Moving from Taiwan to France (2026): Relocation Guide
Key takeaways
- France lets you bring used household goods in free of customs duty and VAT under the franchise de déménagement (transfer-of-residence relief) if you lived outside the EU for at least 12 months, owned and used the goods for at least 6 months, and import them within 12 months of moving.
- The claim is made with the French customs declaration (Cerfa n°10070) and a full valued inventory, lodged with the Douane.
- Taiwan is an EU-listed third country, so a dog or cat entering France needs only a microchip, a valid rabies vaccination and an EU animal health certificate — no rabies titre blood test. You also need a BAPHIQ/APHIA export health certificate to leave Taiwan.
- Sea freight from Kaohsiung or Keelung to Le Havre runs roughly 32–38 days port-to-port; plan 6–10 weeks door to door. Air freight covers urgent items in 3–7 working days.
- Taiwanese nationals are third-country citizens: you need a long-stay visa (often a VLS-TS) which you must validate online within 3 months of arrival.
- Taiwan and France have a driving-licence exchange arrangement, so a Taiwan licence can generally be exchanged for a French one without a test within the first year — confirm the current list before you rely on it.
1. Leaving Taiwan: what to close out
A clean Taiwan exit underpins the French franchise de déménagement, because the Douane wants proof you lived outside the EU for 12 months and are transferring your main residence to France.
Residence and immigration (NIA). If you hold an ARC or APRC from the National Immigration Agency (NIA), decide whether to surrender it or preserve permanent residence with a re-entry endorsement — an APRC can lapse after a long absence. Taiwanese citizens should check their household registration (戶籍) status, which affects tax residency and National Health Insurance.
Labour and pension. Confirm your final labour-insurance and labour-pension position with your employer and the Bureau of Labor Insurance. Foreign workers permanently leaving Taiwan can, in defined cases, claim a lump-sum settlement of the employer-funded labour pension; ask HR. Settle any income tax with the National Taxation Bureau and keep the tax-clearance papers, which help evidence your dates abroad.
Household goods export (Taiwan Customs). Outbound personal effects are handled by the Customs Administration, Ministry of Finance. Prepare a detailed, valued English packing inventory and keep receipts or photos proving items are used and owned. Untreated wood packing must be ISPM-15 heat-treated or fumigated and stamped, or the shipment risks being held on arrival in France.
Pet export (APHIA/BAPHIQ). Taiwan’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency (APHIA, formerly BAPHIQ) issues the government export veterinary certificate. Book an inspection at an APHIA branch or airport quarantine station within 7 days of departure, bringing the animal, the microchip record and the rabies certificate (dated more than 30 days but less than 1 year before travel).
Booking the ship. Kaohsiung serves southern and central Taiwan; Keelung serves the north. Both run frequent Asia–North-Europe services calling at Le Havre, France’s main container gateway.
2. How your household goods ship to France
Most Taiwan-to-France household moves travel by sea in a container: a 20-foot box for a small home, a 40-foot box for a larger family home, and shared LCL (less-than-container-load) consolidation for smaller volumes, charged per cubic metre.
Sea transit, qualitatively. Vessels leave Kaohsiung or Keelung, call at Asian hubs such as Shanghai, Yantian, Singapore or Tanjung Pelepas, transit the Suez Canal (or route around the Cape of Good Hope depending on Red Sea conditions), and berth at Le Havre or Fos-sur-Mer (Marseille). Kaohsiung-to-Le Havre port-to-port transit is broadly 32–38 days; with export packing, port cutoffs, French customs clearance and delivery, a realistic door-to-door window is 6–10 weeks. Keep your plans flexible and do not commit to a fixed early delivery date.
Air freight. For an urgent core shipment — clothing, kitchen basics, a child’s essentials — air freight from Taoyuan (TPE) to Paris Charles de Gaulle clears in about 3–7 working days once flown, at several times the per-kilo cost of sea. Fly only what you cannot live without for two months.
What not to ship. Keep fresh food, plants and seeds, weapons and other restricted goods out of the container. Alcohol and tobacco are not covered by the franchise de déménagement and attract duty.
3. France customs & transfer-of-residence relief
Because Taiwan is outside the EU, your shipment is a formal import — but the franchise de déménagement removes customs duty and import VAT when you qualify. It is grounded in EU Council Regulation 1186/2009 and applied by the French Douane.
The conditions. You must have had your normal residence in a third country (outside the EU) for at least 12 continuous months; the personal property must have been used privately for at least 6 months before the move; and you must import it, in principle, within 12 months of transferring your residence to France. The goods must have borne the usual taxes in the country of origin, and you may not sell, lend, pledge or otherwise dispose of the relieved goods for 12 months after entry.
The paperwork. You submit a declaration of entry of personal property in free admission — the French form Cerfa n°10070 — together with a detailed, valued inventory (dated and signed), your passport, proof of your 12 months abroad and proof of your new French address. A second (mirror) inventory is used if goods arrive in more than one consignment. The declaration and inventory are presented to the Douane, and it is wise to check the current requirements on the douane.gouv.fr transfer-of-residence page before shipping.
Vehicles. A car owned and used abroad for at least 6 months can qualify for the franchise, but re-registering a Taiwan-market car in France (conformity certificate, quitus fiscal, contrôle technique) is usually costly and slow; most movers sell the car in Taiwan.
4. Arriving: registration, residence, driving, healthcare
Residence and visa (VLS-TS). Taiwanese passport holders are third-country nationals. Taiwan passport holders can enter the Schengen area visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180 for short stays, but to live in France you need a long-stay visa applied for at the French office in Taipei before travel. The most common is the VLS-TS (visa de long séjour valant titre de séjour), which acts as a residence permit — but you must validate it online via the ANEF/OFII portal and pay the fee within 3 months of arrival, or it becomes invalid. EU/EEA citizens moving from Taiwan need no visa and simply settle.
Local registration. France has no single Anmeldung, but you will quickly need to establish yourself: a French bank account, a home insurance policy (assurance habitation, effectively compulsory for renters), and enrolment in the health system. Keep proof of address (lease, utility bill) for every step.
Driving licence. A non-EU licence is valid for up to one year after you become resident. France and Taiwan have a reciprocal exchange arrangement, so a Taiwan licence can generally be exchanged (échange de permis) for a French one without a driving test — but you must apply within the first year via the ANTS portal, and reciprocity lists change, so confirm your case on service-public.fr before relying on it. If exchange is unavailable, you must pass the French test.
Healthcare. After three months of stable, regular residence you can join the French public health system (Assurance Maladie) under PUMa and obtain a carte Vitale; many new arrivals hold private cover for the initial period. Register with a médecin traitant (GP) to optimise reimbursement.
5. Pets
Moving a pet from Taiwan to France is straightforward because Taiwan is an EU-listed third country. A dog or cat entering France needs only three things: an ISO-standard microchip, a valid rabies vaccination given after the chip, and an EU animal health certificate issued by an official veterinarian. There is no rabies antibody (titre) blood test and no long waiting period — the requirement that burdens pets from “unlisted” countries simply does not apply.
The rabies vaccine must be given from 12 weeks of age, and at least 21 days must pass after the primary vaccination before travel. On the Taiwan side, APHIA/BAPHIQ issues the export veterinary certificate (book within 7 days of departure). Pets must enter the EU through a designated traveller entry point, and up to five animals may travel under the non-commercial pet rules. Carry the microchip number, vaccination record and both certificates in hand luggage — never in the sea container.
6. Money, banking & tax basics
Banking. A French bank account (compte courant) with a French IBAN and a RIB is needed for rent, salary, utilities and health reimbursements. Traditional banks may ask for a residence permit and proof of address; app-based banks are often quicker for new arrivals.
Tax residence. Once your main home (foyer) or centre of economic interests is in France, you become French tax-resident and are taxed on worldwide income, with tax collected largely at source (prélèvement à la source). There is no comprehensive France–Taiwan double-taxation treaty of the standard bilateral kind, so plan carefully around any Taiwan-source income, pensions or investments and take advice to avoid double taxation. Keep your Taiwan tax-clearance records.
Cost and currency. Move funds through a regulated FX provider rather than a bureau de change, keep a buffer for the rental deposit (usually one month’s rent unfurnished), first month’s rent, agency fees and insurance, and avoid transferring large sums before your French account is open.
How Flyto handles your Taiwan to France move
Flyto Relocation runs the corridor as one managed project instead of a chain of separate bookings. We coordinate export packing and the APHIA-side pet documentation in Taiwan, book sea or air freight from Kaohsiung, Keelung or Taoyuan, and — because we operate our own hubs across Northern, Central and Southern Europe — handle French customs clearance, the Cerfa n°10070 franchise filing and final delivery under one chain of custody. Your advisor prepares the transfer-of-residence paperwork, checks your pet’s microchip, vaccination and EU-certificate timeline against the listed-country rules, and remains your single point of contact across time zones. Get a quote and we will turn your dates, volume and budget into a clear plan.
Frequently asked questions
Does my dog or cat need a rabies titre test to enter France from Taiwan?
No. Taiwan is an EU-listed third country, so a dog or cat needs only a microchip, a valid rabies vaccination and an EU animal health certificate — no titre test. See European Commission — Bringing a pet into the EU.
What is the franchise de déménagement?
It is France’s transfer-of-residence relief that lets you import used personal property free of duty and VAT, claimed with Cerfa n°10070 and an inventory. See French Customs (Douane) — Transferring your main residence to France.
What are the eligibility conditions?
You must have lived outside the EU for at least 12 months, have used the goods for at least 6 months, and import within 12 months of the move. See French Customs (Douane) — Transfer of residence.
How does my long-stay visa work after arrival?
A VLS-TS must be validated online and the fee paid within 3 months of arrival, or it becomes invalid. See Service-Public — Validating a long-stay visa.
Can I exchange my Taiwan driving licence in France?
Generally yes within the first year, as France and Taiwan have a reciprocal exchange arrangement — confirm your case before relying on it. See Service-Public — Exchange of a non-EU driving licence.
How long does the shipment take?
Sea freight from Kaohsiung to Le Havre is roughly 32–38 days port-to-port; allow 6–10 weeks door to door. Air freight clears in about 3–7 working days. See Customs Administration, Taiwan.
Related moves
Sources
- French Customs (Douane) — Transferring your main residence to France (franchise de déménagement)
- European Commission (DG SANTE) — Bringing a pet into the EU from a non-EU country
- Service-Public — Validating a long-stay visa (VLS-TS)
- Service-Public — Exchange of a non-EU driving licence
- APHIA (Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency), Taiwan — Quarantine for dogs & cats export
- Customs Administration, Ministry of Finance, Taiwan — Travellers and cargo clearance
- National Immigration Agency, Taiwan — Residence (ARC/APRC)
- Assurance Maladie (Ameli) — Joining the French health system (PUMa)
Hiring an international mover? See our full International removals to Taiwan service — Flyto’s own European hubs, vetted local partners and one English-speaking coordinator, door to door.