• You come from a member country of the European Union

When you move to France from a country in the European Union, there is no special customs formality to complete.

• You come from a non-EU country

You can benefit from a duty and tax exemption for the import of your personal property, when you have been staying in a third country for at least 12 months and you wish to transfer your main residence to France.
Your personal property used privately for at least 6 months before the transfer of residence is admitted free of charge, and acquired indifferently, all taxes included or excluding taxes.

Please note: your personal belongings must have borne customs and/or tax charges in the country of origin or provenance to benefit from the exemption.

Excluded from the exemption are alcoholic products, tobacco and tobacco products, means of transport of a commercial nature, mixed-use vehicles, transportable dwellings, equipment for professional use other than portable instruments for mechanical or liberal arts, stocks of raw materials and of worked or semi-worked products.

Please note: Embassy staff and international organizations may be subject to different regimes and must approach the French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs.

Special case of the islands of St. Martin and St. Bartholomew:

Sint Maarten is part of the customs territory of the European Union, but remains excluded from the fiscal territory of the EU. Saint Bartholomew has left the Community customs territory since 1 January 2012.
Since neither customs duties, VAT nor dock dues are payable in these islands or on goods imported there, goods dispatched from these islands to another part of the customs territory of the EU are subject to the duties and taxes payable.
Thus, if you previously resided in Saint-Martin or Saint-Barthélemy and you transfer your main residence to metropolitan France, your means of transport acquired on one of these two islands or imported into one of these two islands, will be subject to the duties and taxes in force (depending on their origin) when they are imported into metropolitan France.

Goods intended for the development of a second home are no longer allowed free of customs duties and VAT. You must pay the customs duty, VAT and any additional taxes on the entire move to your second home.

For this purpose, you will have to provide the customs service with the exact list of imported goods and their value (presentation of invoices or estimate by mutual agreement with the service).

The total declared value will be the basis for taxing your move (Customs value). You are also asked to produce the transport and insurance bill for your move. The rates and regulations for your goods and objects are based on the codification (tariff nomenclature) of the goods and the country of origin.

• You must transfer your property to France within 12 months of the date of transfer of your residence.
• The importation of your goods can take place in one or more times. In the latter case, the inventory handed over to the customs service at the time of the first importation must take over all the goods for which exemption is claimed.
• You may not divest yourself (sale or lease, loan, pledge, etc.) of your goods admitted duty-free before a period of 12 months from their date of entry into France.

You must provide customs with the following documents:

• a detailed, estimated, dated and signed inventory (in 2 copies) of the effects and movable objects intended for importation;
• the cerfa 10070 declaration of entry into France free of charge of personal property from third countries, 
• any document proving that:
  • you had your principal residence in a third country;
  • you settle in France (any document that can demonstrate the change of residence, transfer order for French military and civil servants or residence card, immigrant card, etc.).

In return the customs gives you:

• a certified copy of the inventory;
• an 846 A certificate for the registration of your vehicle in a normal series;
• a free movement card drawn up, if applicable, at your request.