Working in the Falkland Islands (Malvinas) as a French National: Permits, Pay, Tax and Contributions

The Falkland Islands Government’s Customs and Immigration Service issues permits. A visitor has no right to be employed: working without authorisation, or employing a person who is not authorised to, can lead to a fine of up to £3,000 (about €3,570). The work permit must in principle be applied for from outside the territory (form 3), except for people who hold, or have held in the last three months, a work permit or dependant permit. The applicant shows suitable housing, a verified criminal record and a medical examination; for a permit of nine months or less, they complete a medical declaration sent to the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital and must hold insurance covering aeromedical evacuation for at least 2,000,000 US dollars.

The employer sponsors the employee. They must have advertised the post for at least seven days in the territory and established that no holder of local status or a permanent residence permit was available, and they undertake to fund the repatriation of the employee and, if agreed, of their dependants. The permit is valid for the duration of the contract, specific to a job and an employer, and can be extended up to four years in total. The application and extension cost £80 (about €95); an application by a work permit holder to carry out an activity outside the labour shortage list costs £40 (about €48). A person recruited abroad by the government is exempt from the first application fee. The government also publishes a scale for employers’ registration in the Registered Employer Scheme (from £62 to £185 depending on the number of employees).

Under section 17C of the Immigration Ordinance 1999, a visitor may carry out certain business activities (medical consultants, lawyers, inspection, repair, maintenance or installation of equipment, vessels or aircraft) for three months at most in any twelve consecutive months. The Principal Immigration Officer may also grant short-term work if no permanent resident is available for the post, within the same limit of three months in twelve; the application costs £80. An executive, representative or consultant engaged before arrival may enter on a visitor permit for a professional assignment.

The spouse and children of a work permit holder apply for an accompanying dependant permit, sponsored by the employer: £80 from age 16, £40 before (about €95 and €48). An adult holding this permit can work without a separate permit only in an occupation on the labour shortage list; in other cases, the work permit holder must ask the service for authorisation. Conversely, the dependant permit intended for relatives of a permanent resident or of a holder of local status authorises any employment without a separate work permit. See also the page living in the Falkland Islands.

According to the Taxation Office, the minimum hourly wage is set by legislation, which is reviewed at least every twelve months, changes are published in the Gazette and employers have three months to comply. When the employer provides housing, part of its value can count towards the minimum: 50% of the value of free accommodation, or 70% of the amount paid by the employee, up to £193.20 a week (about €230).

The census of the territory describes a very tight labour market, with about 2,000 people employed (excluding the Mount Pleasant complex): a high participation rate and very low unemployment, which amounts to full employment. Average annual employment income is close to £30,000 and median income close to £24,000. No salary scale by sector was read on the pages consulted. The updated economic figures, where they exist, appear in the “Economic indicators” block above. The conversions on this page are based on the ECB reference rate, the parity of the Falkland Islands pound with the pound sterling being suggested by the “GBP/FKP” wording of the departure tax.

The contract is at the heart of the system: the length of the permit follows that of the contract, and the employer remains responsible for repatriation costs. The government also recruits abroad for its own needs, through a dedicated job portal, with exemption from the first application fee. The detail of working hours, leave, notice and severance pay could not be read on the pages consulted: the text of the territory’s laws is published on the government’s legislation site. To compare the situations of secondment and local contract, the guide seconded or expatriated recalls the points common to all countries; the glossary entry on the local contract describes the case of an employee recruited locally.

The territory’s tax year is the calendar year. An annual personal allowance is deducted first; the next £18,000 (about €21,421) are taxed at 21% and the rest at 26%. A person is tax resident if they are present for at least 183 days in the year; the non-resident allowance is reduced according to the number of days of presence, and tax residence differs from residence for immigration purposes. Employers withhold tax at source (Payment On Account of Tax): the main employer applies the allowance, an additional employer withholds 21% of gross pay, and the monthly return is due on the 14th of the following month. Individuals’ returns are sent out in March, to be returned by 31 July or 60 days after sending if that is later; the tax is due on 1 October or 30 days after the notice.

On the French side, the BOFiP list of tax treaties does not include the Falkland Islands, and the list of tax information exchange agreements does not cite them. The only tax treaty identified for the territory links the Falkland Islands and the United Kingdom (arrangement of 17 December 1997, HMRC); it does not bind France. It is therefore French domestic law that applies: tax residence remains in France if the home or main place of stay, professional activity or centre of economic interests is there (article 4 B of the French General Tax Code, CGI); a single criterion is enough. The territory does not appear on the list of non-cooperative States and territories, which is regularly revised. Without a treaty, double taxation is possible; the way France takes local tax into account and the Taxation Office takes French tax into account should be confirmed with the tax administration concerned.

The Retirement Pension Scheme is a compulsory public basic pension scheme. The contribution is £47.80 a week (about €57), split equally between the employer and the employee, for residents aged 17 to retirement age who earn more than £386.40 (about €460) a week; a self-employed person pays all of it. Government-funded credits exist for lower earnings (family allowance, carer, sickness unemployment, training). The full-rate pension is £197.19 a week (about €235) after at least 2,200 contributions; a partial pension is possible between 250 and 2,200 contributions. A second scheme, the Falkland Islands Pension Scheme, is a defined contribution scheme, compulsory for most public servants and some private sector employees, optional for others. No separate health insurance contribution was read on the pages consulted.

CLEISS does not cite the territory in its list of social security agreements in force. For a seconded employee, continued affiliation to the French scheme lasts three years renewable once and does not exempt them from the host country’s contributions, so here from the local pension contribution; an employee on a local contract comes under the local scheme and leaves the French scheme, with local periods not taken into account for the French pension. See the page healthcare reimbursement in the Falkland Islands.

A self-employed person registers their activity with the Taxation Office, which issues them a reference number; their income appears in their personal return, with accounts normally made up to 31 December. The pages read describe neither a self-employed permit nor a remote working visa: carrying out an activity in the territory comes under a work permit, and the Customs and Immigration Service is the contact for any status not described. The guide digital nomad insurance helps compare cover.

According to the national accounts published by the Policy Unit, fishing remains the leading activity, with about 58% of nominal GDP; trade, transport, accommodation and catering, construction and public administration are also among the main contributors. Tourism is growing, according to the Falkland Islands Tourist Board. The currency is the Falkland Islands pound; the FCDO points out that some travellers find it hard to change in the United Kingdom.