Living in Puerto Rico as a French National: Stay, Cost of Living, Climate and Health

Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States. Official texts call it a free associated state (Estado Libre Asociado) or Commonwealth: the Puerto Rican official languages law speaks of the “Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico”, CLEISS (the French Centre for European and International Social Security Liaison) cites the “Commonwealth of Puerto Rico” in the territorial scope of the France-US social security agreement, and the MACPAC commission counts the island among the five US territories where Medicaid operates. These references describe the legal framework in force.

Act No. 1 of 28 January 1993 makes Spanish and English the official languages of the government of Puerto Rico, usable interchangeably in the departments, municipalities and the three branches of government. Its statement of purposes recalls that court filings remain in Spanish and that public schools teach in Spanish, with English as the second language. Spanish is therefore an asset in daily life, and English opens the federal procedures.

The competent French consulate general is the one in Miami, which covers Florida, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands, the Turks and Caicos Islands and the US Virgin Islands. The emergency number is 911, as throughout US territory (France Diplomatie, the French foreign ministry).

The entry rules are those of the United States. France Diplomatie states that French nationals travelling under the visa waiver programme apply for an ESTA authorisation before departure, at least 72 hours ahead, valid for 2 years, for a tourist or business stay of 90 days at most, with an electronic or biometric passport. ESTA allows neither professional activity nor enrolment as a student and is not a right of entry: the immigration officer decides on arrival. US customs (CBP) include Puerto Rico in the definition of the term “United States” used for this programme. Yacht owners bound for Puerto Rico or the US Virgin Islands require a visa, as ESTA does not apply to a sailing boat.

A visa is required for a stay of more than 90 days, professional activity, an internship or study, with a medical examination for long-stay visas. For a long-term move, the category depends on the project: work, study, investment or family ties. The E-2 investor visa, described by USCIS, grants an initial stay of two years, extendable in two-year periods, and the spouse of an E-2 holder is authorised to work. The conditions for obtaining the identification numbers needed for employment and tax filing should be checked with the Social Security Administration and the IRS, depending on immigration status.

On the French side, the departure is declared to the health insurance fund, the CAF and France Travail; the Assurance Maladie asks you to return the Carte Vitale and the EHIC and to report the departure within the month. Registration with the roll of French nationals living abroad, free and valid for 5 years, is recommended for any stay of more than 6 months: it makes procedures easier and lets the consulate reach you in an emergency.

The Census Bureau measures a median household income of about $27,000 in Puerto Rico, against about $80,000 for the United States as a whole. This level of local income does not reflect the budget of an expat who keeps a French income, but it sheds light on the housing and services market, and the minimum wage of $10.50 an hour (see working in Puerto Rico) gives a sense of the level of local pay.

To build a precise budget, two official publications serve as a basis: the consumer price index published monthly by the Puerto Rico Statistics Institute, with a housing price index drawn from FHFA data, and the median rents from the Census Bureau’s Puerto Rico Community Survey. Health spending, which varies widely with the contract, comes on top of the budget: see the page healthcare system in Puerto Rico.

The authorities do not rank cities by appeal; official sources do, however, give useful benchmarks for choosing an area. San Juan hosts, in the Río Piedras district, the Puerto Rico Medical Center (Centro Médico), run by the Medical Services Administration (ASEM), whose trauma hospital is presented as the island’s only Level I institution. The competent French consulate is in Miami, not in San Juan.

• South-west (Guayanilla, Ponce): area of the 2020 seismic sequence, including the magnitude 6.4 earthquake of 7 January 2020 near Barrio Indios (USGS).
• East (Yabucoa): landfall point of Hurricane Maria on 20 September 2017 (US National Weather Service).
• Dengue: San Juan has recorded the largest number of cases and Rincón the highest incidence according to the CDC.

The Atlantic hurricane season runs from 1 June to 30 November (NOAA). France Diplomatie specifies that the island of Puerto Rico is very frequently hit by tropical depressions, whose track is hard to predict. Hurricanes are classed in five categories and two alert levels exist: the watch (Hurricane Watch) and the warning (Hurricane Warning). In case of mandatory evacuation, it is essential to follow the instructions of the local authorities to the letter.

On 20 September 2017, Maria made landfall near Yabucoa as a Category 4, with sustained winds of 155 mph, or about 249 km/h, and extremely heavy rain causing major to catastrophic flooding (San Juan weather service). On the seismic side, the USGS describes a sequence that began on 28 December 2019, with a magnitude 6.4 earthquake on 7 January 2020, landslides and damage in Ponce, and recalls that more than 75 tsunamis have been documented in the Caribbean region over 500 years. Finally, travellers adapt their equipment and calendar to the season: a stay from June to November means following weather bulletins and knowing the evacuation plan for your place of residence.

France Diplomatie describes the United States as one of the safest countries, with advice on caution specific to large cities (pickpocketing in tourist areas, a rise in violent vehicle thefts); its page covers Puerto Rico only for tropical phenomena and consular competence. The emergency number is 911 throughout the territory.

On health, France Diplomatie reports a rise in dengue cases in Puerto Rico and reminds readers that there is no curative treatment: if symptoms appear, see a doctor without delay and avoid anti-inflammatory drugs. The CDC records thousands of confirmed cases each year, with occasional public health emergencies. Medical infrastructure is excellent according to France Diplomatie, but very expensive, and admission to hospital is subject to a financial guarantee: an assistance policy or insurance covering all medical costs and medical repatriation is deemed essential. Our guide to expat health insurance helps you compare the options.

Puerto Rican public schools teach in Spanish, with English as the second language (Act No. 1 of 1993, statement of purposes). For schooling that follows the French curriculum, the French embassy in the United States refers to the directory of AEFE (Agency for French Education Abroad) institutions and mentions CNED distance learning; its page names no institution in Puerto Rico. The AEFE directory and the Consulate General in Miami confirm the up-to-date situation before enrolment.

• Advantages: a known federal legal framework (ESTA, US visas, the France-US social security agreement that expressly names the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico), two official languages, a hospital offering built around the Centro Médico and the Medicare and Plan Vital programmes for eligible residents.
• Points of attention: the hurricane season, dengue, a high cost of care that makes insurance essential, and taxation to be checked before departure, as the France-US tax treaty excludes Puerto Rico from the definition of the United States (see working in Puerto Rico and retiring in Puerto Rico).

The page healthcare reimbursement in Puerto Rico details who pays what depending on the situation, and the United States page recalls the rules common to federal territory. Expavy helps you test these options against your project.