COVID-19 and expatriation in France

Hi
We should have arrived perminently to our house in Brittany last Saturday ,sadly that has not been possible, we are now in our house which is all but exchanged just need a date to move.Living out of boxes and waiting to see what next. Cant wait to get over, obviously continue to isolate as required. Gave my job up 3 weeks ago too to do this so bit of an adventure with an added unexpected kick at the moment. Hope you are all keeping safe out there. xx

Coping well in France during Lockdown.  Trying to limit number of times I read or listen to the news. The Intermarche and Lidl stores are doing a remarkable job, truly exceptional. It is reassuring to be around people who take this lockdown seriously and not flout the rules, unlike images and news of pockets of pure ignorants in UK. The French are respectful,  gracious and polite.  I'm very grateful to be here at this time.  Only one grey area which is concerning, is to not find an english speaking medical helpline. Many numbers 112, 15, 115 etc but on an English  mobile they don't work,  and using a french mobile all I got was French speaking and no one could help or understand. I was trying to help my neighbour who was reacting to her usual drug. This is now going to concern me that this sort of service is not in France.  Many websites and apps, finally installed LIVI but on asking whether a French doctor will be assigned on video chat, the answer was no.    So if anyone has knowledge of such a service I'd be very grateful to know.

Moved to France back in November from the US.  Never been happier.  Waiting on this virus to blow over so I can get back to enjoying France.  That's my plan for the future.

We decided to stay and wait it out here. In any case the thought of several airports and a very long flight to return to Australia seems more dangerous in terms of coming into contact with people that may be infectious. Getting out of France on long-haul flights seems to now be too difficult anyway - almost everything out of Nice airport has stopped, and even a few weeks ago, when flights were operating, I thought it may well lead to getting stuck in quarantine somewhere along the way.
It has been interesting here on the Cote d'Azur - sad that street markets have stopped operating - they seemed safer than queuing up or being in more densely populated supermarkets but I think the images/video of very crowded markets in Paris probably influenced that decision. In any case, the smaller supermarkets have been great. Our experience has been to go on foot to small supermarkets that don't have parking - fewer people there, in fact they have been super quiet.  One of my small supermarkets has a new thermometer hanging outside the front door today and asks you to take your temperature before coming in....I must say I'm not overly keen to handle it.  Now just hoping it will not go on too long - maybe testing combined with masks and isolating the infected (and the vulnerable). Certainly will enjoy the first beer/coffee/patisserie/dinner out when the lockdown properly finishes.

Hi all...and thanks for asking. I was scheduled to fly to France on May 15, but now I have cancelled my hotel reservations as I am sure the flight will be cancelled. I am retiring from a university in the US on May 31, and I planned to stay six weeks in and around Pau with the goal of finding a house to purchase and to retire in southern France. This situation is a real downer for everyone, and I wish all of you a safe situation now and hope that this will be over soon so we can return to a new normal.

Dennis McCuistion

hi i have not moved to france yet and i won't start my renovation until i move there trying to get the utilities connected has taken a year and the water was to be connected in june thats when i was coming over next but we will see if thats possible (properly not .so i am refurbishing my house in the uk because i have the time now

My husband and I have been in France for 3 years now. We had a trip planned to visit family in the US in May/June, but that's now cancelled. The hardest part is that my parents are elderly, and with this crisis, I have to face the possibility that I will never see them again. I've had a good line of communication with them that's comforting, but just knowing that I have no control over something like an emergency visit - that's hard.
Beyond that obviously difficult situation, we are succeeding at keeping our necessary outings to a minimum. We're able to go just over a week between grocery shopping (it took some adjusting, I have to say!)
I think about our time in Costa Rica, and how very difficult it would be for us there - no car, shopping often... I feel fortunate that we are (nearly) fully settled here - it's definitely easier.
I do have several friends who were in the middle of their move to France when this hit - most have found a place to wait it out. Some are just stuck in limbo.

Hi everyone,
Owned a house in Brittany since Nov 2011, almost finished renovating it, I was over there from Jan till mid March but decided to come back to Blighty as I'm still not resident there. Hoping to get back before the end of the year and the WA ending so I can be classed as resident. Hoping the WA will get extended but won't hold my breath with an intransigent British Govt 

I'm a US citizen planning to move to France for a year - Carcassonne - at the end of July.  (I spent last May in Carcassonne studying French, recently retired, fell in love with the place, met lovely people, etc.)  I have signed a lease on a place to live, have flights uh booked, etc.  This was done by February.  Have not applied for resident visa yet - as one cannot until 3 months in advance I think and I'm pretty sure I can't do that at the moment in any case - I'm in Washington, DC, btw.

Would be interested in others' opinions about the probability of my being able to stick to my original time frame given COVID-19 issues (realize there is unpredictibility here!). 

Merci beaucoup!  Elise

We are also planning to move to France (Grenoble) on July 1 but are concerned.  My sons and I are dual US/EU citizens but my wife is only a U.S. citizen.  Her long term visa application was returned to her per Covid19 orders.  Perhaps more concerning to us is that we are uncertain as to how the pandemic will impact the boys schooling.  If they will be spending most of the year locked in an apartment doing schooling online, perhaps we should delay our plans a year. Any thoughts appreciated.

Hello WASDAM!

In reply to your post, a  few things came to mind!
1) Can your wife have dual citizenship?

2) Yes most likely your kids just might be home schooled and also they will  be new to the school (maybe), so holding off for a year may not be a bad idea.

Since so many things are uncertain for the moment, if you are able to hold off your move for a while that would be the best plan. Moving anywhere is stressful alone, so reducing unnecessary  stress  for the whole family is key.  Does your work require you to be in Grenoble this Summer?

I am an expat of over 25 years with dual citizenship, so I clearly know all the variables/scenarios  one has to consider before coming over.

Wishing you all lots of luck with your plans. Stay safe and be well!

Shirlthepearl