The most reliable way into France is the Talent Passport program — through a startup visa or by opening your own company — followed by a temporary residence permit, then permanent residency and citizenship.

In short

  • France’s Talent Passport is mainly obtained through two routes: a startup visa or opening your own company
  • French isn’t required for daily life or work, but it is needed for the naturalization language exam
  • Renewing residency through a company is easier than through a startup visa, even though it looks the other way around at the start
  • Permanent residency and citizenship requirements check the applicant’s last five years, so evidence needs to be gathered in advance
  • A consultation on relocating to France is free and runs without queues via Telegram or WhatsApp

Is Moving to France Worth It in 2026

France today is one of the most open countries when it comes to migration, and one of the easiest to move to. A migrant can count on support from French authorities across a wide range of areas, including the Talent Passport program.

Among the countries where relocation teams help move people, teams, businesses, and capital across more than 10 jurisdictions — with a focus on the US, the UK, and the EU — France leads within the EU. That said, relocation there isn’t right for everyone: those who already have factories, ships, or major assets in France gain little from rushing the move. Early on, it can be more advantageous to stay in a jurisdiction with lighter taxation, grow capital there, and delay the move to France until it becomes safer from a tax standpoint.

those who already have factories, ships, or major assets in France gain little from rushing the move

For everyone else — those without this kind of ultra-high-income complication — a French passport is one of the best options available today. The process is reliable, predictable in timelines, rules, and cost, and it beats passports obtained through investment programs on the value-for-reliability scale. A French passport also opens additional doors, including a path toward relocating to the US.

Who shouldn’t rush

If you already have factories, ships, or major assets in France, there’s no rush to relocate — it’s more advantageous to grow capital in a lighter-tax jurisdiction and delay the move to France until it becomes safer from a tax standpoint.

What the Talent Passport Is and Which Routes Lead to It

The Talent Passport (Passeport Talent) is a French support program that grants status to migrants who develop a business or professional activity in France. Teams specializing in relocation handle a large volume of these visas and deliberately don’t take on adjacent cases like political asylum or job search — it’s a narrow specialization by design.

Two routes lead to the Talent Passport, and they’re the primary focus: the startup visa and opening your own company in France. Almost everyone on a relocation team working this space obtained their own French Talent Passport through one of these two paths — a startup visa or company registration.

Other options exist too — the company representative program and investor visas. Teams work with these as well, but usually don’t recommend them to clients as a main route: they’re supporting paths, useful only in isolated cases.

Of all legalization options in Europe, the Talent Passport via startup visa or company is considered the most workable solution today — which is exactly why the specialists handling French relocation chose one of these two paths for themselves.

Two working routes

The Talent Passport is reached through a startup visa or by opening your own company in France — these are the main routes, not the company representative program or investor visas, which apply only in isolated cases.

French Passport and Working in the US: What You Can and Can’t Do

An EU (Schengen) visa is valid only within the Schengen Area and has no bearing on entry into the US — traveling to the States requires a separate US visa or participation in the ESTA visa waiver program. A French passport removes this limitation and opens access to programs closed to citizens of the Russian Federation.

One such option is the E-2 US investor visa: it’s available to small business owners with a substantial amount of capital, determined individually based on the type and value of the business, and it’s open only to citizens of countries with the relevant treaty with the US. For those aiming to relocate to the US, this makes French citizenship not an end goal but an intermediate step toward a market that’s otherwise harder to enter directly.

A Schengen visa doesn’t work in the US

An EU visa is valid only within the Schengen Area and has no bearing on entry into the US — a separate US visa or ESTA is required for travel there.

Taxes and Migration in France: How It Compares to the Rest of Europe

Three things usually scare people off moving to France: the French language, the presence of migrants, and high taxes. The problem is all three exist in every European country — France isn’t the exception here, it’s the norm.

Moving to Spain or Portugal can sometimes look like the better deal because it’s cheaper. But prices in Barcelona and Lisbon have risen enough to nearly catch up with Paris, while offering fewer opportunities. A comparison with other countries shows a similar picture: even next to the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Hungary, France remains the optimal choice. Romania is a particular paradox: taxes there have caught up with France’s, while quality of life is lower.

A separate category is people who keep their money in Dubai for its favorable tax regime. But living in Dubai is only comfortable for a couple of months a year — the rest of the time means enduring the heat.

living in Dubai is only comfortable for a couple of months a year — the rest of the time means enduring the heat

The migrant situation in France isn’t uniform across the country: some cities and districts have many, others almost none. Migrant numbers are low in certain parts of Paris and on the French Riviera. Near Nice on the Riviera, there are charming French towns migrants rarely settle in: the infrastructure there is built for tourism and resort life, giving them little reason to move in.

But French taxes can be worked with: they can be optimized through legal means, without breaking any rules.

Paris and the French Riviera: France's regions with the lowest migrant presence among resort areas

Do You Need French to Move There and Get the Passport

Formally, French is only required at one stage — when applying for the passport: a language exam is part of the naturalization rules. It’s not required for living or working in the country: in one case, a person lived in France for four years total, in Paris and in the south, and English was enough everywhere. In practice, the French that came in handy was mostly for ordering a croissant and coffee — every work matter got handled in English.

The reason is that Paris and Nice in the south of France are effectively English-speaking regions. An expat’s social circle usually isn’t made up of French people but of other expats — people who’ve lived in two, three, sometimes ten countries, who communicate with each other in English regardless of their background. Even fluent French wouldn’t change that circle.

Children’s education is a different matter. A child who attends a public or free school in France and later a university taught in French picks up the language fairly quickly, and it also brings the family real savings — on education that costs tens, even hundreds of thousands of dollars elsewhere. Against the cost of studying in the US, that saving becomes a strong argument for French for the kids, even if it’s not required for the adults.

A similar pattern came up before with German: it was only needed for admission, while the actual coursework was taught in English. The language of the country you enter and the language you actually live and study in aren’t always the same thing.

Which Is Easier to Renew: Residency Through a Company or Through a Startup Visa

At the start, the startup visa often looks simpler: less bureaucracy, a lower entry bar, clearer requirements for the applicant. Opening a company, by contrast, seems harder — it’s tougher to reach real income in the first few months. But the conditions at the residency renewal stage have shifted, and the picture flips: renewing status through a company is easier than through a startup visa.

renewing status through a company is easier than through a startup visa

Taxes, costs, and processing times are roughly the same across both routes — the difference shows up specifically at renewal, not at the start. And that’s the moment where everything gets decided: if the initial application is the entry point, renewal is the whole reason the process was worth doing.

From there, the requirements for permanent residency and citizenship kick in: they retroactively check the applicant’s life over the past five years — when they became a tax resident, when they started earning income in France, when they opened the company, when they found work. These dates can’t be reconstructed after the fact, so they need to be planned in advance, well before applying for the initial residence permit — not once the question of permanent residency or naturalization comes up. It’s not enough to know how long the procedure formally takes — the evidence that will later support the application for permanent status and citizenship needs to be gathered early.

Startup visa vs. opening a company in France: comparing residency renewal timelines
Dates can’t be backdated

Permanent residency and citizenship requirements retroactively check the applicant’s last five years, so evidence needs to be prepared in advance, well before applying for the initial residence permit.

What a Relocation Consulting Team Does and Doesn’t Handle for France

Teams working in this narrow specialization don’t take on what falls outside it:

  • political asylum — not something they advise on;
  • job search — not something they help with;
  • finding a spouse — also not their area.

What they do cover is the core relocation request for France: starting a business, obtaining business status while living abroad, arranging permanent residency and citizenship, and a significant volume of Talent Passport applications. They work only with entrepreneurs and professionals applying for a talent visa. The main specialization is arranging permanent residency with work authorization, along with support for US green card applications.

A student visa is handled separately — not as a core service, but as an intermediate step, if a client needs to enter the country, improve their language, or study before moving on toward a residence permit with the right to work.

Beyond France, teams help clients secure grants and investment and enter markets in Europe, the US, and the UK. There’s experience working with Singapore and Hong Kong, but these jurisdictions are used selectively, for specific tasks, rather than as a primary direction. The main markets are the European Union and the US, with the UK market singled out separately as offering real advantages depending on the client’s goals.

The French practice is led by Svetlana, who has lived in France for nearly 20 years and holds French citizenship. Before that, she worked in the Netherlands, where she ran a large business. The French team is one of the largest at the company, second in size only to the American one.

How a Consultation on Moving to France Works

  1. Sign up via messenger. Under the video breaking down the programs, there’s a link to book a slot — it’s used to pick a contact channel, Telegram or WhatsApp, and send the first message. There are no bots at this stage; a real team member handles the conversation.

  2. Describe the situation and background. Next comes framing the request: where the move is from and to, which factors matter, and — most importantly — what the applicant has been doing for the past five years. That professional track record, not income level or education, is the main criterion used to evaluate the request. A polished resume or LinkedIn link isn’t required at this stage — a short description of one’s work is enough.

  3. Screening. Messages are handled by a team of specially trained staff who run the initial screening of inquiries. Based on the screening, the applicant is routed further — to lawyers, accountants, tax advisors, or a specialist matched to the specific task.

  4. Cost and wait time. The consultation itself is free, and booking, according to the team, involves no queues.

How to Book a Consultation on Moving to France

Frequently asked questions

What if I’ve already moved to France but haven’t run a business for the past five years — can I still qualify for the Talent Passport

Professional track record over the past five years is the main criterion used to evaluate a request — more important than income level or education. If that experience isn’t tied to a business or professional activity the Talent Passport is designed for, the odds on this route drop — it’s worth discussing the situation in a free consultation, where the request gets routed to a specialist matched to the case.

Can I move to France on a student visa and later switch to a work-authorized residence permit

Yes, a student visa is arranged as an intermediate step: it works if you need to enter the country, improve your language, or study before moving toward a residence permit with the right to work. It isn’t promoted as a core service — it’s a supporting route toward a later switch to working status.

What happens if I miss the point where I should be locking in dates for a future permanent residency or citizenship application

Permanent residency and citizenship requirements retroactively check the applicant’s last five years: when they became a tax resident, started earning income in France, opened a company, or found work. These dates can’t be reconstructed after the fact, so if they aren’t locked in ahead of time, the evidence base for a permanent status application will end up incomplete.

Can I get France’s Talent Passport if I’m not ready to open a company or apply for a startup visa

Besides the two main routes — the startup visa and opening a company — there’s also the company representative program and investor visas. Teams work with these too, but usually don’t recommend them to clients as a main route: they’re supporting options, useful only in isolated cases, not a working alternative for most applicants.

Do I need to give up Russian citizenship for a French passport to access the E-2 visa to the US

The E-2 visa is open only to citizens of countries with the relevant treaty with the US, and this route is closed to citizens of the Russian Federation. French citizenship removes that restriction, so for those aiming to relocate to the US, it becomes not an end goal but an intermediate step toward a market that’s otherwise harder to enter directly.