Retiring in Réunion: Pension, Taxation, Access to Care and Life on the Island

Réunion is an overseas department and region, governed by Article 73 of the Constitution and by the principle of legislative identity (IEDOM). A French retiree therefore has no retiree visa and no means test to show to a residence administration: they settle as they would in any region of France. Three procedures should be anticipated: health insurance, tax residence and housing.

The territory remains younger than metropolitan France, but it is ageing: the share of people aged 60 and over reaches about 17% (about 27% under 20), the share of over-65s has doubled in 15 years and Insee projections indicate that the number of people over 75 will triple by 2050 (IEDOM). Life expectancy at birth is about 78 years for men and nearly 85 years for women, against 80 and 86 nationally.

The pension is calculated scheme by scheme, according to the careers completed: a retiree who worked in mainland France continues to receive the pensions of their former schemes, wherever they live in France. The CGSS of Réunion presents on its website the services of the Assurance Maladie and the Assurance Retraite, with online procedures (“I am preparing my retirement”, online pension claim, career statement). A notice on the site refers, if a pension reception desk is closed, to 3960 and the lassuranceretraite.fr site.

The career statement can be consulted online on the CGSS website. State civil servants and other special schemes come under their own manager; IEDOM notes that public employees’ pay is increased in the DROM (overseas departments and regions), but the sources consulted do not detail the rules specific to civil servants’ pensions: they should be confirmed with the managing department.

The Assurance Retraite publishes a table by generation, with two columns depending on whether the pension takes effect before or from 1 September 2026. For example, for people born in 1968, the legal age is 64 for a pension taking effect before that date and 63 and 9 months from 1 September 2026, with 172 quarters in both cases; for the 1963 generation, it is 62 and 9 months with 170 quarters; for 1969 and 1970, 64 with 172 quarters. The full rate is acquired automatically at 67 for people born from 1955.

As these parameters have changed several times, it is recommended to read the table in force at the time of the claim, on lassuranceretraite.fr.

According to ameli, a retiree who was an employee and receives a pension is entitled to reimbursement of their healthcare costs in case of illness and maternity throughout retirement, with no particular procedure other than updating the Vitale card. Retirees who never worked but receive a survivor’s pension are also entitled. The competent fund is the CGSS of Réunion (CLEISS, the French centre for European and international social security liaison). Form S1, useful to a retiree settling in the European Union, the European Economic Area, Switzerland or the United Kingdom (ameli), does not apply to settling in Réunion.

• Reimbursement rates: 70% for a general practitioner, 80% for hospitalisation, 65% for medicines with major or important medical benefit. Beneficiaries of Aspa or the FSV benefit from higher rates: 80% for a general practitioner, a dental surgeon and optical, and 100% for transport (ameli). Details are in the guide healthcare reimbursement in Réunion.
• Consultation tariff: €36 for a sector 1 general practitioner in Réunion, of which €23.20 reimbursed within the care pathway (ameli).
• Care provision: nearly 3,400 doctors (379 per 100,000 inhabitants), 266 physiotherapists per 100,000 inhabitants against 154 in metropolitan France, but 817 nurses per 100,000 inhabitants against 932 (IEDOM).
• Accommodation and home support: 2,354 beds or places in nursing homes and long-term care units, i.e. 48 places per 100,000 inhabitants aged 75 or over against 134 in metropolitan France.
• Complémentaire Santé Solidaire: annual income ceiling, revised each year, which varies with household composition and the level of contribution in the overseas departments (service-public.gouv.fr).

For people over 65, mosquito-borne diseases call for particular vigilance: the ARS (Regional Health Agency) of Réunion cites older people among those to watch closely in case of dengue or chikungunya; see the guide healthcare system in Réunion.

According to IEDOM, income tax is reduced by 30% in Réunion, within a ceiling of €2,450 (40% in French Guiana and Mayotte, within the limit of €4,050). There is no tax treaty to apply between mainland France and Réunion, since it is the same State: the household remains subject to French tax law, with the adaptations specific to the DROM. The application of the reduction to a pension and the situation of a household leaving mainland France should be confirmed with the regional public finance directorate or on impots.gouv.fr.

VAT applies at a standard rate of 8.5% (20% in metropolitan France) and a reduced rate of 2.1%; basic necessities (food and hygiene) are temporarily exempt. Octroi de mer (a local levy on goods), set by the regional council, is added on certain imported goods.

The Insee spatial price survey finds prices 9% higher than in metropolitan France (12% for a metropolitan basket, 6% for a local basket), with a 37% gap on food and more expensive health, communication and leisure services; transport, housing-related charges and clothing cost less (IEDOM). The median private-sector rent is close to €11 per square metre (from just over €9 in CASud to nearly €12 in TCO), the average social rent is around €7 per square metre. The social stock has nearly 85,000 dwellings, but more than 50,000 applications are active. About half of households own their main residence.

The island of 2,512 km² offers a windward coast (North and East) with high rainfall all year round and a leeward coast (South and West) that is less humid, lagoons on the west coast and cooler “Hauts” (highlands). The rainy season, from November to April, is the period when tropical depressions and hurricanes form (Cyclone Garance crossed the island in late February 2025). Water-use restrictions may apply depending on the municipality during dry periods. The page living in Réunion details the climate, schooling and formalities.

For a retiree who later leaves Réunion for another country, the rules change. According to ameli, for residence in the European Union, the European Economic Area, Switzerland or the United Kingdom, the person requests form E 121/S1 from their pension fund before departure and registers with the body of the country of residence; for residence outside these areas, healthcare costs are no longer covered by the French Assurance Maladie (French national health insurance), unless there is a social security agreement between France and the country, to be checked with the fund or CLEISS. Private insurance or the Caisse des Français de l’Étranger (CFE, the French overseas nationals’ health fund), which offers an offer for expatriate retirees, can supplement cover.

The guides retiree health insurance abroad, form S1 how-to and receiving your pension abroad present these cases; see also retirement insurance abroad.