Hi Oliver. I really like this sit-down podcast style of video. Been listening to you podcast for many years, but might switch to your youtube channel because of this.
I'm going to listen to the whole thing but I'm struck by what she said about going to Paris as a local and not a tourist. We want for 10 days and stayed in the 17th which is like a little village in and of itself. We had such a great experience and a colored my husband's view of what it could be like to live in another country. We did go to the grocery stores we would walk home with our water and our groceries and go back to our hotel and it felt so natural and possible. The fact that I spoke a little French helped us a lot in terms of cracking the shell of some of the French people. They became so helpful and warm to us which was the opposite of what people were telling us about what could happen to us in the country. When we got home my husband said to me I wish we could take our apartment and put it in Paris😅
All the paperwork except for making a passport is digitalised. For the French citizens everything is smooth and they may never have to go somewhere for administrative stuff for decades. For foreigners it's like in any other country, more paperwork will be required and many foreigners say they never have any particular issue. Most stereotypes and urban legends are usually born from personal anecdotes people try to pass for norms.
France is the most online and easy to use government that I have ever experienced. I disagree about "the paper", everything is online now, and it is very easy to do any task. If you are organized, administrative tasks are easy and quick. Visa paperwork? All online. Visa renewal - simple step by step process and all on line. Exchanging a drivers license? All online. Getting a picture for a document? Local studio -instant transmission digitally. Medical - everything on line. Taxes for property and income? You guessed it, all online. Official translation? All on line. Anyone that can use a computer and Google Drive (or similar) should have no problem here. Maybe because I was a former entrepreneur and business owner in the USA, but France is child's play compared to running a multi-state business in the USA and dealing with multiple local, state, and federal agencies.
You may be right, but there are lots of things that are very much offline. Having a baby was entirely paper and a lot of it. Declaring a birth and naming a baby at the town hall is MILES from being digitalized. When a baby is born, you're given 9 paper birth certificates to give to doctors, pre-schools, town halls, and so on. If you compare France to, say, Sweden where I've done lots of the same things in daily life, France is about 10 years behind. So, yes, some things are quick here, but I think you've made it sounds more online than it really is :)
Thanks for this. I'll be moving to Tours in June 2025. I have heard that it is possible to open a bank account at BNP Parisbas before arriving. I have tried to email the branch in Tours via their "connect" tab, but it doesn't go through. Any advice on this? Thanks.
France is not a socialist country. France is a semi-presidential representative democratic republic, not a pure social democracy, though its policies do have social democratic elements.
The French don't pay much more taxes than the Americans and they pay twice less taxes than the Americans to fund their healthcare system. France isn't a socialist country. There are 10 times more new business incorporations per capita in France than in the US, which number keeps skyrocketing while the number of new business incorporations in the US has been dropping for years. The new companies also survive longer in France than in the US and it's pretty fast to open a business. That's quite bizarre to live in a country and to keep repeating and fueling the dated stereotypes/propaganda.
Hi Oliver. I really like this sit-down podcast style of video. Been listening to you podcast for many years, but might switch to your youtube channel because of this.
I'm going to listen to the whole thing but I'm struck by what she said about going to Paris as a local and not a tourist. We want for 10 days and stayed in the 17th which is like a little village in and of itself. We had such a great experience and a colored my husband's view of what it could be like to live in another country. We did go to the grocery stores we would walk home with our water and our groceries and go back to our hotel and it felt so natural and possible. The fact that I spoke a little French helped us a lot in terms of cracking the shell of some of the French people. They became so helpful and warm to us which was the opposite of what people were telling us about what could happen to us in the country. When we got home my husband said to me I wish we could take our apartment and put it in Paris😅
👍😎
All the paperwork except for making a passport is digitalised. For the French citizens everything is smooth and they may never have to go somewhere for administrative stuff for decades. For foreigners it's like in any other country, more paperwork will be required and many foreigners say they never have any particular issue. Most stereotypes and urban legends are usually born from personal anecdotes people try to pass for norms.
France is the most online and easy to use government that I have ever experienced. I disagree about "the paper", everything is online now, and it is very easy to do any task. If you are organized, administrative tasks are easy and quick. Visa paperwork? All online. Visa renewal - simple step by step process and all on line. Exchanging a drivers license? All online. Getting a picture for a document? Local studio -instant transmission digitally. Medical - everything on line. Taxes for property and income? You guessed it, all online. Official translation? All on line. Anyone that can use a computer and Google Drive (or similar) should have no problem here. Maybe because I was a former entrepreneur and business owner in the USA, but France is child's play compared to running a multi-state business in the USA and dealing with multiple local, state, and federal agencies.
You may be right, but there are lots of things that are very much offline. Having a baby was entirely paper and a lot of it. Declaring a birth and naming a baby at the town hall is MILES from being digitalized. When a baby is born, you're given 9 paper birth certificates to give to doctors, pre-schools, town halls, and so on. If you compare France to, say, Sweden where I've done lots of the same things in daily life, France is about 10 years behind. So, yes, some things are quick here, but I think you've made it sounds more online than it really is :)
Thanks for this. I'll be moving to Tours in June 2025. I have heard that it is possible to open a bank account at BNP Parisbas before arriving. I have tried to email the branch in Tours via their "connect" tab, but it doesn't go through. Any advice on this? Thanks.
France is not a socialist country.
France is a semi-presidential representative democratic republic, not a pure social democracy, though its policies do have social democratic elements.
The French don't pay much more taxes than the Americans and they pay twice less taxes than the Americans to fund their healthcare system. France isn't a socialist country. There are 10 times more new business incorporations per capita in France than in the US, which number keeps skyrocketing while the number of new business incorporations in the US has been dropping for years. The new companies also survive longer in France than in the US and it's pretty fast to open a business. That's quite bizarre to live in a country and to keep repeating and fueling the dated stereotypes/propaganda.
Digitalisation is going to break down and leave a massive mess.
It's been years that all the paperwork in France can be done online. Some people simply don't do things right then blame it on the system.
I don't think Paris is the best place to live. Just way too many problems. Great to visit though.
What problems?
I love Paris, but indeed seems chaotic.