# Nationality or residency?



## clairol

Hello everyone!

I am a new member, Australian living and working in France for 10 years and currently tossing up whether to apply for nationality or 10-year residency card.
I would be eligible for either and I absolutely want to apply for something as I am tired of the never-ending administrative cycle, applying for a new visa every year and I feel I would have more freedom regarding work, travel etc with either option but I wonder which would be better, if either?

A little more info about my situation: I am a teacher, I got my Masters teaching degree in France, my French is very good (I have a C1 qualification from 10 years ago) and I am currently on a 4 year "entrepreneur/profession libérale" visa. This means I am freelance. Which is great, except I cannot work on any other kind of contract so I don't have access to employee benefits like tickets restaurants, unemployment, sick leave.. (This last one has been a bit of a bummer this year because with the current crisis I have had to take more time off work than I usually would and being unable to catch up the hours, my income suffers). 

I applied for nationality in 2018 but it was ajourned until I could prove I had a stable and sufficiant financial/work situation. Which I now have.

So my point is, what are the pros and cons of each? As far as I can tell, the main difference is that with nationality you can vote. And obviously, you don't have to reapply and maybe it changes things for the next generation but as I don't have kids that's not really a consideration. Are there any other differences I should know about? 

Thanks for your input!


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## Bevdeforges

The only issue with going for nationality is that the process takes a good year and you have to maintain your residence status for that entire time. So ultimately, depending on when your carte de séjour expires, you may very well wind up having to renew your carte de séjour one more time to take you through the eventual approval (or rejection) of your application for nationality.

I can tell you from my experience that life gets considerably easier once you take French nationality and can hand them a national i.d. card rather than a carte de séjour for any and all administrative functions. I don't have kids, either, but the CNI (i.d. card) does have an amazing ability to eliminate that first (and often most irritating) layer of bureaucracy in dealing here with official-dom (think driving licenses, registering for much of anything, having that "French birth certificate" available from Nantes instead of having to get official copies and translations from "back home", etc, etc.). And yes, definitely, you get to vote which can be frustrating given the often disappointing assortment of candidates on offer, but it does give you a certain status in political discussions with friends and neighbors.


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## ko12

clairol said:


> So my point is, what are the pros and cons of each? As far as I can tell, the main difference is that with nationality you can vote. And obviously, you don't have to reapply and maybe it changes things for the next generation but as I don't have kids that's not really a consideration. Are there any other differences I should know about?
> 
> Thanks for your input!


If your only nationality is AUS, then (assuming AUS allows 'dual' nationality, as does France) French citizenship gives you a passport that is good for the whole of the EU, including free movement (may come in handy one day).


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## BackinFrance

If you are coming up to your 10 year card, I think you should apply for it, because it takes a fair while for an application for naturalisation to be processed, usually more than a year. That said, naturalisation gives you more advantages so I suggest you apply for both.


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## BackinFrance

Australia does recognise dual nationality.


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## 255

@clairol -- French citizenship locks you into France for as long as you wish to stay there. Rules change and residency can be forfeited, for whatever reason. Additionally, if you leave France for too long, say you want to take a premier teacher posting, outside of France, you can loose your residency and have to start over. A second passport also gives you a hedge against world events. Depending on the expiration date of your current residency permit, I would second @BackinFrance's recommendation and apply for both. The last I read, your language test needs to be less than 1 year old, for either option -- so you'll probably need to re-sit for the exam. Cheers, 255


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## Peasant

If you're an Australian with dual citizenship you cannot run for a seat in the Australian Parliament. Either house.


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## BackinFrance

Peasant said:


> If you're an Australian with dual citizenship you cannot run for a seat in the Australian Parliament. Either house.


But if you wish to do so at some future time, you can renounce your French citizenship. And a dual citizen can run for a seat in one of the Australian states.


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## jweihl

Perhaps someone can clarify. If you're a foreign national, you can opt to have your estate handled by your will and the laws of your home country. But, I think once you take French citizenship this is no longer an option. Your estate (in France) will be handled by French law. Is that correct?

On the other hand, if you take citizenship, they can't deport you if you commit a criminal offense.


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## Bevdeforges

Checked over on europa.eu and found this:


> *EU rules however allow you to choose that the law of your country of nationality should apply to your inheritance* – whether this is an EU country or not.
> 
> If you have several nationalities, you can choose the law of any of your nationalities.


Taken from this page Planning your cross-border inheritance in the EU

Just be advised that the tax rates for France apply if you die while resident in France, no matter how your estate has been distributed.


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## BackinFrance

Bevdeforges said:


> Checked over on europa.eu and found this:
> 
> 
> Taken from this page Planning your cross-border inheritance in the EU
> 
> Just be advised that the tax rates for France apply if you die while resident in France, no matter how your estate has been distributed.


And I believe a French citizen who dies whilst resident outside France and does not own real property in France is not bound by the French inheritance rules, except perhaps for tax on funds held in France. 

In any case it is always best to seek advice from your notaire.


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## Bevdeforges

Generally speaking, it's the inheritance laws of the country in which one is resident on the date of death - with the usual exception of real property, which comes under the laws of the country where the property is located. This ability to defer to one's country of nationality is an EU thing - but even then there are a couple of EU countries who have opted out, and there are a few exceptions that can be invoked by the deceased's country of residence. Who knew that even dying could be so complicated? <g>


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## GraceS

Bevdeforges said:


> Just be advised that the tax rates for France apply if you die while resident in France, no matter how your estate has been distributed.


Bev, can you clarify: in the sentence above, do the words "while resident in France" mean "while you are physically in France"? Or do they mean "during the time period in which you are a tax resident of France, no matter your location at time of death"? 

Thanks!


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## Bevdeforges

GraceS said:


> "during the time period in which you are a tax resident of France, no matter your location at time of death"?


What determines "who" handles your estate/inheritance is where you are legally resident at your date of death. That's the basis of your "tax residence" - however that's a tricky concept for any US citizen, since the US considers you "tax resident" in the US of A no matter where you are living anywhere in the world. (There is a whole separate tax treaty devoted to "inheritance taxes" which I've never really gotten into.)

Then again, as my husband says (about other issues related to his own death), at that point I really won't care one way or the other. It's all up to the survivors to sort that stuff out.


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## GraceS

Bevdeforges said:


> What determines "who" handles your estate/inheritance is where you are legally resident at your date of death. That's the basis of your "tax residence" - however that's a tricky concept for any US citizen, since the US considers you "tax resident" in the US of A no matter where you are living anywhere in the world. (There is a whole separate tax treaty devoted to "inheritance taxes" which I've never really gotten into.)
> 
> Then again, as my husband says (about other issues related to his own death), at that point I really won't care one way or the other. It's all up to the survivors to sort that stuff out.


Thanks Bev!


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