What does emigrating to France cost?
Emigrating to France mainly costs money in the move and the first months; the paperwork costs almost nothing here. Four questions give an honest range for your situation. For every item you see whether it's a checked rate or an estimate.
Looking for the whole route to France, not just the costs? See the steps, the order and the paperwork →
A rough indication for your situation
A few short questions, and you get a range instead of an amount. That's deliberate: an exact figure would suggest a precision nobody has.
Count on a total of
€ 2.500 – € 6.500
Where does that difference come from?
- The first months€ 2.500 – € 6.000
Below you'll find per item where the upper and the lower limit come from.
- Aanvraag en papieren
- € 0 – € 100
- De verhuizing
- € 80 – € 350
- De eerste maanden
- € 2.500 – € 6.000
Every item, one by onePer item the amount, the source and whether it's a rate or an estimate
Aanvraag en papieren
- Fresh certificates and any translations(estimate)€ 0 – € 100
De verhuizing
- Travel(estimate)€ 80 – € 350
France is the nearest destination: one day's drive, or a short flight. If you drive yourself, you need no overnight stop.
De eerste maanden
- The first months(estimate)€ 2.500 – € 6.000
The region matters most: Paris rents above Dutch levels, the provinces (everywhere outside Paris) at roughly half of that. In France the deposit is legally limited: one month's bare rent for unfurnished, two for furnished. So the hit on signing is smaller than elsewhere. What counts just as heavily: temporary accommodation, living costs while no income is coming in yet, and the mutuelle in the monthly budget. That is the supplementary health insurance almost everyone takes.
And if you buy a house?
This calculation assumes renting: the first months include deposit and rent in advance.
If you buy, count on 8 to 9% of the purchase price on top of this amount. On a home of € 250,000 that's € 20.000 to € 22.500.
In France almost everything is called "frais de notaire", but it is largely tax. The notary keeps only a small part of it. Most of it is the droits de mutation, the French transfer tax. Since 1 April 2025 the départements may raise it by half a percentage point. Most did, and come to about 6.32% in total. Elsewhere it stays around 5.81%. First-time buyers of a main residence don't pay the increase. For new-builds it is much lower, 2 to 3%, because VAT applies there instead of transfer tax.
An order of magnitude based on averages, not a quote. The real amounts depend on your occupation, your route, the season and dozens of choices you still have to make.
The rates in this calculation haven't been checked against the official sources yet.
Ready to get started with France?
The whole journey in the right order, with your documents, your costs and all your cancellation letters. € 199 one-off, no subscription.
Also want to know whether your departure date is feasible, and where you start? Take the departure scan for France →
One thing you can sort out today
Closing down the Netherlands is the same work for everyone, wherever you're going. With the letter pack you enter your details once, and every cancellation and notification letter is ready: health insurance, rent, employer, bank, pension fund. Each comes with the date by which it has to go out. € 49 one-off, and it's also included in every plan.
In Vertrekklaar you get the complete picture of your own costs, with your route, your documents and your deadlines.
From range to your own budget
The calculator above works with four questions; the journey itself has more. In Vertrekklaar the same model calculates with your real situation: how many children, which household contents, pet or not. It also watches the order of every step. A one-off € 199, no subscription.
Leaving with AOW or a pension? Compare how countries tax your pension
Every step on one list, free
Not ready to start yet? Then you get the departure checklist for France: every step in order, to print and tick off. With it, five mails in a week and a half about the pitfalls and the real costs. If the rules for France change, you'll hear about it. After that we ask once where your plans stand, send one offer, and now and then one thing that fits your moment. No newsletter, and you can switch it off at any time.
Ready to begin?
64 journeys are fully ready: your step-by-step plan, your documents and your costs in one place, and the plan keeps an eye on your deadlines. You pay once, and then it's yours.