France and the UK sit either side of the Channel — 35 minutes by Eurotunnel, or a few hours by ferry — but this is not the frictionless intra-EU move it would be to Germany or Spain. Since the UK left the EU customs union and single market at the end of the Brexit transition period on 31 December 2020, both goods and people face a genuinely different set of rules than they did before 2021. This guide is for a French resident relocating to the UK in 2026: what actually happens at the border, what registration and immigration steps are real, and what to do on both the France and UK sides.

Key takeaways

• The UK is fully outside the EU customs union and single market. Household goods entering the UK from France require a customs declaration, but a duty- and VAT-free Transfer of Residence (ToR) relief exists for people genuinely moving home — apply for your ToR1 reference before your goods ship (gov.uk: Transfer of residence to Great Britain, gov.uk: Application for ToR1 relief).
• Free movement of people ended on 31 December 2020. Unless you already hold status under the EU Settlement Scheme, French nationals need a UK visa (e.g. Skilled Worker, family, or another Immigration Rules route) to live and work in the UK — there is no automatic right to move (gov.uk: points-based system for EU citizens).
• Before leaving, notify impots.gouv.fr so your file is correctly closed out and, if applicable, handed to the non-resident tax service (Service des impôts des particuliers non-résidents, SIPNR) for French-source income (impots.gouv.fr: leaving France).
• Notify your CPAM (French health-insurance fund) that you’re leaving France so your entitlement is closed out correctly; NHS access in the UK then depends on your immigration status and, for most visa routes, on having paid the Immigration Health Surcharge (cleiss.fr: moving to the UK, NHS: moving to England from EU countries).
• French driving licences can be exchanged for a GB one within 12 months of becoming resident, without a test, using DVLA form D1 or the online service (gov.uk: exchange a non-GB licence).
• A car brought from France must be reported to HMRC via the NOVA notification within 14 days, before it can be registered with the DVLA and get a V5C logbook and UK plates (gov.uk: importing vehicles into the UK).
• Dogs, cats and ferrets can travel from France to Great Britain on a valid EU pet passport — a separate Animal Health Certificate is only needed if your pet doesn’t have one — provided they’re microchipped, rabies-vaccinated at least 21 days before travel, and, for dogs, tapeworm-treated shortly before arrival (gov.uk: bring your pet dog, cat or ferret to Great Britain).

1. What actually applies: no "EU move," but a real relief scheme for your goods

Because the UK sits outside the EU customs union, your move is legally an import, not an internal EU transfer. That means a customs declaration exists for your consignment — but for genuine home movers it is not a duty/VAT bill. The Transfer of Residence (ToR) relief removes import duty and VAT on personal belongings, a vehicle, and even pets, provided you have lived outside the UK for at least 12 consecutive months and will keep the UK as your main home (gov.uk: transfer of residence to Great Britain).

Practically:

1. Apply for ToR1 approval from HMRC before your goods are shipped — list your belongings (grouped, not itemised down to each book) and get a unique reference number. Processing takes time, so apply well ahead of your move rather than at the last minute (gov.uk: application for ToR1 relief).
2. Your ToR1 reference is used on the import declaration submitted when your goods cross into the UK — your mover normally handles this declaration on your behalf.
3. Alcohol and tobacco are excluded from ToR relief and are separately dutiable (gov.uk: transfer of residence to Great Britain).
4. If your goods travel in your own vehicle (not via a commercial mover) you still need to complete the relevant declaration paperwork at the terminal (Eurotunnel LeShuttle Freight: border formalities).

Note for context: this customs step is specific to UK-bound moves. Had this corridor been between two EU/EEA customs-union countries, none of this would apply. It also would look different again for Switzerland or Norway/Iceland, which are outside the EU customs union but have their own removal-goods relief regimes — not relevant to this France–UK route.

2. Leaving France: tax, healthcare, driving licence, vehicle

Tax residency. France does not have a single "de-registration" form for leaving the country the way some countries require a population-register exit. What you must do is get your tax situation right: in your departure year you remain a French tax resident up to your departure date and file as normal; from the following year, if you no longer meet France’s residency tests, your file is transferred to the Service des impôts des particuliers non-résidents (SIPNR) for any remaining French-source income (impots.gouv.fr: leaving France, impots.gouv.fr: am I a non-resident). Tell your employer and any pension fund about your new UK address so they can apply the right withholding.

Healthcare. Notify your CPAM (Caisse Primaire d’Assurance Maladie) that you are leaving France to live abroad, using their standard departure declaration process; this closes your French health-insurance entitlement, and dependants should return Carte Vitale-linked cards once covered under a new system. Confirm the exact current procedure directly with your caisse or on ameli.fr, since practice can vary. If you’re moving as a retiree drawing a French pension, CLEISS explains that cross-border healthcare coordination between France and the UK may still apply in some circumstances — for example via an S1 portable document issued by your pension fund; for those moving to work in the UK, healthcare entitlement is generally governed by UK rules (see Section 4) once you’re covered there (cleiss.fr: moving to and living in the UK).

Driving licence and vehicle. If you plan to sell your car before leaving, deregister it as usual via ANTS/service-public.fr; if you bring it, you’ll need it re-registered on the UK side (see Section 4). Any address change on French paperwork (carte grise, etc.) that still applies while you’re in France must be reported to the prefecture/ANTS within a month (service-public.fr / ANTS: change of address on a carte grise).

3. How your household goods actually move (freight-industry estimates)

Removal firms working this corridor typically route by road-and-Channel-crossing rather than sea:

• Road + Eurotunnel (Calais–Folkestone): the tunnel crossing itself is about 35 minutes, runs 24/7, and is the fastest link — vans and removal trucks travel on the standard LeShuttle service rather than a separate freight-only product for most household-size loads (LeShuttle Freight). Door-to-door for a typical France–UK move (e.g. Paris/Lyon area to London/South-East England) is commonly quoted in the removals industry as roughly 3–7 working days, longer for northern Scotland or remote UK addresses — these are freight-industry planning estimates, not a guaranteed transit time, and depend on your specific pickup/delivery regions, consolidation with other loads, and the season.
• Road + ferry (Calais–Dover or Dunkirk–Dover): a common alternative, similarly quoted at a few days door-to-door for household consignments, again as an industry estimate rather than a fixed rule.
• Regardless of route, your mover needs your ToR1 reference and an accurate goods inventory before departure, and — if you are self-moving in a van rather than using a commercial mover — you must complete the relevant customs/border paperwork yourself at the terminal.

4. Arriving in the UK: immigration, registration, healthcare, driving

Immigration comes first. Unless you already held status under the EU Settlement Scheme before the 31 December 2020 deadline, there is no automatic right for a French citizen to move to the UK. You need permission under the UK’s points-based immigration system — most commonly a Skilled Worker visa (sponsored job offer, minimum salary threshold, English-language requirement) or a family/other Immigration Rules route (gov.uk: the UK’s points-based immigration system — information for EU citizens). Sort this before planning your move date — it is the step that actually gates everything else, unlike an EU-to-EU move where the "registration" step happens after arrival.

National Insurance number. Once you’re in the UK with the right to work, apply online for a National Insurance number (needed for payroll and tax) — you can start working before it arrives if you can otherwise prove your right to work; it can take up to four weeks to arrive (gov.uk: apply for a National Insurance number).

Healthcare (NHS). Registering with a GP is free and does not require proof of address, ID or an NHS number, though practices may ask for supporting documents to confirm your catchment area (NHS: register with a GP surgery). Whether NHS care is free at the point of use depends on your immigration status: most visa routes of six months or more require paying the Immigration Health Surcharge as part of the visa application, which then gives NHS access for your stay; only those with indefinite leave to remain are automatically "ordinarily resident" without the surcharge (NHS: moving to England from EU/EEA countries).

Driving licence. French (EU) licences are valid to drive in Great Britain, but once you’re resident you should exchange it for a UK photocard licence within 12 months, without a test, using DVLA form D1 or the online exchange service — DVLA returns your original EU licence once processed (gov.uk: exchange a non-GB driving licence).

Vehicle re-registration. If you bring your car, notify HMRC via the NOVA (Notification of Vehicle Arrivals) service within 14 days of arrival — you cannot register the vehicle with the DVLA until HMRC has processed your NOVA notification. VAT is only chargeable if the vehicle counts as "new" (6 months old or under, or under 6,000 km); otherwise ToR relief covers it if claimed correctly (gov.uk: importing vehicles into the UK — telling HMRC).

5. Pets

Dogs, cats and ferrets travelling from France do not automatically need a separate Animal Health Certificate: a valid EU pet passport is accepted for entry into Great Britain, provided the standard conditions are met. Practically:

1. Your pet must be microchipped before its rabies vaccination (or chipped and vaccinated on the same visit, chip first).
2. Rabies vaccination must have been given at least 21 days before travel (the first vaccination, not a booster).
3. Dogs need a tapeworm treatment, recorded by a vet, given no less than 24 hours and no more than 5 days before arrival in Great Britain.
4. Travel must be via an approved route with an authorised carrier or transport company; non-commercial pet movement also needs the relevant declaration completed with your travel operator.
5. If your pet doesn’t have a valid pet passport, an Animal Health Certificate issued by an official vet shortly before travel can be used instead.

Rules and timing windows are reviewed periodically, so check the current gov.uk guidance before you travel (gov.uk: bring your pet dog, cat or ferret to Great Britain).

6. Money, banking, and things people forget

• UK bank account: opening one typically needs proof of UK address, which can be circular when you’ve just arrived — many movers use a temporary address (employer, short-let, or family) to bridge this, or a UK-facing account from a provider that accepts pre-arrival applications.
• Council Tax and utilities: register at your new UK address promptly; unlike France’s system, the UK has no single national residence register, so each authority (council, GP, bank, DVLA, HMRC) has to be told separately.
• French exit paperwork keeps mattering after you leave: French pension rights, any remaining French-source income, and your CPAM closure all continue to interact with your French tax file via SIPNR — keep documentation of your UK arrival date and address.
• School enrolment, if you have children, and UK right-to-rent checks for landlords are both tied to your immigration status document, so keep your visa/BRP details accessible from day one.

How Flyto handles your France to UK move

Flyto operates its own offices, warehouses and crews across Northern, Central and Southern Europe, giving us direct control over collection, consolidation and Channel-crossing logistics on the France side of your move. For the UK leg — customs declarations under your ToR1 reference, final-mile delivery and any UK-side storage — we work with a carefully vetted network of partner carriers and customs agents, so you get consistent service and a single point of contact even where the work crosses into a partner’s hands.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to pay customs duty on my furniture and belongings moving from France to the UK?
Not if you qualify for and correctly apply for Transfer of Residence (ToR) relief before your goods ship — it removes duty and VAT on personal belongings for genuine home movers, though alcohol and tobacco are excluded (gov.uk: ToR1 relief).

Can I just move to the UK the way I could move to another EU country?
No. Free movement between the EU and UK ended on 31 December 2020. Unless you hold EU Settlement Scheme status from before that date, you need a UK visa — most commonly a sponsored Skilled Worker visa or a family/other Immigration Rules route (gov.uk: points-based system for EU citizens).

What happens to my French health cover when I leave?
Notifying your CPAM that you’re leaving France closes your French health-insurance entitlement; your UK healthcare access then depends on your visa status and, usually, having paid the Immigration Health Surcharge (cleiss.fr guidance on moving to the UK; NHS eligibility guidance).

Can I keep driving on my French licence in the UK, or do I need to exchange it?
You can drive in Great Britain on a valid EU licence, but once resident you should exchange it for a UK one within 12 months — no test required — via DVLA form D1 or the online service (gov.uk: exchange a non-GB licence).

Can I bring my dog or cat with its EU pet passport?
Yes — a valid EU pet passport is accepted for your pet’s entry into Great Britain from France, as long as it’s microchipped, has an in-date rabies vaccination (at least 21 days old), and, for dogs, a vet-recorded tapeworm treatment shortly before arrival. An Animal Health Certificate is only needed if your pet doesn’t have a valid pet passport (gov.uk: bring your pet dog, cat or ferret to Great Britain).

How long does it take for household goods to get from France to the UK?
Freight-industry estimates for a typical door-to-door France–UK removal via the Eurotunnel or Dover ferry route are roughly 3–7 working days, depending on pickup/delivery locations and consolidation — always confirm the specific timeline with your mover, as this is not a guaranteed transit time.

Sources

• gov.uk — Transfer of residence to Great Britain
• gov.uk — Application for transfer of residence relief (ToR1)
• gov.uk — The UK’s points-based immigration system: information for EU citizens
• gov.uk — Apply for a National Insurance number
• gov.uk — Exchange a non-GB driving licence
• gov.uk — Importing vehicles into the UK: telling HMRC (NOVA)
• gov.uk — Bring your pet dog, cat or ferret to Great Britain
• NHS — Moving to England from EU countries or Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland
• NHS — Register with a GP surgery
• impots.gouv.fr — Je pars à l’étranger ou j’arrive en France
• impots.gouv.fr — Suis-je bien non-résident ?
• cleiss.fr — Vous partez travailler et résider au Royaume-Uni avec votre famille
• service-public.fr / ANTS — Changement d’adresse sur la carte grise