DH and I are in the business-plan-writing stage of starting a business in Aveyron with my father, who lives there. We are hoping to move next Summer (and we will spend 3-4 months in the Winters back in the States).
My Dad's partner just started his own business, too, under a new plan called the auto-entrepreneur. I understand that there is a 35K euro per year in income cap under that plan but that families break up the business into two, one owned by each partner, to get around that.
Anyone have any experience with this new system? It's supposedly very easy to set up. Dad's partner is a UK citizen, as am I, so I hope that it'll be easy for us, too. As DH is American, we thought it best to initially put the business in my name, although DH will be doing the lion's share of the work.
Also, I have some questions that my Dad can't help with (he's been great with researching residency requirements, etc!). I'm an EU citizen, as is Dad. My DH and my kids are American. What's involved in getting the kids made citizens if the business takes off and we live there long-term?
* Homeschooling. We're homeschoolers and I've read some things about that. I wonder about the French part of the assessment that the state does. My kids will be learning French there...we are even thinking of not homeschooling for year or two and sending them to the (very small) village school so that they become proficient. We'd especially consider this if we find difficulties with making friends for the kids as homeschoolers. But, obviously, they will not be able to show their full academic achievement in French for some time. Is there some accomodation for newly-arrived foreigners? Any been-there, done-that tips for homeschoolers?
* Negotiating the national health system. Does France enforce the mandatory vax? Are there exceptions? This is not a deal-breaker for us...I selective vax, but I can see feeling bullied and out of my depth if confronted in a foreign language by a professional who knows the rules better than I do, you know?! What kind of doctor ought we look for? My Dad sees a homepath which sounds like Heaven to me, who has to pay through the nose to see an non-insurance-paid homeopath when my we need it! Will the kids need a pedi there or are there family-practice practitioners? (Dad doesn't ask questions like that!)
* Socialization. This isn't really a France-specific question, I guess. We'll be living in a fairly rural part of Aveyron and I worry about having anyone to make friends with. We don't want to get trapped into the English-speaking expat crowd exclusively....my Dad tells stories all the time of especially English retirees who come down to his area and never learn French but hole up in their little cliques of similar people....that's not for us! But I would love to know that I can find people I have things in common with there. Anyone have experience of the area around Villefranche-de-Rouergue in Aveyron??? We haven't yet been for a visit, but this is the closest bigger village to my Dad, and that's where we are looking at to base the business and live.
I moved internationally a lot as a kid, but our moves and schools and things were always funded by Dad's company. Doing it all by ourselves is new to me (and to Dad, who is kind of mentoring us). There's a lot more to think about this way!
We're going for a visit in September and some of these questions can be answered on the ground there, but I wanted to get a feel for it from someone besides Dad.
Oh, any suggestions for getting us all up to speed with our French? I lived in Belguim as a child and while I'm by no means a French-speaker, I usually know enough to get by. DH and kids speak none, and I worry about becoming a crutch for them (this has happened to my Dad and his partner...Steve will actually call him from work to ask him to translate...it's silly!). We're planning to do things like watch familiar movies but in French and institute a 'French-only in the house' rule by the New Year. Can anyone recommend a good and inexpensive program for the whole family?
Many thanks!
My Dad's partner just started his own business, too, under a new plan called the auto-entrepreneur. I understand that there is a 35K euro per year in income cap under that plan but that families break up the business into two, one owned by each partner, to get around that.
Anyone have any experience with this new system? It's supposedly very easy to set up. Dad's partner is a UK citizen, as am I, so I hope that it'll be easy for us, too. As DH is American, we thought it best to initially put the business in my name, although DH will be doing the lion's share of the work.
Also, I have some questions that my Dad can't help with (he's been great with researching residency requirements, etc!). I'm an EU citizen, as is Dad. My DH and my kids are American. What's involved in getting the kids made citizens if the business takes off and we live there long-term?
* Homeschooling. We're homeschoolers and I've read some things about that. I wonder about the French part of the assessment that the state does. My kids will be learning French there...we are even thinking of not homeschooling for year or two and sending them to the (very small) village school so that they become proficient. We'd especially consider this if we find difficulties with making friends for the kids as homeschoolers. But, obviously, they will not be able to show their full academic achievement in French for some time. Is there some accomodation for newly-arrived foreigners? Any been-there, done-that tips for homeschoolers?
* Negotiating the national health system. Does France enforce the mandatory vax? Are there exceptions? This is not a deal-breaker for us...I selective vax, but I can see feeling bullied and out of my depth if confronted in a foreign language by a professional who knows the rules better than I do, you know?! What kind of doctor ought we look for? My Dad sees a homepath which sounds like Heaven to me, who has to pay through the nose to see an non-insurance-paid homeopath when my we need it! Will the kids need a pedi there or are there family-practice practitioners? (Dad doesn't ask questions like that!)
* Socialization. This isn't really a France-specific question, I guess. We'll be living in a fairly rural part of Aveyron and I worry about having anyone to make friends with. We don't want to get trapped into the English-speaking expat crowd exclusively....my Dad tells stories all the time of especially English retirees who come down to his area and never learn French but hole up in their little cliques of similar people....that's not for us! But I would love to know that I can find people I have things in common with there. Anyone have experience of the area around Villefranche-de-Rouergue in Aveyron??? We haven't yet been for a visit, but this is the closest bigger village to my Dad, and that's where we are looking at to base the business and live.
I moved internationally a lot as a kid, but our moves and schools and things were always funded by Dad's company. Doing it all by ourselves is new to me (and to Dad, who is kind of mentoring us). There's a lot more to think about this way!
We're going for a visit in September and some of these questions can be answered on the ground there, but I wanted to get a feel for it from someone besides Dad.
Oh, any suggestions for getting us all up to speed with our French? I lived in Belguim as a child and while I'm by no means a French-speaker, I usually know enough to get by. DH and kids speak none, and I worry about becoming a crutch for them (this has happened to my Dad and his partner...Steve will actually call him from work to ask him to translate...it's silly!). We're planning to do things like watch familiar movies but in French and institute a 'French-only in the house' rule by the New Year. Can anyone recommend a good and inexpensive program for the whole family?
Many thanks!
