Moving from Mexico to France (2026): Relocation Guide
Key takeaways
- Leaving Mexico means closing out your INM residency, settling your SAT tax position and using a licensed customs broker (agente aduanal) to export your household goods (menaje de casa).
- France grants duty- and VAT-free import of used belongings through the franchise de déménagement: you must have lived outside the EU for at least 12 months and owned/used the goods for at least 6 months, declared on the CERFA 10070 form with a signed, valued inventory.
- Mexico is an EU-listed third country for pets, so a dog or cat needs only a microchip, valid rabies vaccination and an EU animal health certificate — no rabies titre test. A SENASICA export certificate is needed to leave Mexico.
- Container transit runs roughly 18 days Veracruz to Le Havre; door to door plan for 6–10 weeks. Air freight is the fast option for a small shipment.
- In France, third-country nationals validate their VLS-TS visa within 3 months of arrival, and your Mexican licence is valid for 1 year before you must exchange or re-test.
1. Leaving Mexico: what to close out
Moving to France is a permanent departure, so wind down the Mexican side properly. If you held Mexican residency from the Instituto Nacional de Migración (INM) — Residente Temporal or Residente Permanente — decide whether to surrender the card or let it lapse rather than leaving an open status behind. Mexican citizens keep their nationality but should still settle their affairs.
For tax, the Servicio de Administración Tributaria (SAT) taxes on residence. If you have been filing, submit a final return for your last resident year and notify SAT of your move abroad through the RFC portal. Cancel or transfer utility contracts — CFE electricity, water, internet, phone — and any domiciliación direct debits. Keep a Mexican bank account and card open for a few months so refunds, deposit returns and final bills can settle after you leave.
The shipment — your menaje de casa, or used household effects — must be exported through a licensed Mexican customs broker (agente aduanal); you cannot self-clear a container out of Mexico. The broker prepares the export pedimento from your inventory. Prepare a detailed, dated, valued, bilingual inventory (Spanish and French or English) with serial numbers on electronics: France requires exactly this kind of signed and valued inventory for the import relief, so building it carefully now saves you rework. Time your booking around your French visa timeline, because the customs relief requires proof you are transferring your main residence to France.
Keep prohibited and restricted goods out of the container: no firearms, no bulk cash, no protected wildlife products, no fresh food; flag alcohol, artwork or anything that looks new to your broker in advance.
2. How your household goods ship to France
Most Mexico-to-France moves go by sea, in a shared (LCL) or full (FCL) container. The Gulf/Atlantic ports — Veracruz and Altamira — are the natural gateways for Europe; Manzanillo on the Pacific means transshipment and a longer voyage. From Veracruz to Le Havre, France’s main container port at the mouth of the Seine (and the gateway for Paris), the fastest sea services run around 18 days port to port, with sailings roughly one to two times a week. Le Havre connects to Paris and the rest of France by road and rail, so onward delivery is quick.
Add the practical stages to the headline voyage: collection and export packing in Mexico, export clearance, waiting for a sailing, then at Le Havre discharge, French customs clearance against your CERFA 10070 declaration, and inland delivery. Door to door, plan for around 6 to 10 weeks. For a few urgent items — clothes, documents, a laptop — air freight from Mexico City (MEX) to Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG) takes days, so many people fly a small essential shipment and let the bulk follow by sea.
Insure on an all-risk, replacement-value basis with honest valuations, and photograph high-value items before wrapping. The valuations you set here also feed the French inventory, so keep them realistic and consistent.
3. France customs & transfer-of-residence relief
France lets people transferring their main residence from a non-EU country import their used personal belongings free of customs duty and VAT under the franchise de déménagement (removal relief). To qualify you must have resided outside the EU for at least 12 continuous months, have owned and used the goods for at least six months before the move, be transferring your résidence principale (not a holiday home) to France, and import the goods within 12 months of settling. You commit not to sell or lend the goods for 12 months after entry.
The declaration is made on the CERFA 10070 form (déclaration d’entrée en franchise de biens personnels), supported by a detailed, dated, signed and valued inventory in two copies, proof of residence abroad for at least 12 months (your INM card, Mexican tax records, utility bills or an employer letter), proof of your installation in France (a lease, purchase deed or utility contract), and an identity document. Your goods can arrive in one or several consignments, but if they come in stages, the whole lot must be listed on the single inventory presented to customs at the first entry — so declare everything up front, even what follows later.
Anything outside the relief — new items bought for the move, goods owned under six months, or commercial quantities — is charged the normal import VAT (20%) and any duty; alcohol and tobacco are excluded. A clear, honest, itemised inventory is the single most important document for a smooth clearance at Le Havre.
4. Arriving: registration, residence, driving, healthcare
France has no single town-hall registration for newcomers, but there is one immigration step that dominates the first three months.
Residence and visa. If you hold EU citizenship you have freedom of movement and simply settle in. If you are a Mexican national or another third-country citizen, you need the correct long-stay visa before travel — most commonly the VLS-TS (visa de long séjour valant titre de séjour), which doubles as a residence permit, in the visitor, worker, spouse or student category. Crucially, you must validate the VLS-TS online within three months of arrival on the ANEF platform, using your visa number, entry date and French address, and pay the validation tax (around €200–€300 for most categories; less for students). Miss this deadline and your visa stops working as a residence permit even though the sticker still looks valid — so make it an early priority. Depending on your category you may be invited to an OFII medical visit or an integration appointment.
Tax and social security. Once settled you register with the French tax administration and, if working, receive a French social security number (numéro de sécurité sociale) which gives access to healthcare through the Assurance Maladie (CPAM). Employees are enrolled through their employer; others may apply under residence-based cover (PUMA) after a qualifying period.
Healthcare. France’s system reimburses a large share of medical costs; most residents also take a mutuelle (top-up insurance) to cover the balance. Register with CPAM and choose a médecin traitant (referring GP) to be reimbursed at the best rate.
Banking and utilities. Open a French bank account (needed for rent, salary and the validation tax), set up electricity (EDF or another supplier), water, internet and a French mobile. A French RIB (bank details) is asked for constantly, so arrange the account early.
Driving. Your Mexican licence is valid in France for up to one year from the date you establish residence. Because exchange is only available where a reciprocal agreement exists with the issuing authority, many Mexican-licence holders must pass the French test (code and practical) to keep driving beyond the first year; check whether your specific state’s licence can be exchanged, and if not, start the process early.
5. Pets
Bringing a dog or cat from Mexico to France is easy because Mexico is an EU-listed third country for pet travel. Your pet needs only three things: a microchip (ISO 11784/11785, implanted before the rabies shot), a valid rabies vaccination (animal at least 12 weeks old at vaccination, with at least 21 days elapsed before travel), and an EU animal health certificate signed by an official veterinarian. There is no rabies antibody (titre) blood test — that requirement applies only to unlisted, high-risk countries, and Mexico is not one.
On the Mexican side you must obtain a SENASICA export health certificate (Certificado Zoosanitario para Exportación) to take the animal out of the country: an official vet examines the pet and SENASICA issues the certificate close to departure. Coordinate the SENASICA export step with the EU health certificate through your vet so the dates align, because the EU certificate is valid only for a short window and must be issued in the final days before travel. There is no cap for a genuine private move, though five or more animals can trigger commercial rules unless you are travelling to a competition or event. Fly the pet as accompanied baggage, in-cabin or as manifest cargo in an IATA-approved crate; a direct routing to Paris reduces stress on the animal.
6. Money, banking & tax basics
Open a French bank account as soon as you can — you need a French RIB for rent, salary, utilities and the VLS-TS validation tax. Traditional banks (BNP Paribas, Société Générale, Crédit Agricole) and online banks (BoursoBank, Hello bank!) are both options; some require a residence permit, so an online account or an international bank’s French arm can be a useful bridge in the first weeks. Keep a Mexican account open in parallel to clear remaining peso bills and receive deposit returns.
To move your savings across, use a regulated currency specialist rather than a plain bank wire — the margin on a deposit-sized transfer is significant. Keep records of large transfers; French banks may ask about their origin under anti-money-laundering rules.
On tax, you generally become French tax-resident once your main home or your centre of economic interests is in France; France then taxes your worldwide income, subject to the Mexico–France double taxation treaty, which prevents the same income being taxed twice. France’s tax year is the calendar year, income tax is largely collected at source (prélèvement à la source), and you still file an annual return. If you have Mexican rental income, investments or a business, take advice early to line up the treaty treatment and avoid surprises.
How Flyto handles your Mexico to France move
Flyto Relocation runs door-to-door moves from Mexico into France, joining up both customs regimes so your belongings clear cleanly. On the Mexican end we work with licensed agente aduanal partners for the export pedimento and the menaje de casa inventory; on the French end we prepare your CERFA 10070 franchise de déménagement declaration and the required signed, valued inventory, and clear the container through Le Havre. We handle export packing in Mexico, sea or air freight, insurance, pet logistics under the EU-listed-country rules, and inland delivery and unpacking at your new French address. With our own hubs across Northern, Central and Southern Europe, your shipment stays inside one accountable network from quayside to living room. Send us your dates and inventory and we will build a fixed plan — get a quote and we will map your full timeline.
Frequently asked questions
How do I avoid customs duty and VAT on my used belongings in France?
Claim the franchise de déménagement: at least 12 months’ residence outside the EU, six months’ ownership, transfer of your main residence, declared on CERFA 10070 with a signed, valued inventory in two copies. See Service-Public.fr — Moving to France from outside the EU (F492).
Does my dog need a rabies blood test to enter France from Mexico?
No. Mexico is an EU-listed third country, so a dog or cat needs only a microchip, valid rabies vaccination and an EU animal health certificate — no titre test. See European Commission — bringing a pet from a non-EU country.
How long does the sea shipment take?
Around 18 days port to port Veracruz to Le Havre on the fastest services, but door to door plan for about 6–10 weeks once collection, clearance and delivery are added. See Douane française — Transfer of residence.
What is the VLS-TS validation and when is it due?
Third-country nationals must validate their VLS-TS long-stay visa online (ANEF platform) within three months of arrival and pay the validation tax; otherwise it stops acting as a residence permit. See ANEF — French Ministry of the Interior.
Can I drive on my Mexican licence in France?
Yes, for up to one year from establishing residence; beyond that you must exchange it where a reciprocal agreement exists, or otherwise pass the French test. See Service-Public.fr — Exchange of a non-EU driving licence.
What do I need to export my household goods out of Mexico?
A licensed Mexican customs broker (agente aduanal) to file the export pedimento, plus a detailed valued inventory covering your menaje de casa. See Agencia Nacional de Aduanas de México (ANAM).
Related moves
Sources
- Service-Public.fr — Moving to France from outside the EU: customs (F492)
- Douane française — Transfer of residence formalities
- ANEF (Ministère de l’Intérieur) — VLS-TS visa validation
- Service-Public.fr — Exchange of a non-EU driving licence
- European Commission — Bringing a pet into the EU from a non-EU country
- SENASICA (Mexico) — Animal export certification
- Agencia Nacional de Aduanas de México (ANAM) — Customs
- Instituto Nacional de Migración (INM) — Residency
- Servicio de Administración Tributaria (SAT) — Tax
Hiring an international mover? See our full International removals to Mexico service — Flyto’s own European hubs, vetted local partners and one English-speaking coordinator, door to door.