on the legislation of each country, certain savings accounts may be kept (Plan d’Epargne en Actions in France) or closed (Livret de Développement Durable in France for holders who are no longer French tax residents).
Then the employee will be able to order host country currency.
He will inform his tax office of his departure abroad within 30 days before his international mobility. If the family joins the expatriate at a later date, for example at the end of the school year, this will be done when the family leaves.
For the French tax authorities, the declaration is made online on the taxpayer’s personal space (impôtsgouv.fr) with the date of departure from France and information on a foreign address.
If the new place of residence has not yet been found, the taxpayer will provide the details of a tax representative (usually a family member or friend) who will simply act as a mailbox.
Some countries require a more comprehensive tax clearance or exit tax procedure for high net worth individuals. It is recommended to meet with a tax lawyer specialised in international mobility in the country of departure and to carry out the same procedure in the country of arrival in order to understand all the tax consequences of moving to a new country.
Although not compulsory, many companies offer this double interview to their expatriates because the Human Resources teams are not tax specialists, aware of all the tax regulations in the world. Moreover, for ethical reasons, the employer cannot know the assets and possible personal income of the employee, or even of his/her spouse.
This meeting, which is confidential between the employee and the lawyers, can lead to valuable financial arbitrations (certain tax optimisations can only be implemented by taxpayers who are tax residents in the country of departure).
The prospective employee will give all instructions to the employer to settle his or her current leave entitlement (payment, transfer to a Time Savings Account, taking of leave) and to repay any personal or property loan.
In terms of social security cover, the employee must fill in all the forms submitted by his employer for his pension, provident fund, health and medical insurance and medical repatriation, without forgetting to keep all his contracts with the guarantees, membership cards and emergency numbers to be called, for example, in a computer file.
For people who leave the French social security system and will be covered by a local social protection scheme, whether or not supplemented by private insurance, they must complete the «transfer of residence» form on the Ameli website and return their carte vitale to the CPAM.
The social security coverage of the spouse should be analysed before departure.
If he resigns in France to follow the employee abroad, he can, under certain conditions, benefit from several formulas to receive unemployment benefits for a few months in Europe only or upon return to France.
They can also make voluntary contributions to the basic pension via the CFE (Caisse des Français de l’Étranger) to obtain quarters as if they had worked in France. With at least one dependent child under 20 years of age (accompanying abroad or remaining in France), the «family caretaker» option allows contributions to be reduced by half.
As far as health is concerned, it is advisable to check whether the whole family’s vaccinations are up to date, whether some are compulsory or recommended depending on the destination, to find out about the availability of medicines on the spot in the event of treatment and to bring a first aid kit with the essential products, to find out about the quality of the water, the availability of foodstuffs and the cost of food in the event of restrictions.
Finally, some employers offer a full health check-up in a specialised centre before leaving.
For prospective parents, the family allowance fund should be notified of the mobility if benefits are being paid.
The search for a school should be anticipated: the possibility of a school on the spot or distance learning via the CNED, boarding school for children remaining in the country of origin. Pre-register (many schools abroad have waiting lists), find out what documents you need to provide, prepare school reports and copies of diplomas, inform the current school of your departure and request a certificate of expulsion.
Pet owners should contact the transport company to find out what formalities need to be completed to re-enter the country. Many countries impose a quarantine of several days with the veterinary services, adding costs to be taken into account.
The above list is a bit of a long-winded list, but we recommend that you plan ahead for several months, ideally between 3 and 6 months, depending on the size of the family and the destination (countries requiring visas or work permits, for which the length of the formalities is incompressible), to ensure that you can settle in successfully abroad.
