Retiring in Djibouti: Right of Residence, Taxation of the Pension, Health

France Diplomatie indicates that French nationals need a visa, which they obtain from a Djiboutian diplomatic mission, through the e-visa portal or on arrival for one month, depending on the purpose of travel and the type of passport. For a stay of more than three months, Law No. 201/AN/07 requires a temporary residence card, valid for one year at most and without exceeding the validity of the travel document, or a resident card; the latter is issued notably to employees of free-zone companies holding an employment contract.

The page describes no permit reserved for retirees or for pension income. A settling-in project is therefore prepared with the Djiboutian diplomatic representation and the authorities of the country, who specify the applicable category, the documents, the proof of resources and the timescales. A visa overstay is penalised: DJF 40,000 up to 90 days, DJF 80,000 beyond, paid to the immigration police against a Treasury receipt, and failing that three to six months in prison and a five-year entry ban (notice of the Minister of the Interior of 22/11/2022).

• Visa: diplomatic mission, e-visa (evisa.gouv.dj) or arrival for one month; holders of a resident card do not need a visa.
• Guarantees: Law No. 201/AN/07 (art. 5 para. 4) requires holding documents on means of subsistence and on repatriation guarantees.
• Vaccination: yellow fever mandatory for travellers coming from endemic areas; up-to-date French schedule.
• Driving licence: French licence valid for a stay of less than six months; beyond that, Djiboutian licence by exam or exchange.
• Consular registration: strongly recommended for any stay of more than six months (French embassy in Djibouti).

See also the page on living in Djibouti.

The page on international agreements on impots.gouv.fr mentions no tax treaty between France and Djibouti. French domestic law therefore applies to pensions of French source paid to a non-resident. impots.gouv.fr describes, for salaries and pensions paid to a non-resident, a withholding tax calculated after a 10% allowance, under a scale of 0%, 12% and 20% (scale revised each year). The 0% and 12% bands are final, the 20% withholding is credited against the tax, and the withholding applies only to income of French source taxable in France.

Several payers may lead to insufficient withholding, with a correction provided for by Article 197 B of the French General Tax Code (CGI). On the Djiboutian side, taxation of a resident should be confirmed with the tax authority, whose scales could not be read; individual advice makes it possible to check that there is no double taxation before departure.

The S1 form, which allows a retiree to be treated at France’s expense in the European Union, does not apply in Djibouti: no social security agreement links the two countries (CLEISS list; CLEISS is the French liaison centre for social security abroad). The retiree should find out what the local scheme covers, join the CFE or take out private insurance. The CFE offers its retiree offer (with a contribution that depends on age and the plan chosen), reserved for retirees of a French basic scheme, with no health questionnaire, with a waiting period avoided if joining before departure or within three months of settling abroad, and otherwise three or six months depending on age.

During a temporary stay in France, coverage requires a pension from a French basic scheme paying for at least fifteen years of insurance; CNAREFE (the French health insurance centre for retirees living abroad) handles the files of general-scheme retirees outside the European Union. Outside France, the CSG, CRDS and Casa (French social charges and a solidarity contribution on pensions) are no longer deducted; a health contribution of 3.2% (basic pension) and 4.2% (supplementary pension) applies if attached to a French scheme. See the guide to health insurance for retirees abroad and the page on healthcare reimbursement in Djibouti.

French residents live mainly in Djibouti City, where the embassy and the French lycée are located. The ‘Economic indicators’ block above presents inflation and the Djiboutian franc exchange rate; the DG Trésor (the French Treasury’s economic directorate) specifies that the franc is pegged to the dollar, that inflation remains very low and that the country imports nearly 90% of its food. The official pages consulted do not publish a rent scale: amounts should be requested from local agents and checked in writing before signing a lease.

For a retiree, the budget includes health insurance with evacuation, housing suited to the heat and cautious travel: France Diplomatie describes a road network in poor condition, uneven mobile coverage, expensive and unstable Internet access, and blocked social networks requiring a VPN. A railway line opened in 2017 links the Nagad station to Addis Ababa.

France Diplomatie classes the border with Eritrea, the road to Loyada after the Décan Refuge, the Seven Brothers archipelago for independent travellers, Oued Kalou, Mount Moussa Ali and Somaliland as zones formally advised against; the rest of the country is under heightened vigilance, with no attack in Djibouti City since the bombing of 24 May 2014. Temperatures often exceed 40 °C from May to October; November to April is more pleasant. Travel at night outside the capital is not recommended.

For a retiree with a chronic condition, the choice of contract takes into account the handling of pre-existing conditions, the annual ceiling, the heat and evacuation: see Djiboutian healthcare system, insurance for retirees abroad and, in the event of a permanent return, returning to France.