Working in India as a French National: Employment Visa, Salaries, Social Contributions, Income Tax and Economy

A French citizen cannot work in India without authorisation: the employment visa is issued to highly skilled professionals hired by an Indian company or by a foreign company carrying out a project in India. The application is made online on the official portal and then at the Indian embassy in Paris, with a passport valid for at least six months and three blank pages. The file includes in particular:

• the original employment contract in English, stamped and signed by the Indian company, stating an annual salary of at least 16.25 lakhs of rupees;
• the registration certificate of the Indian company and the employer’s form (proforma);
• a statement from the employer that no Indian candidate has the required skills, and an undertaking to pay income tax mentioning the salary;
• the CV in English and copies of diplomas or certificates, translated into English if necessary.

The 16.25 lakh threshold represents 1,625,000 INR, or about €15,030 at the ECB reference rate of 02/10/2026 (€1 = 108.1245 INR): about 135,400 INR a month, or €1,250 a month. The threshold does not apply to traditional cooks employed by foreign missions, to French teachers or to staff of diplomatic missions. People of Indian origin and spouses and children of Indian citizens or of OCI card holders must show at least 3.60 lakhs a year (about €3,330). After arrival, an employment visa of more than 180 days requires FRRO registration within 14 days: the page living in India details the formalities, and the guide to working abroad gathers the benchmarks common to all countries.

India brought its four labour codes into force on 21 November 2025 (Ministry of Labour and Employment). The Code on Wages extends the minimum wage to all jobs and introduces a national floor wage set by the federal government, below which states cannot go. Amounts therefore vary by state, sector and qualification, and the Ministry of Labour publishes the scales in force: they should be consulted before signing a contract that concerns local staff.

To put pay levels in perspective, the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) of the Ministry of Statistics measures the average earnings of regular employees: 24,217 INR a month for men in 2025 (about €224) and 18,353 INR for women (about €170), against 22,891 INR and 17,126 INR in 2024. Self-employed workers earn on average 17,914 INR (men) and 6,374 INR (women). The minimum salary required for the employment visa equals about 5.6 times the average monthly earnings of a regular male employee: the visa targets expert profiles, with manager and specialist pay.

The contract is written in English, states the annual pay, the position, the place and the duration, and serves as the main document for the visa. A French employee checks with the employer the benefits (group health insurance, housing, schooling, return tickets) and who bears the tax, because these elements weigh as much as the headline salary. The guide to secondment versus expatriation helps you compare the statuses.

The Indian system rests on two bodies (CLEISS): the ESIC for sickness, maternity, work accidents and unemployment, and the EPFO for retirement and the provident fund. At the rates in force on 1 April 2023, an Indian employee’s contributions comprise 12% to the EPF for the employee, 3.67% for the employer, 8.33% pension (EPS) and 0.50% survivors’ insurance borne by the employer, on a base capped at 15,000 INR a month; the ESIC takes 0.75% from the employee and 3.25% from the employer. The ESIC covers employees of establishments with at least ten people whose pay stays below 21,000 INR a month (about €194): an employee on an employment visa is well above this ceiling.

For “international workers”, that is, foreign employees in India, the EPFO provides that an employee seconded to a country bound by a social security agreement is an “excluded employee”: they contribute to the scheme of their home country and do not contribute to the EPF, on presentation of a certificate of coverage. The scheme applicable to international workers without an exemption, in particular the base without the 15,000 INR cap, is the subject of appeals before the Indian courts: the situation is changing and should be confirmed with the EPFO or a local adviser before signing the contract.

• France-India agreement: in force since 1 July 2011, it coordinates pensions. The secondment lasts 5 years; the employee stays in the French scheme for old age only and is exempt from joining the Indian pension scheme. The other risks fall under Indian law (CLEISS).
• Certificate: the employer requests it from the Urssaf (general scheme) or the MSA (agricultural scheme), the French social security collection bodies; the French body issues form SE 223-01 IN/FR 101. An exceptional extension is requested from the Urssaf, with the opinion of the EPFO.
• Local contract: an employee recruited in India comes under the Indian scheme; their health insurance is supplemented by an employer group contract or international insurance. See the glossary entries on the local contract and the seconded employee.

An individual is an Indian tax resident if they spend 182 days or more in India during the financial year (1 April to 31 March), or 60 days or more in the year and 365 days or more over the previous four years; modified thresholds (120 to 182 days) apply to certain Indian citizens and people of Indian origin on a visit (Indian tax administration). The new regime is the default regime; for assessment year 2026-27, which covers income from April 2025 to March 2026, the announced brackets are as follows.

• Up to 4 lakhs (about €3,700): exempt; from 4 to 8 lakhs: 5%; from 8 to 12 lakhs: 10%.
• From 12 to 16 lakhs: 15%; from 16 to 20 lakhs: 20%; from 20 to 24 lakhs (about €22,200): 25%; above: 30%.
• A rebate of up to 60,000 INR wipes out the tax of a resident whose taxable income does not exceed 12 lakhs; a standard deduction of 75,000 INR is added for employees. A 4% cess applies to the tax and to any surcharge.

India has adopted a new law, the Income-tax Act of 2025, applicable from 1 April 2026: the notion of “tax year” replaces that of “assessment year”, and the brackets for the current year should be checked on the tax administration portal. The France-India tax treaty of 29 September 1992, in force since 1 August 1994, shares the right to tax. A salary is taxable in the state where the employment is exercised (article 16); it remains taxable in the state of residence if the stay does not exceed 183 days in the tax year, if the employer is not a resident of the other state and if the pay is not borne by a permanent establishment. Article 25 avoids double taxation: France takes into account income taxed in India and grants a tax credit equal to the corresponding French tax. A resident of both states is settled by article 4 (permanent home, centre of vital interests, habitual abode, nationality).

A self-employed worker established in France who performs a service in India can ask to stay in the French scheme for old age: the Urssaf processes the request, the EPFO gives its agreement and form SE 223-01 IN/FR 101 certifies French coverage; the exemption covers Indian pension contributions and the other risks follow Indian law (CLEISS). For tax, article 15 of the treaty allows India to tax the income of an independent profession only if the resident has a fixed base in India or if their presence reaches 183 days in the tax year, for the portion derived from activities carried out in India.

For remote work from India for a French employer or for freelance activity, the status depends on the visa held and the length of presence: the official documents consulted detail the employment visa for employees of Indian companies, and the Indian embassy in Paris confirms the category suited to each plan. From 182 days of presence, Indian tax residence comes into play. The guide to digital nomad visas and the page on digital nomad insurance complete these benchmarks.

The Ministry of Statistics (MoSPI) has published since February 2026 a new series of national accounts on a 2022-23 base. According to the provisional estimates for 2025-26 at current prices, gross value added breaks down as follows: about 54% for services, 26% for industry and 20% for the primary sector, including 18% for agriculture. Within services, finance, real estate, IT and professional services weigh about 27% of value added; trade, hotels and transport 14%; public administration, defence and other services 13%. Manufacturing accounts for about 15% of the total.

The currency is the Indian rupee (INR), issued by the Reserve Bank of India. These structures explain the demand for skilled profiles in technology, finance, consulting, industry and the teaching of French, which benefits from an exemption from the salary threshold for the employment visa. Indicators on growth, inflation and exchange rates, updated continuously, appear in the “Economic indicators” block of this page; the guide to retiring in India and the page on healthcare reimbursement complete the overview before you sign a contract.