Ashis

I use What Car Insurance (it's done via Liverpool Victoria) - they give you the facility to get trips of up to 6 months duration - no notice, no hassle.

This caused me serious pain (emotionally and finacially!) last year when I went through it and it totally depends on who you ask. However I got it sorted but may be helped where I live (Alsace near Swiss border). French installers don't know about Sky unless they have experience of dealing with Brits. Evenutally I found some that did. The rest were really clueless. Sky doesn't sell to non-UK residents. You need a big dish (i.e. not a minidish)and it needs to be pointed at the Astra 2D satellite. The co-ordinates are easily obtainable but if you are stuck let me know and I will dig out the info. You need a Sky Box - which if not already in possession then you need to get one somehow from the UK or via one of the French companies (run by Brits) that specialise in it (at greatly inflated cost) and you need a Sky card (same applies). YOu won't get French TV with the Sky dish - angle is wrong so you will need another dish for that. If you remain stuck I can give you the address of the Skybox suppliers - and the co-ordinates for the satellite but you will need to find someone who can mount the dish and point it (can do it yourself - just will take ages). Cheers

Thanks all for your messages - really helpful - however the last note from AndyH4 and the one from teamedup highlighted a significant issue for me. Health cover. Living in France and earning in Switzerland means I am not allowed a carte vitale due to the Swiss not being in the EU or in the EEA. My wife has significant health past history  - hence the French insurers won't cover us at all  so we have to pay for private cover in Switzerland due to a legal requirement that they have to cover us on account of my employment there which just about covers us in the border regions but considering the complicated nature of my wife's conditions finding an appropriate specialist is almost impossible.  Despite "layman's" claims to the contrary I am not impressed by the quality of healthcare in Switzerland (I am a medical doctor so I do know what I am talking about). An E106 and E111 etc only covers one for a few months and then stops being valid on account of where I earn. Hence we actually derive nothing (or almost nothing) from each respective country's tax funded systems. Please also note I am perfectly willing to pay tax not escape it or evade it - it just seems to me that it's rather unfair that I cannot volunteer to pay tax in the UK on the grounds that I have a house there and am still contributing to the economy there!

Here's a question..... I am married (have a wife - non working) with one child and work in Switzerland and live in France in a rented house and retain a property in the UK which is currently let out. According to the Inland Revenue one has either to be in the UK for more than 183 days per tax year or resident on average over 4 years for 91 days per year to be considered a UK resident for tax purposes. I visit the UK a lot and can theoretically top the 91 day per year limit. What is to stop me paying UK tax and NI on my income if I am in the UK more than 91 days per year on average? That way my entire income is treated as self employed, the house rental, all my commuting expenses from the UK, heating, water, light, food in France are all tax deductible. In addition the car expenses are deductible (I have a car not registered in France but in the UK) too and I don't have to go through the hassle of getting French plates etc. Anyone see major flaws with my logic??