Retiring in Azerbaijan as a French National: Stay, Pension, Tax and Access to Care

The State Migration Service does not cite retirees as a separate category among the grounds for a residence permit. A French retiree enters with a visa valid for the whole length of their stay, most often the 30-day single-entry e-visa (USD 25 for standard processing, USD 60 urgent), then files an application for a temporary residence permit on an existing ground. For a stay of more than 30 days, the visa is issued by an Azerbaijani diplomatic mission; beyond 90 days, France Diplomatie (the French foreign ministry) refers to the Azerbaijani embassy in France.

Among the grounds available to a retiree are a family tie with an Azerbaijani citizen, an investment of at least AZN 500,000, real estate, a term deposit or government securities. The service displays a threshold of AZN 100,000 (about €52,650 at the Central Bank rate) for these last three grounds, while a note on the same page mentions AZN 200,000: the threshold to use should be confirmed with the service before any purchase or deposit. The temporary permit lasts one year at most; the renewal application is filed at least 30 days before expiry. The file includes a medical certificate, notarised proof of the ground, proof of housing and the receipt for State fees.

A permanent permit, valid five years and renewable without limit, can be requested after at least two years of temporary residence on certain grounds, with proof of sufficient resources and a test on the laws and the official language, from which people aged 65 and over are exempt. Each stay comes with compulsory registration with the service. Detailed formalities are in the page living in Azerbaijan.

The Assurance retraite indicates that the pension can be received in more than 180 countries, into a French or foreign bank account (fees should be checked with the bank). Any change of address or bank details is reported by post to the regional fund. A life certificate is sent each year, whatever the nationality: a competent local authority completes it, then it is returned through the personal account or by post to the overseas pension processing centre in Tours. Benefits subject to residence in France, such as the Aspa and the ASI, stop on departure and are reclaimed on return.

If tax residence is no longer in France, CSG, CRDS and Casa are not levied on the pension. A health insurance contribution of 3.20% may remain for people subject to a compulsory French health insurance scheme or, for a foreigner, with at least 15 years of French old-age insurance. The guide health insurance for retirees abroad extends this presentation.

The tax agreement was signed in Paris on 20 December 2001 and published by decree no. 2005-1294 of 13 October 2005. It has been in force since 1 October 2005 and applies to income and wealth taxes from 1 January 2006; it replaced the agreement of 4 October 1985 concluded with the former USSR (BOFiP). The BOFiP commentary consulted does not reproduce the article on pensions: the text of the published decree gives the state that taxes each kind of pension (private, social security, public). The body paying the pension indicates its nature, to be matched against the agreement’s table.

For a non-resident, impots.gouv.fr specifies that withholding tax for non-residents applies to a French-source pension taxable in France under agreements, and that the managing service is the SIPNR. Non-residents’ pensions are declared in boxes 1AL and following, with form 2041-E for tax already withheld. On the Azerbaijani side, the taxation of a resident should be confirmed with the State Tax Service (call centre 195-1) before settling.

The S1 form applies only to the European Union and countries linked by an agreement including the right to care; CLEISS (the French centre for European and international social security liaison) does not list Azerbaijan among the states with agreements, and the list of non-EU countries cited by the Assurance retraite does not include it. Without a certificate of entitlement to care, costs are not reimbursed by the French scheme. Three solutions are therefore open to the retiree.

• Local compulsory health insurance: the DTSEA insures foreigners holding a temporary or permanent residence permit who pay the contribution. The basket has 3,318 services and excludes dental; the amount of a retiree’s contribution should be confirmed with the agency (lines 142 and 1542).
• The CFE: the retirees’ offer (with a contribution that depends on age and the plan chosen), is open to holders of a French basic scheme pension, at any age, with no medical questionnaire or exclusion; care abroad is reimbursed at a rate or flat amount specific to the country, and care in France comes under the basic scheme. The waiting period is nil for membership before departure or within three months of settling.
• International insurance: it guarantees actual costs within its ceilings, with direct payment in a private establishment and repatriation; the medical questionnaire and medical history condition acceptance.

Reimbursement details by status are in healthcare reimbursement in Azerbaijan, and the organisation of local provision in healthcare system in Azerbaijan.

The State Statistics Committee publishes the average nominal monthly wage and the change in consumer prices. A retiree’s budget is built from the French pension converted at the day’s rate: the “Economic indicators” block above gives the updated exchange rate and inflation. Rents do not appear in the official sources consulted; a written lease is useful, as proof of housing is required for the residence permit.

Baku is the city best equipped with services: French embassy, Institut français, medical centres and air links, land borders being closed. France Diplomatie describes a humid and windy Caspian climate, with winds up to 130 km/h and up to 40 °C in summer in Baku; the resorts of Shahdag and Tufandag, presented as safe, open up prospects for mountain stays. Older people sensitive to heat or wind consult their doctor before settling.

France Diplomatie advises against travel to Azerbaijan except for compelling reasons and formally advises against the border areas with Armenia, the former Nagorno-Karabakh and Iran; the sheet should be consulted before any plan to retire there. A resident registers on the register of French nationals established outside France. Public hospitals are in principle inexpensive but poorly equipped outside Baku, and insurance covering all medical costs and repatriation is indicated as a condition of access to care.

Preparation includes the vaccination schedule, a chronic treatment in sufficient quantity in its original packaging with a prescription in international nonproprietary name, and thinking about the return: on return to France, the CFE indicates no waiting period, whereas an ameli answer (the Assurance Maladie website) mentions three months for a person with no activity. See the page return to France and the guide retirement abroad.