"I wouldn't have been able to retire there": These Americans who benefit from free social security

Will France soon become less generous with American retirees? That is certainly what François Gernigon, a member of the Horizons party, would like, as he submits an amendment to the Social Security finance bill currently being debated in the National Assembly.

The focus is on American retirees who settle in France and benefit from universal health coverage . This system allows them to have free health insurance, a status inconceivable in their country, and which is attracting more and more of them.

Invited on RMC this Friday morning, the MP behind this amendment, François Gernignon, clarified that this measure does not only apply to American citizens.

“It is aimed at American citizens but it is also aimed at all foreign nationals from outside the European community. It is on the condition of having been in France for a minimum of three months, living with a long-stay visa for at least six months in France, having a minimum income, and having private social coverage when the person arrives in France,” he explains.

He was alerted by a French citizen in his constituency who had lived in the United States and whose friends had moved to France. “France is a good country. We have beautiful landscapes, good cheese, good wine, and we have Social Security. My amendment proposes a mandatory minimum contribution to be defined by decree. I've only been aware of this situation for a few weeks, a few days, so I submitted this amendment somewhat hastily to at least bring the issue to the forefront and say that there needs to be at least a minimum contribution. And those concerned, moreover, are in complete agreement,” he emphasized.

The charm of the Calanques, the gentle sunshine on the Old Port, and then the health insurance card. Chiara has been living happily in Marseille for a year now, far from the worries of her native Connecticut.

“How could I have retired there without knowing how much I was going to have to pay? I have a chronic illness, I have to go to the doctor, have regular checkups. In the United States, nobody can afford that except those who live in Beverly Hills,” she believes.

Armed with her long-stay visa, the woman in her sixties automatically benefits from social security. She only pays for her supplemental health insurance, which costs around one hundred euros per month, she says. “That’s one of the reasons why I’m going to stay here,” she asserts.

All this without paying any contributions and by virtue of a treaty between their country of origin and France. Furthermore, they are exempt from income tax. "And yes: it's outrageous," Janice concedes.

“Most Americans understand the injustice. They would like to participate, but it is the system that prevents us,” she points out.

The woman, who settled in Mougins, in the Alpes-Maritimes, nine years ago, says she is now ready to put her money where her mouth is for her adopted country and the country she loves.