Jobs in France

There are many places to find work in France, including away from the cities. Living in the rural areas of France and working in a small town or in the countryside can be a sublime experience for expats. France is a large and diverse country, so do your research carefully when determining what kind of environment you want to work and live in.

Paris is the obvious place to start when seeking jobs in France. The City of Love is an ideal place to find work in France, however long your stay and whatever your area of employment. Today Paris is one of the most globally connected cities on the planet and one of the most influential in terms of film, fashion, literature, and artistic excellence.

Marseilles, Lyon, and Toulouse, are other popular cities for jobs abroad in France that offer expats a more authentically French experience for working abroad in France, as they are not so iconically global. Lyon is known as the Capital of Lights because of the annual Fête des Lumières festival, Marseilles is France’s largest commercial port city sitting pristinely on the Mediterranean coast, and Toulouse is one of the primary French hubs of education.

The types of jobs in France available to foreign workers depend primarily on whether you plan to live in France temporarily or you plan on settling in and pursuing a full time career. For example, there are many opportunities to work in France as a teacher, au pair, or on a vineyard, but these openings tend to be temporary and rarely last more than one year.

Business. With major cities that have a global influence such as Paris, business jobs in France are great opportunities to get to experience the French culture and also gain credible work experience. You may also have the experience while working in France to gain work experience in French.

Hospitality. Working in France bring many opportunities in the field of hospitality, from restaurants to hotels, you can pretend you’re a local Frenchman while helping serve the tourist, and local, community.

Culinary Arts and Cooking. If you are a food lover by day and cuisinier by night, France may be the perfect place for you to stir the pot and add a sprinkle of international flare to your cooking. You will be able to learn and grow personally and professionally, and also enjoy the food!

France has one of the highest performing economies in the world and as such is a fairly expensive place to live and work abroad. General costs of living in big cities, such as Paris, will be significantly higher than in the countryside, so keep this in mind when determining where to pursue job opportunities in France. Foreign workers are often compensated via other means if working in France is only temporarily. This compensation may be room and board, for example. However, full time salaries vary heavily between fields of employment and location.

The type of accommodation you will have available while working in France depends on the type of employment you are seeking. Temporary workers are often offered the opportunity to live with a local host family if they are, say, au pairing or working as an English tutor.

However, most expats in France end up finding themselves their own apartment or flat to live in to provide a more independent lifestyle while working in France. It will be much cheaper to start by renting out a room, then perhaps moving into your own place once you have saved up the money to do so.

If you wish to work in France more permanently, the situation becomes trickier because you will have to go through the process of obtaining a work and residential visa. If you are from the European Union then you are not required to obtain a work visa to pursue jobs in France. International workers from other countries, on the other hand, face a slightly more difficult situation - work visas have to be endorsed and organized by your host employer, so you will need to find work in France before actually moving to the country. Check your Embassy for the most up-to-date visa information.

Finding work abroad in France is an extremely romantic notion to most, but one well worth pursuing if you are willing to commit to learning the language and immersing yourself fully in this wonderful culture. If you are willing to embrace the culture, the language, and the people, you will gain incredible work experience that will help open doors for you future. Working abroad in France will set you apart from your counterparts in job searches in the future—if you ever end up leaving (visa pending, of course)!

French is the language of business across the country and for most jobs abroad in France you will be expected to have at least basic competency in French. There are some temporary jobs in France which do not require you to be fluent in French, but the locals will be much more welcoming if you are able to speak the language. Many French people do speak English, but it is well worth the effort to learn the language so that you can fully experience French culture.

If you are seriously considering working abroad, then there are few places better than France to begin your journey.