Retiring in Seychelles as a French National: Stay, Taxation and Healthcare

France Diplomatie indicates that a French national obtains, with the paid travel authorisation requested online, a visitor permit on arrival at Mahé. The immigration service specifies that the initial permit covers up to three months and remains free, with extensions of three months at most each, up to twelve months in total, for SCR 5,000 per period or part period. Sufficient resources for the length of the stay must be shown, with no daily amount published. France Diplomatie for its part presents an extension of up to three months and a residence permit beyond: confirm the rule that applies to your case.

The residence permit is available to a person who is not a prohibited immigrant and who meets one of the following criteria: a family or domestic link with Seychelles, or a particular contribution to economic, social or cultural life. The pages consulted provide no category reserved for retirees and publish no pension threshold: ask immigration whether your situation falls under these criteria.

• Fees: SCR 1,000 for processing; SCR 150,000 for five years for the main holder; SCR 75,000 for the spouse if requested at the same time; SCR 25,000 per child entered on the permit.
• Documents and guarantees: proof of financial situation with bank confirmation; bank guarantee of at least SCR 20,000 with the head of the immigration service.
• Conditions: reside at least five days in each twelve-month period and explore possibilities for contributing to economic, social or cultural life; the permit does not authorise gainful activity.
• Health and social protection: the holder has no right to free medical care or to the benefits of the 1987 social security act.

The immigration service can be reached on +248 4 293636 (info@immigration.gov.sc), at Independence House, Victoria.

BOFiP (the French tax administration’s official guidance) lists no tax treaty in force between France and Seychelles; it refers to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs treaty database for the most recent texts, to be consulted before deciding. In the absence of a treaty, no treaty rule splits the taxation of pensions: French domestic law applies according to tax domicile. Service-public.fr indicates that you are domiciled in France if one of the following criteria is met: home in France, stay of at least 183 days in the year, main professional activity in France or centre of economic interests in France.

A retiree who is a French non-resident for tax purposes is still taxed on their French-source pension: the administration applies a withholding tax according to a scale of 0%, 12% or 20% by band (thresholds revised each year), after a 10% allowance. The Seychelles rules on foreign pensions and non-residents are confirmed with the Seychelles Revenue Commission (+248 4293737). The tax status is confirmed with the French tax office for non-resident individuals. The guide to receiving your pension abroad explains how French pensions are paid outside France.

The S1 form, which keeps a retiree’s French cover in another European State, does not apply to Seychelles, where there is no social security agreement (CLEISS). France Diplomatie describes as essential a contract covering all medical costs and repatriation.

• CFE: retirees’ offer (with a contribution that depends on age and the plan chosen) according to cfe.fr; no waiting period if enrolment takes place within three months of settling, then three months, or six months from age 45.
• International insurance: evacuation abroad or to Réunion for specialist care; age, pre-existing medical conditions and ceilings are decisive.
• Local network: the Seychelles Hospital and the health centres described by the Ministry of Health; the conditions of access and payment for a foreigner are confirmed with it.

See the guide to health insurance for retirees abroad and the page on healthcare reimbursement in Seychelles. On returning to France, the CFE retains rights free of charge for three months, and a holder of a French old-age pension is exempt from the three-month residence condition (Assurance Maladie, the French national health insurance).

None of the official sources consulted publishes a typical retiree budget. The World Bank describes contained inflation and an economy heavily dependent on tourism, whose arrivals can fluctuate sharply. The currency is the Seychelles rupee; as the pension is received in euros, the exchange rate affects purchasing power: the “Economic benchmarks” block above displays the up-to-date indicators. Visa cards work at cash machines on Mahé, Praslin and La Digue; Mastercard cards only at Mauritius Commercial Bank cash machines.

• Climate: the archipelago has been spared by cyclones so far, but heavy rain, wind, landslides and falling trees occur; dengue and chikungunya outbreaks from December to February.
• Safety: normal vigilance on Mahé, Praslin, La Digue and Silhouette; petty crime, especially after nightfall; waters north of the archipelago formally advised against because of piracy.
• Sea: drownings every year; limited rescue; respect swimming bans; a single hyperbaric chamber, on Mahé.
• Driving: on the left, narrow roads; French or international licence recognised; taxis with no meter, minimum fare of SCR 35.

Mahé concentrates Victoria, the international airport, the French embassy (Mont Fleuri, +248 422 55 13) and the reference hospital; Praslin and La Digue are tourist islands. The embassy has a limited capacity to help in a crisis and issues neither identity documents nor travel documents; other procedures are handled by the French embassy in Mauritius. A visit of several weeks before committing, a short lease and proximity to a health centre are useful safeguards. See the page on living in Seychelles and the Seychelles country page.

• Ask immigration in writing whether your situation falls under the residence permit, its criteria, the amount of the bank guarantee and the minimum presence.
• Plan the fees: SCR 1,000 for processing, SCR 150,000 for five years for the main holder, SCR 75,000 for the spouse, SCR 25,000 per child.
• Take out health cover with evacuation abroad or to Réunion: the holder of a residence permit has no right to free care.
• Review with the French tax office for non-resident individuals your tax residence before leaving.
• Try the island first: rent for a few months on Mahé, Praslin or La Digue before committing.