Moving to France: Cost Factors & Planning

Like Germany, France is part of the EU: there is no customs declaration and no import duty on your household goods when you move. A list of household goods with numbered boxes is still useful – for insurance and for unpacking. Keep your identity card or passport to hand. Anyone moving to France from a non-EU country via Germany should clarify the customs rules separately in advance.

France has no registration office like the German one. However, EU citizens who stay permanently register with the mairie within three months under Art. L. 231-2 CESEDA; you do not need a residence permit (titre de séjour). In Berlin, on the other hand, you deregister. If you bring a car, you register it in France after the move; you can clarify the deadline with the vehicle registration agency ANTS. What else needs doing after moving in is described in our guide to customs and formalities.

France differs from Germany in some aspects of everyday life: banking, tenancy agreements and health insurance follow their own rules. If you want to rent a flat, you will often be asked for a guarantor (garant) and proof of salary. Language also plays a role in dealing with the authorities – many forms are only available in French.

How it works with us: a survey or video call in Berlin, a written fixed-price quote, packing and loading, the journey with breaks in line with EU driving-time rules, and unloading at your new address. For Paris we reckon with around 1,050 km, for Lyon around 1,230 km – by lorry that means two travel days or one day with two drivers. On request, we reassemble the furniture at the destination.

These are the prices you can expect from us:

• 1 room – from €359
• 2 rooms – from €615
• 3 rooms – from €909
• 4 rooms – from €1,344
• House/villa – individual quote
• Long-distance move – from €4.10/km

For a personal quote, arrange a free survey.

• Volume
• Distance (from €4.10/km)
• Floor
• Whether there is a lift
• Parking restriction zone required

Further services: furniture assembly and part load.

You can book these services for your move to France individually or together.

We plan moves from Berlin (Stromstraße 21), within Germany and to other European countries. Details on long routes can be found under Long-distance moves, and places with their own pages in the locations overview.

When moving to large French cities, low-emission zones affect how the lorry is planned. The Ministry of the Environment explains: a ZFE (zone à faibles émissions) is an area in which the most polluting vehicles are restricted. The municipality sets the exact rules. Entry requires the Crit'Air sticker, which is based on emissions, vehicle type, drive and Euro standard.

According to the page (last updated on 13 August 2025), there were 25 ZFE in France, 24 of which have restrictions for lorries. Examples:

• Lorries without a Crit'Air rating are restricted in Lille, Nantes, Rennes, Angers and Annecy, among others.
• The page lists the Crit'Air 4 level for Aix-Marseille, Reims, Rouen, Saint-Étienne and Toulouse.
• It lists the Crit'Air 3 level for Grenoble, Lyon, Montpellier, Nice, Paris and Strasbourg, partly with time restrictions or a transition phase.

The ministry gives no information on vehicles registered abroad; this is clarified by the city concerned or by traffic information services. Because the page reflects the situation in August 2025, we check the current status for your destination city before departure and take tolls (péage) and access into account in the calculation. We only state specific amounts in the quote. General customs questions are answered in the guide to customs and formalities, and the course of the journey in the long-distance moving guide for France.

Parking is also decided by the municipality. The city of Paris describes how it works in its questions and answers on moving:

• The city does not reserve a space. The AOT (permit to use the street) allows you to stand on any free space in the nearby paid parking lane. A parking or stopping ban by order is not possible for moves.
• You apply online via service.paris.fr/demenagement with a "Mon Paris" account, at least 15 days before the move. Moving out and moving in require two separate applications.
• Moving is only allowed between 7 am and 8 pm.
• A furniture lift is only allowed with an AOT.
• Without an AOT you may only stand on the paid parking lane, for a maximum of six hours in the same place; otherwise you face a fine and towing. On market days, lorry parking spaces at the market are refused.

The fees by vehicle type, for a half day and a full day respectively: for vehicles under 3.5 tonnes on the parking lane 17 and 27 euros, elsewhere 25 and 40 euros. For lorries over 3.5 tonnes on the parking lane 35 and 60 euros, elsewhere 50 and 90 euros. The furniture lift costs 10 and 20 euros or 15 and 30 euros.

Destinations such as Lyon or Strasbourg have their own municipal procedures. Details on the districts can be found in the Paris guide, and general tips in the guide to the parking restriction zone.