EuroTrash

Sorry :( but I really was trying to understand that example. (My browser won't do smileys)

Hi Oracle, re the TVA - ok but if I was buying and selling, and I'd decided I needed a 40% markup, I'd base it on cost of goods+TVA since that is what it is costing me to buy. Re cost of doing business, I send invoices by email and store them on computer. Aside from my valuable time, accountancy costs nothing. Unless someone wants me to print documents off in which case it will cost me paper and ink. But OK I do see that if you are sending out goods you may need to send an invoice with them. I have just checked the AE website and commercants pay 12% cotisations not 23% so that will change your figures a bit.

Am I the only one who can't get my head round Oracle's example? Why does TVA crop up as a separate item, what's Cost of invoice mean, why is he saying artisan when surely this is a commercant activity and why is he deducting 23% cotisations when, unless I am mistaken, commercants pay a significantly lower percentage? What is the example aiming to prove apart from that fhe AE regime does not suit all businesses, which the AE website itself points out? It's not exactly inspiring me with confidence that Oracle has hit upon something that has escaped the notice of many thousands of very sharp French entrepreneurs, who have grown up with the system and have experience of it, and who discuss this very topic amongst themselves at great length on French forums in their attempts to find a watertight legal way of keeping more of their hard-earned profits.

I agree with gardengirl. It's absolutely nothing to do with whether they have a French or UK driving licence but everything to do with where they are resident. If they live in France and they are going to re-register their car in France within the month, what's the problem, this is perfectly normal procedure.

I suppose what the OP is getting at is that it is often claimed that a FRENCH RESIDENT cannot (technically, legally) drive in France a car registered in another country. But, holding a French licence does not prove that you are a French resident. So if that is what you have in mind, the answer would be "yes, unless the person is a French resident". But in any case, as I understand it, this is an EU ruling and is more likely to be implemented in the UK (i.e. UK residents not supposed to drive non-UK reg cars) than in France.

You got me wondering why I said that now. I just think it sounds better with the l' . Or maybe it's a negative thing, I'd probably say 'je parle anglais' but I'd say 'je ne parle pas l'anglais'. Anyway here are some statistics according to how many times google found things: "parle anglais" 2,710,000 "parle l'anglais" 66,000 "ne parle que l'anglais" 91,000 "ne parle qu'anglais" 68,600 "ne parle que anglais" 10,700

I'd say 'Il ne parle que l'anglais'

If you're not, try Britannia Rescue. Cheaper than Saga I believe (well they were for my 'van)

"I wouldn't live as a woman alone." Idun, I'm a bit lost for words here. What do you suggest single women should do then? Refrain from living? It's a good job I'm an ugly old hag so I don't get too much hassle (well what other explanation can there be), however even us ugly old hags do get a bit of attention, so I can report that the attentions I've received in France have on the whole been far higher quality than the attentions I used to be subjected to in the UK. Polite, considerate, respectful, far quicker that most British males to take the hint and less likely to take it as a personal insult and go off in a huff. Ad I've never once in France had to resort to the forceful behaviour that was sometimes necessary in the UK. I never thought I'd be the one to complain about sexism, but honestly Idun .....!

Normally there is a minimum figure that is payable, which varies hugely from commune to commune, same as taxes foncières. You might be able to find the minimum level for where you live online if you're in a biggish town, or go to your impôts office to ask. Or maybe the maire would know. Also if you don't anticipate earning a lot, ask if they grant reductions for very small businesses - I believe a few places do but again it varies.

Hi Louise. Just to throw one more thing into the mix so that you don't overlook it. You say 'you and your boyfriend'. The status of the relationship might have a bearing on your choice of business regime. For instance I think (could be wrong) that if one of you was to set up as AE, the other could only be a 'conjoint' if you were married or PACS'd (civil partnership). Of course your notaire will probably have flagged this up already if it's a joint property purchase.

That certainly is odd, I declare quarterly and the money always comes out of my bank the day after the deadline. So I will be declaring very soon for trimester 3, July/Aug/Sept, and the money will no doubt go out on 1 Nov (unless it's a Sunday of course, havent looked).

I don't think it makes a scrap of difference. I have an old RHD car on French plates, costs (from memory) slightly over 100 euros for the equivalent of 3rd party cover and an annual mileage of 5000 kms. (Though I do well there - I did explain to the broker that my odometer registers miles not kms, and he thought about it, scratched his head, decided it was all too complicated and said oh just take the reading, I'm not going to worry about that. So in fact I get 8000 km for the price of 5000!) As I recall I did ask at the outset if it made any difference to the premium it being RHD, and again they looked surprised and said no, why should it?

Quillan - a question that springs to mind is, if you 'de-register' for six months, does your health cover stay in force?

My twopenn'orth would be, find out exactly what the annual property taxes will add up to before committing to a property. In a lot of regions the taxes went up as-tro-nomically this year, so make sure you don't get misled by being shown 2010's figures. The level of taxes varies hugely from region to region and commune to commune, and there are no reductions for non-residents so you will have to pay all the taxes in full - foncière, habitation, TV licence, and rubbish collection if applicable in your chosen commune. Could be well over 1,000 euros a year, could be under, so this might be a factor in your decision.

Thanks all. Loiseau, I think maybe I'll leave the fancy tense-shifting stuff for next time (and there won't be a next time!!!). Cooperlola, I'm going to cling on hard to your comment cos they'll have plenty of oddities, grammatical errors, quirks and franglicisms to forgive, so let's hope my natural charm and enthusiasm will win the day. Incidentally, what's French for "Unnaccustomed as I am to public speaking ..."? !!!

Louise - as others have said, you need to get advice specific to your circumstances, as what is best for one chambre d'hote owner is not necessarily best for another, it all depends on your family situation, other income, etc, etc. The different business regimes all have potential advantages and potential disadvantages, and if you register for one where the potential advantages don't apply to people in your situation but the potential disadvantages do, you're stuffed. Choosing the right regime can make all the difference to whether your business succeeds or not. If you go to the Pole Emploi and register as a jobseeker and tell them you want to start a business, with a bit of luck they will channel you towards a whole raft of free business advice. (I know you're not looking for a job but you have to be registered to qualify for some of the free adivce). Unless things have changed in the last year or so you will get a trained, professinal business advisor who will guide you through the whole start-up process, tell you about any tax breaks you qualify for, and carry on giving you advice for the first year or so if you want. But you're only entitled to all this if you go along before you set up the business. I believe the Chambre de Commerce also offers free business advice along very similar lines - it all depends where you are, which is the better support network in your region (where I am the Pole Emploi route seems more proactive). (Sorry - I'll put the hobby horse back to bed now shall I )

Thanks for that, it's a great relief as I had started writing it out in the passé composé, and then yesterday I happened to notice that something I was listening to on the radio was all in the past historic (it was someone summarising a singer's biography). Which put me into a panic. allanb, I probably will be reading it all out from my notes but I'll be trying to look as if I'm not ... Edit - sorry, crossed with N's last post

Hi, I hope someone is going to tell me the answer to this: If you're giving a fairly formal talk to a group of people, and you want to kick off by relating a sequence of events, would you do it in the perfect or the past historic? I'm hoping the perfect would be acceptable, I'd find past historics hard as I never use them. I'm starting to think I've bitten off more than I can chew :(

I'm thinking about giving lycamobile.fr a try. No monthly fee and credit doesn't expire as long as you use it once every 90 days. Anyone using lycamobile?

I don't think a company can claim to ba a mutuelle if it's not. This seems to sum it up quite well: http://www.devismutuelle.com/guide/choisir-mutuelle-ou-assurance.asp (the like probably won't linkify itself, they never do with Chrome, sorry)

The way I understand it - top-up insurance, or complémentaire, is available from 2 kinds of providers, either 'mutuelles' which are not-for-profit companies, or private insurance companies. Both are, I believe, tightly regulated by the state. Beyond that I have a vague feeling that there are differences between the way the 2 sorts of company operate and are taxed, and traditionally I think they offered slightly different types of policy. And that's all I know. Bye.

You can suspend the phone line but I didn't think you could suspend the adsl subscription. Unless there is a new package now that lets you do this as well? To suspend the phone line there is a number you can dial from the phone itself that does it automatically and instantly (sorry, can't remember what it is). If she's cancelling it permanently you probably need to send a formulaire de résiliation.

The stock phrase I've heard many times from French people explaining their (non)marital status is "J'ai un(e) partenaire avec qui je vis".

Apart from anything else, surely anybody visiting for 1 year is not treated like a permanent resident, so wouldn't they still be the responsibility of their home country?