Working in Egypt as a French National: Work Permit, Minimum Wage, Tax, Social Protection and Economy

The tourist visa does not give the right to employment. France Diplomatie distinguishes three situations. For a business mission of less than three months, a business visa is issued before departure by the Egyptian consular services (Paris or Marseille), on presentation of a form, two photographs and a letter from the company justifying the trip. To settle as an investor, a visa of up to five years is obtained on site from the competent authorities. To take up employment, the work permit can last up to three years.

• Who handles the procedures: the employer. They take place in Egypt, with the passport, immigration and nationality service of the Ministry of the Interior (the “Mogamma’aa” building in Cairo) and the Ministry of Manpower in the district where the employer operates. A temporary visa covers the length of the procedure.
• Documents: diplomas and experience certificates authenticated by the Egyptian consular services; prior experience may be required when qualifications do not match the job.
• Foreign headcount: Egyptian law governs the place of foreign employees in a company. The proportion applicable to the host company is confirmed with the Ministry of Labour before the contract is signed.
• Residence: the passport service describes a one-year residence for private-sector or investment-sector employees holding a work permit, as well as for their spouse and children.

All visa procedures are paid (France Diplomatie). The guide to working abroad details the steps common to all countries, and the page on living in Egypt presents the visa and residence.

The National Wages Council set the private-sector minimum wage at 7,000 Egyptian pounds a month from 1 March 2025 (decision of 10 February 2025), or about €119 at the central bank rate of 04/10/2026 (58.77 to 58.93 EGP per €1). It also set an annual increase of at least 3% in the social insurance wage, with a floor of EGP 250 a month, and, for the first time, an hourly minimum of EGP 28 for part-time work (State Information Service). In the public service, the Prime Minister announced on 1 April 2026 a minimum of EGP 8,000 (about €136) from July, with a payroll up by about 21% in fiscal year 2026/27.

These floors indicate the level of local pay. Annual inflation reached 14.5% in August 2026 (central bank), which explains the frequent revisions. For a foreign manager or specialist, pay depends on the post, the sector and the type of contract: a local contract is expressed in Egyptian pounds, while an expat package is negotiated case by case, often with elements linked to housing, schooling and health. The salary statistics of the Egyptian statistics agency (CAPMAS) and the embassy’s economic service help you assess an offer. The guide to budgeting for health abroad helps you compare an offer by including insurance.

Egyptian labour law rests on Law No. 14 of 2025 enacting the Labour Code, promulgated and published in the Official Gazette on 5 May 2025 (State Information Service). Before signing, it is useful to have the contract translated and to re-read the duration, probation period, notice period, payment currency and benefits in kind. On the social side, France and Egypt have no social security agreement (CLEISS, the French liaison centre for international social security): the bilateral agreement that coordinates the schemes with Morocco or Tunisia does not exist here, and status determines the body that reimburses.

• Local employee (local contract): they fall under the Egyptian social insurance schemes and, in the governorates where universal health insurance is in force, under that insurance, financed by contributions from the employee and the employer (see the Egyptian healthcare system).
• Seconded employee sent by a French employer: CLEISS indicates that, outside an agreement, they remain affiliated to the French scheme for 3 years, renewable once, while remaining liable for the contributions that exist in the country of work. Care is reimbursed within the limit of French benefits, on paid invoices with form S 3125; the children who accompany them do not receive family benefits. See seconded or expat.

The page on healthcare reimbursement in Egypt details each situation, from the local employee to the member of the CFE (the French social security fund for expatriates).

According to the Egyptian Tax Authority (ETA), wage tax is calculated each year on all amounts received, after deducting the personal allowance of EGP 20,000 a year (about €340), the employee share of social insurance and private insurance premiums up to the lower of 15% of net income or EGP 10,000 (about €170). Rates start at 10% after a first band at 0%. The income tax law has been amended several times, notably in 2023, in 2024 and by Law No. 151 of 2026: the current scale is checked on the authority’s website.

France and Egypt are bound by a tax treaty signed on 19 June 1980, in force since 1 October 1982 and supplemented by an amendment of 1 May 1999, in force since 1 June 2004 (impots.gouv.fr). Its main rules for a worker:

• Residence (article 4): in case of dual residence, the person is attached to the state where their permanent home is, then to that of their centre of vital interests, habitual abode or nationality.
• Salaries (article 15): a salary is taxable in the state where the employment is exercised. A resident of France who stays in Egypt at most 183 days in the fiscal year, paid by an employer who is not resident in Egypt and with the cost not borne by an Egyptian permanent establishment, remains taxable only in France.
• Self-employed (article 14): income is taxable in the state of residence, and in the other state beyond 183 days of presence or where there is a fixed base.
• Double taxation (article 24): France grants a tax credit, and Egypt exempts or grants a credit depending on the nature of the income.

Personalised tax advice remains useful before departure: tax residence, pay in foreign currency and any declarations in France are handled according to each person’s situation.

A self-employed person or company director settles in Egypt through the investment route: the Ministry of the Interior announced in 2023 a one-year residence for foreign investors who create a company, renewable through the General Authority for Investment (GAFI), and France Diplomatie mentions a visa of up to five years. The tax treaty (article 14) governs the taxation of self-employment income, and CLEISS specifies the social protection rules that apply outside an agreement.

For remote work from Egypt for a French employer, the official sources consulted report no visa dedicated to remote working. The tourist visa does not allow prolonged professional activity: a lasting stay requires a suitable residence permit, and the employer examines the employee’s tax residence and social protection. The page on digital nomad insurance and the guide to digital nomad visas present the points of caution.

The Egyptian economy, the second largest in Africa with USD 380 billion of GDP in fiscal year 2023/24, is diversified: manufacturing (24%), trade (15.1%), agriculture (11%), construction (8.4%) and tourism (8.1%). The public sector accounts for 27% of activity and 74% of investment, and the informal sector would cover between 30% and 60% of total employment (France Diplomatie).

• Three major resources: diaspora transfers (around €22 billion in 2023/24), tourism (a record 19 million visitors in 2025, up 21% on a year) and Suez Canal revenues, which have varied sharply with regional tensions since 2023.
• Currency and financing: monetary policy maintains a flexible exchange rate. An International Monetary Fund programme, raised to USD 8 billion in March 2024, and a €7.4 billion macro-financial assistance package from the European Union support the reforms. The pound was worth 50.2 EGP per USD 1 on 5 March 2026 (France Diplomatie) and 52.2 EGP on 04/10/2026 (central bank).
• France’s place: 180 subsidiaries of French companies employ more than 50,000 people, in industry, aerospace, water and sanitation, agri-food, electrical equipment, pharmaceuticals, retail, hydrocarbons, tourism and infrastructure; bilateral trade reached €24.94 billion in 2024.

The outlook depends on the growth of private investment, tourism and exchange-rate stability: the dashboard of economic benchmarks above tracks growth, inflation, unemployment and the exchange rate on an ongoing basis.

Several relays help with job hunting or setting up a business. The embassy’s economic service (Zamalek, Cairo) and Business France support French companies, the French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Egypt (Mohandessine, Giza) runs a business network, and the embassy publishes a section of job offers and calls for projects. The Cairo consulate general also keeps a list of reputable French-speaking professionals (lawyers, translators) useful for re-reading a contract or official documents. Once the job is secured, arranging health insurance before arrival avoids any gap in cover.