Hereford
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Posts posted by Hereford
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Having registered to vote at our local Mairie (we thought it would be a good idea for local elections) we were surprised last week to receive two large packages with all the info on the referendum this month. The also packs included two small pieces of paper, one saying "Non", the other "Oui".
Has anyone else had these packs? We had not thought we would be eligible to vote. If you have - do we keep the small pieces of paper for the actual vote or are they just examples?
Any thoughts appreciated - we would not like to look too silly when we turn up to vote! We have read some bits of the treaty and it does not include the right to vote in national elections where you live and pay your tax unless you are a national of that country.
Thanks
H.
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We set up a sterling account with Moneybookers but because our home is in France their computer system assumed we would want to upload to a French bank. As soon as we asked for a UK bank to use for uploads we were given the sort code etc and we transfer money from Barclays to Moneybookers Lloyds account. It then is withdrawn to France (it still says £'s) but as the previous poster says the charge, by Moneybookers, is 1.80 euros. There is no further charge by the French bank because Moneybookers send it from their French bank.
It seems to be working well at the moment, after delays a few months ago.
Hereford
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"Old age" as such does not qualify you for 100%! My parents are 81 and 82 and they pay the excess over the normal 70% or so re-imbursement.
Mrs H.
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We really would not recommend CDG! Your guests will still be driving round the "spaghetti junction x 2 at least" two weeks after they hoped to be home. The airport roads are horrendous. The bus goes from the terminals and can take an hour and a half to get into the centre. The RER train is alright as far as it goes, takes about half an hour and is full of East European mendicants and buskers asking for money.
We went in to Paris from Cergy Pontoise, a few years ago but no problem with parking. This is a terminus of the RER but we don't know whether by now it is like the RER from CDG.
Regards
hereford
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I wouldn't hold your breath - ours took months to be refunded. We even had to pay the French tax before UK tax came back. Phone the Non-residents tax office in Nottingham or Bootle and keep pestering them!
H.
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Go visit the doctor Jackie! One-a-day antihistamine pills are fantastic. Fot some wierd reason French ones seem to be better than UK ones.
I take one per day, plus a nasal spray (brilliant for stopping sneezing in it's tracks) for really bad days. I am allergic to early, middle and late pollen and also house dust. We live in a restored old house with beams so the dust.....but have found doctor most helpful. I have fewer symptons now than when living by the sea in a modern house in the UK.
Mrs Hereford
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Regarding the "downside" comments I am sure that you will bear in mind that unless you are "time poor" and have to get to your destination quickly you have plenty of money in hand to stay overnight in Boulogne (definitely in Old Town where there is an Ibis) and then drive across country (via say Grandvilliers/Louviers/Falaise) and arrive fresh and save all the motorway tolls as well.
This is what we do in reverse starting between Avranches/Mortain. You say you are 60 miles south of Cherbourg - ? Villedieu - so your route might have to be slightly different.
Long may Speedferries live. (we always book by credit card so would be refunded if they go broke...)
Hereford
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Rental income in the UK is always taxed there. But you have to show it on your French return and it affects the rate of tax you pay on other French taxable income. Any tax paid in the UK is also shown. The govt./civil service etc pensions that are taxed in the UK do still have to be shown on the French form and you also show any tax paid.
The reason you have to show such income appears to be because the French need to know your "world" income for working out all your impots., e.g. getting a reduced taxe d'habitation. It would hardly be fair to get a reduced t d'h just because one has little income taxable in France whilst having a whopping (or not so whopping) civil service pension taxable in the UK.
Hereford
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Thanks, Mistral, for the link. We have income that is taxed (permanently) in the UK so the program crashes. It produces a message to the effect that it is too complicated and we must speak to the "revenu" office!
It would seem that this would happen to anyone with for example a govt. pension or rent in the UK. It finally got stressed when we went to enter the amount carried forward from CSG last year. If we ignore CSG figure it will allow us to put a figure in UK taxed box TI but them comes up with an incorrect answer. as it ignores box TI in the calculations!
We had a simliar problem last year too when we could not actually file online but tried to get a rough idea of the correct answer for tax etc.
Never mind we will wait until August, or have another go via "modifying" our return.
Hereford
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We went onto the Impot site again today and cannot find anywhere a pointer to the "estimate" of tax based on the filed return.
We did find that you can "modify" the return so pretended to do that and when we got to the end it said "calculs .....non-disponible".
Perhaps that is why we cannot find a link!
Which page should we find the estimate button on, once the return has gone in? We think we have a pretty good idea of our tax payable.from our own calculations but it would be nice to know before August.
We agree with the earlier post that the Social contributions on Interest received make a lot of difference, for us they meant last year that we paid more tax here than we would have done in the UK.
Thanks everyone.
Hereford
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Thanks Mistral. I think we should be OK then as I am sure we "agreed" to pay by a "modern method" and we are already paying monthly. Yes, last year was our first year so this year is the first online.
Will try to find the "estimate" button and get back to you if we have a problem finding it!
Hereford
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Mistral:
Did our return online last week and becasue we are paying monthly at present we asumed this would carry on. We did not see a "box" to tick for monthly payments. Where was this box?
Nor did we see any calculations. Can we get these now? We have a receipt and looking on our dossier it shows that the return has been filed so it did work.
We want to carry on paying monthly so how do we get it organised now, can we wait for paperwork to come and do it then as we did last year?
Thanks for you help. We thought that the form said you had to agree to pay by a modern method but don't remember whether there was a box about it.
Hereford
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Update to my earlier posting ("beware if uou want to file online"):
This year have had no problem filing tax return (French!) online. All necessary forms offered.
You get a bonus of 20 euros for filing online so seems like a good deal.
Hereford
PS You can only file online from your second year of completng a French return.
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Hello
After posting a query re cheques d'emploi on this forum we agreed with our prospective gardener that we would pay him that way. He went to URSSAF and a very helpful lady told him all about the scheme and he was happy. He does not want to work more than a few hours a week so the scheme seems ideal. However.....
being a belt and braces sort of chap he then telephoned the tax office. Confusion. They told him that rules had changed from 1st march and that he did now have to "register" anyway and pay money upfront. We suspect that this is rubbish but he is woried.
We have yet to receive our "cheque" book and paperwork but understand that the only reference number we need for him is his CPAM number.
Is there a gardener out there who is paid by cheques d'emploi who can set his mind at rest please?
Many thanks
Hereford
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Such items also go on section 8 of the main form. The French make an allowance for any tax paid but the amount still features in the total on Avis d'impot called "Taux effectif (revenue mondial). French taxable income shows higher up on form as "Revenue imposable". Tax on revenue mondial is taken from the bareme and then the tax figure is divided by "mondial" and multiplied by "imposable".
This is very hard to expalin but will become clear when you receive your tax demand.
This is very similar to how "top-slicing" works in the UK - e.g on chargeable events.
H.
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Beware if you file your tax return online if: you have an exempt pension (i.e.govt) or rents in the UK. Last year the website could not cope with this, no available form to fill in the figures for these items.
It is a myth that Govt. pensions and rents in Uk do not have to be declared to the French. They have to go on the main form and also on a form 2047k. They affect the rate of tax you pay in France.
We were told that the first year you have to collect the forms yourself. We did that last year and this year they have arrived by post. The two forms came separately - and only during last week.
Hereford
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Check on Speedferries website fast - they have 50,000 tickets from £7.50 single.
H.
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Check out speedferries website fast - 10,000 tickets from £7.50.
H.
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We are very happy with Credit Agricole Normand, but certainly don't get "a few centimes" when we use our cash card. CA is regional and each region is independent of the other regions (not very well put but you get the drift). You cannot pay in a cheque for example in a branch that is not in your "region". You can get cash of course anywhere.
The online banking is pretty good, though nothing like as good as a UK version.
Hereford
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We have used Moneybookers for several months. There was a bad patch when it was very slow but the last twice the money has arrived in two days (UK to France).
Our account with them is in sterling and we ask for a sterling amount to be transferred. They (Moneybookers) do the conversion to euros and send it from their French account - we have certainly never heard of a charge by the French bank when it arrives. Credit Agricole certainly do not.
The only downside we encountered was when we wanted to send to our son in Canada. Moneybookers do not have a correspondent bank in Canada so it was sent "Swift" and did incur a charge when received.
Hereford
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Many thanks for helpful hints.
We probably will go for induction: I have Le creuset pans which (see above) are aparently OK and I like the safety aspect.
Radio 4 might be the occasional problem - will have to make sure soup/whatever heated before 1pm!
Mrs H
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Thanks for that reply Roger. I use Le Creuset pans - very heavy, but not sure about magnet!! Will try a magnet if I can find one.
Mrs H
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Hello
We are looking to buy a new electric oven and hob. We have looked around several shops, Conforama etc and have decided we want a "plaque vitro-ceramiques". Howver even these come in two types: radiant and induction. The sales assistant in Conforama explained that the induction is much quicker and safer (for small people!).
Has anyone any views on the merits of radiant versus induction please? This is a long time purchase so we want to get it right.
many thanks
Mrs H
PS We are using gas (bottled) at present which drives us mad so definitely want to go "electric".
Voting in French referendum
in The Complete France Post Bag
Posted
Thanks for that link. It does indeed say that we cannot vote. Saved a lot of embarassment on 29th.
H.
PS One wonders whether we will be able to vote in the UK one!