Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

Hi All,

I hope you're OK.

I am looking for advice on a number of things really and was hoping maybe someone has some advice.

Background Information

28 year old male, never had any gaps in my employment history, never claimed benefits and have only ever had 1 day off sick - Been working since the age of 16.
I was due to move to La Fare Les Oliviers, in April 2020 - However, me and my ex-partner decided to call it quits as the distance was too hard and trying to save enough whilst keep your head above water in London is difficult. However, she has found out she is pregnant and we are having a daughter in September. I have made the decision to move to France as i wish to be active in my daughters life. In London i am a Senior Employment Advisor, so i assist participants who are in receipt of benefits, ex-offenders, people with health conditions, housing problems etc with finding employment/Courses to up-skill them whilst leading a team of 10 advisors to hit their monthly/quarterly KPI's. I am currently doing my driving lessons (Although they have stopped due to COVID-19) and will be hopefully moving to France once i have passed, my driving practical test has not been booked due to the pandemic. I am hoping to pass ASAP as i know dependent on the deal we get with BREXIT will determine freedom of movement after December 2020. Although, i am pretty sure i read somewhere as i am a parent of a french national then i should be able to work and live in France even after Brexit- Although i am trying to make sure this is not my only option!

Questions:
1) As a British Citizen who will be moving to France, would i be eligible for French Un-Employment benefits? I do not intend on being a leech to the welfare system, just looking for something to assist me until i find a job - I will literally take anything until my French language skills are good enough to move onto something better!

2) Can the Pole-Emploi assist with French lessons? I have heard many different answers to this! I am trying to learn french in my freetime, so hopefully i can understand the basics! However, i know England offer free ESOL courses free of charge to anyone in receipt of benefits.

3) Is it possible to find work, whilst speaking very little french? Whether this is through recruitment agencies or directly with a company?

4) The french unemployment rate in May is currently 7.8%, and is is usually quite high compared to the average of Europe. Dependent on how you view this - That could either be very good for me as there could be jobs in the labour market, however french people do not want these jobs. Or it could mean that there are few-to no jobs out there on the labour market. What are your opinions generally on the labour market - Could i pick up a job quickly if i am not fussy about what it is?

I am sure i will have more questions in time, but for the moment they are the 4 questions that i am trying to find answers too - As my situation is slightly different to that of people who are living in France already.

Any answers to my questions would be great! Or any bits of information, advice or guidance you think would be useful, i will also appreciate!

Thank you in advance!

Kind Regards,
Josh

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

Hi Josh
Welcome to the forum.
I am really sorry but I think that you will have difficulty in finding a job in France.
You don't speak French; you don't drive (may not be significant) and you will be competing with French people who are fluent in French and have French qualifications and/or employment record that is meaningful to a prospective employer.
In France, the employment problem is not zero-hours contracts - it is fixed term contracts (CDD).
There are hundreds of thousands of French citizens working on CDD who are desperate to get permanent contracts of employment (CDI).
Therefore, in addition to the unemployment figures you quote, there is a workforce which is chasing every permanent job on offer.
French employers tend to favour French employees ( the devil you know .....)
You will need to consider the residency rules post Brexit.

There are jobs available in "Irish" bars in larger cities but perhaps not in your chosen area.
Sorry i cant be more positive but good luck anyway.

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

Hi, and welcome to the forum!
Just to clarify, is your ex-partner a French citizen? You should get your name on your daughter's birth certificate when she's born (in France?) and register her at the British Consulate. This will ease the process if she wants a UK Passport later on....
You didn't say whether you would be living with your daughter, or nearby "to be active in her life". If the latter, be aware that landlords require proof of income (payslips) corresponding to 3-4 times the rent, and that long-lease appartments are unfurnished.
In answer to your questions:
1) No, you have to contribute into the System (social charges) before benefitting from it.
2) I don't know
3) and 4) Unlikely if your French isn't adequate to compete with French applicants. Avoid doing work on the black (e.g. bars, etc...) since you'll need payslips to justify that you can pay the rent and to prove that you're paying into the System. And without a legal job you wouldn't have healthcare coverage unless you take out private insurance when you arrive until you can join the System after 3 months' residence (when you would have healthcare coverage, but AFAIK no other benefits) There again, you must justify your domicile (rental receipts, utility bills, or an Attestation from your ex- if you are living chez elle rent-free).. A quick check shows that La Fare les Oliviers has fewer than 9000 inhabitants, so unlikely to have many job opportunities for a non-French speaker.
Likewise, due to the Covid-19, unemployment is shooting up in France since so many firms have gone bankrupt, and if your French isn't adequate, you'll find that French candidates for any jobs going will be given priority.
Sorry to be so pessimistic, and adding unasked-for info, but I'm being realistic. Fore-warned is fore-armed....
HTH and good luck with your decision!;)
P.S. Post crossed with Cyrian's!

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

Welcome Josh.. you have a lot on your plate. I agree with what Cyrian says above. (Edited to add: & dmu)

Putting your personal issues (imminent arrival of a daughter) to one side, I think it would help if you prioritised your immediate problems. From the outside looking in, I'd say your overwhelming priority would be to get your French up to speed. Is there a crash course you can do somewhere in London? I say London, because I tried to find a French course for foreigners when we moved to France and I was surprised to find that, contrary to what I expected, what was available (at a reasonable price) was not much use. (Also, in London, you'll still have an income.)

The first of the French language courses I started was targeted at unemployed people (provided by Pôle emploi) - and for them, it was free - whereas I was retired and had to pay. That wasn't the problem however. They gave me a written French test to assess where the holes were in my French and after that, I was given pages of lessons to work through on my own. There was no traditional teacher/pupil teaching. It took me ages to understand what a teacher could have explained in 2 minutes. It was simply taking me far too long to progress.

So - work on your French - and then later in the year, once the detail of the UK's relationship with France is settled, the situation re immigration (& driving) may be clarified for you.

I really wish you the best of luck.:thumb:

Mcn

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

Unfortunately I don't think May's unemployment figures are relevant any more. France's economy has been sideswiped by Covid just like the UK's has.

Depending on your girlfriend's situation, I suggest you might be able to make a more solid contribution to begin with by remaining in the UK where you have a good job and a steady income, visiting as often as you can, and helping out financially if approprate. I can't help thinking that being in France, without work, without an income, not knowing your way around, the support you could offer would be minimal and the situation might get fraught. Which is in nobody's best interests. Even rock solid couples often find it a strain on the relationship when one of them is out of work. But, you need to discuss it with your girlfriend and see what she wants you to do.

Easy to say I know, but I would advise not rushing into a hasty move. Get involved as much as you can from a distance and be as supportive as you can. If things work out and the two of you decide to get together officially, that will in itself give you the right to live in France regardless of Brexit.

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

Why doesn't she move to the UK?. He is in work there, so continuing income. If she is French no problem yet.

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

Regarding learning French - these days pôle emploi has online language courses that I think anyone can sign up for. They seem to be designed with immigration in mind because they also include integration elements. But I don't know if in fact you even have to live in France to follow the courses, maybe you could get started right away?
https://www.pole-emploi.fr/actualite...e-le-fran.html

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

Yes it would seem a potential solution.
But the two of them need to be talking about this, and they need to decide together what they want and the best way to achieve it. It's no good one of them trying to move mountains so that they can be together, if the other one isn't committed to togetherness.

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

True.... he is talking about moving and being part of his daughter's life, but also saying the woman is his ex- partner.
Little point in him moving to France to be unemployed or working in a low paid level job. (which without good French is very likely)
Currently sounds like he works for the Government or local authority organisation.

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

Thank you for your responses everyone, it has shed alot of light!

EuroTrash, i registered through that link you sent and it does provide some sort of french learning, which i have started to go through. Thank you! I have also bought some text books that i can refer too and will potentially look at exercise books as well. I do currently use DuoLingo to help with the basics and will look potentially into a RosettaStone option - Although i've heard mixed reviews regarding that.

SanDiegoGirl, Yes i do, i work for a local authority organization. Although i have no problem with working in a low paid level job - I think that'll only be useful if i have a basic-intermediate grasp of the language for the immersion technique to be effective.

I guess i'll focus on improving my french language skills all round, then if the time comes and it is the correct decision at the time then make the move to France.

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

...... no pressure then ......:unsure:

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

- You would earn the SMIC (1219€ NET full-time, per month) which cleaners, waiters, and similar workers earn. Even if you're happy with such work and you managed to find a place to rent, you wouldn't have much left over for your daughter.
- Wise decision!
As they say in French, "it's urgent to wait"!:)

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

Sounds like a wise plan.
It's only natural that your heart is telling you to be there, but you need to listen to your head too, and that is probably telling you that a father figure with a good career, along with the self respect and the sense of purpose and the financial resources that come with it, is better than a father figure without those things. Clearly you have a strong work ethic and I suspect you would find life empty and depressing if you couldn't find fulfilment through work.
But hopefully you will get into a pattern of visiting regularly, and hopefully as you get to know the commune and the commune get to know you and your language skills improve, that will smooth the way to an eventual move if that's the way the cookie crumbles. There is a French word "pistonner" (which I am pretty sure you won't be taught in the Pôle Emploi language course :sneaky:) which has no exact translation in English but it means, to pull strings to help someone get a job - usually for a relative or a friend or a friend's offspring. I'm sure it goes on in the UK too but I believe it's frowned on, but in France it's pretty much accepted that your best chance of getting a job is if you know someone who can pull strings for you.
You sound like a lovely caring chap. Bon courage, I hope it all works out for you and your little family.

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

@ chopper
Learning from books or online etc is a good way to get a grounding in any language but if you can find a group class or conversation class in french or otherwise find a french person who wants to improve their english
then there is nothing to beat real conversation with native speakers.
I had school french then I went to group classes in the Alliance Francaise followed by individual lessons at the AF.
However, what made the greatest difference to me was having to speak exclusively in French for 4 or 5 hours or more with French people.
In face-to-face conversation it is possible to see the puzzled look on the other person's face or when they burst out laughing because you have mis-pronounced something or mis-used the language, then your learning process becomes much faster.
An englishman who lived in France for more than 60 years once told me that the first 10 years were the worst.
He was correct.

Re: Moving to france, 28 year old male ..HELP!
 

There are countless French Servicemen away from home for months on end, without seeing their children grow up (apart from Skype). The OP and daughter would be in the same boat, and every visit would be precious to both.:)
@Cyrian I haven't been here as long as your acquaintance, but, with age, I'm forgetting my genders more and more, and would add "the last xxx years, too"!;)