Working in Seychelles as a French National: GOP Permit, Pay, Taxation and Economy

France Diplomatie (the French foreign ministry) reminds travellers that the travel authorisation and the visitor permit are tourist stay documents. The Seychelles immigration service indicates that all expatriate workers need a Gainful Occupation Permit (GOP): without it, a non-Seychellois cannot work, full-time or part-time, paid or unpaid. The future employee must not enter Seychelles to start working before the permit is issued.

• Step 1: the employer obtains an approval certificate from the Ministry of Employment and Social Affairs for the non-Seychellois employee.
• Step 2: they file the GOP form with immigration, at Independence House (Victoria), at least one week before the start date; a list of documents accompanies the form, and any incomplete file is rejected.
• Fees: SCR 1,000 for processing, plus SCR 500 per month or part month for the whole period requested, payable on filing; the full scale appears in the “GOP List of Fees” document.
• Time: the permit can be collected one to five days after filing.
• Extension and changes: a change of job title or duties follows the same steps as the initial application.

The maximum length of a GOP is not indicated on the page consulted: it is confirmed with immigration (+248 4 293636, info@immigration.gov.sc). The Ministry of Employment can be reached on +248 4297200.

None of the official sources accessible during this verification gives the Seychelles national minimum wage: the Ministry of Employment website refers, for wages and working conditions, to its published texts (employment laws and regulations) and to a section on labour migration. Ask the employer for the salary and benefits provided for in the contract and check them with the ministry.

Pay varies by sector, status and employer; a seconded employee generally keeps the package of their French employer, whereas a local contract follows the Seychelles market. See seconded or expatriate and the local contract. The World Bank stresses that labour and skills shortages hold back the economy.

The Seychelles Revenue Commission indicates that the rules on income tax and on non-monetary benefits changed in June 2018, with a progressive regime and a higher exemption threshold, and that the rate applicable to the employer on the value of a non-monetary benefit went from 20% to 15% on 1 January 2023. The figures of the scales, the rules applicable to non-residents and social security contributions do not appear on the page consulted: ask the commission’s advisory centre (+248 4293737, advisory.center@src.gov.sc) before signing a contract.

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) and CLEISS lists no social security agreement: no totalisation of insurance periods, and a risk of double taxation to be studied with a professional. A seconded employee may remain attached to French social security under the conditions of a secondment outside an agreement (Urssaf, the French social security contributions collector, and CLEISS). Service-public.fr reminds readers that tax domicile in France depends on the home, a stay of at least 183 days, the main professional activity or the centre of economic interests.

A foreigner who wishes to set up a business must first submit a project memorandum to the Seychelles Investment Board (investinseychelles@sib.gov.sc), then obtain a GOP; the residence permit does not authorise paid activity and therefore does not exempt from this permit. Self-employed people also register with the Seychelles Revenue Commission.

None of the official sources consulted describes a remote work scheme for an employee of a foreign employer living in the archipelago: the right to stay and taxation should be checked with immigration and the commission before leaving. The digital nomad insurance page describes the protections to arrange.

The residence permit specifies that its holder has no right to free medical care or to the benefits provided for by the 1987 social security act. The rights of an employee holding a GOP (contributions, benefits, access to the public network) are confirmed with the employer and the ministry before signing the contract. Access to care relies on the public network described by the Ministry of Health and on private or international insurance, which France Diplomatie describes as essential. See the pages on the healthcare system and healthcare reimbursement.

The World Bank describes an economy heavily dependent on tourism and fishing. Real growth is sustained but sensitive to tourist flows, which fluctuate with exposure to Middle Eastern air hubs. Inflation is low, public finances show a primary surplus, foreign exchange reserves cover several months of imports and unemployment remains low. The currency is the Seychelles rupee. The up-to-date indicators appear in the “Economic benchmarks” block above.

• Outlook: a comprehensive reform package could raise GDP significantly, create jobs and increase real wages; without climate action, environmental pressures could reduce GDP in the long term.
• Risks: climate change, external shocks to aviation, small size and remoteness, ageing, skills shortages and slow digitalisation.

See also the page on living in Seychelles.

• Check that the employer has obtained the approval certificate from the Ministry of Employment and Social Affairs before filing the GOP.
• Do not travel to work before the permit is issued: work without a GOP is forbidden, even part-time or unpaid.
• Have it specified who pays the SCR 1,000 processing fee and the SCR 500 a month for the permit.
• Ask the Seychelles Revenue Commission about the applicable tax and social security, before any calculation of net pay.
• Negotiate health and evacuation cover, evacuation being frequent for specialist care.