Secondment or expatriation: what it changes for your French pension

Posted employees and expatriates do not have the same retirement implications. A posted employee continues to contribute to the French pension system, including the French national pension scheme (Assurance retraite) and the supplementary pension schemes (Agirc-Arrco): their French pension is not interrupted. For an expatriate employee, everything depends on the country: in the European Union, the European Economic Area, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, periods of employment count towards their French pension; in a country that has signed a social security agreement with France, they also count; in other countries, they do not.

This page is based on information sheets from service-public.fr, whose verification dates are indicated. It does not cover: the list of countries with which France has a treaty, the duration of postings outside the European Union, the EEA, and Switzerland, the amount of contributions to the French Overseas Social Security Fund (Caisse des Français de l'étranger), the impact of periods spent abroad on retirement age or pension reductions, or detailed tax rules. It also does not cover self-employed workers or civil servants.

Seconded or expatriate: the definition that decides everything

Service-public.fr (information verified on September 1, 2025) distinguishes between two situations.

For the seconded employee, the information sheet specifies that the French employer continues to contribute for him, and that the employee is exempt from social security contributions in the host country.

The seconded employee: French retirement continues

During your secondment, you continue to contribute to the French pension scheme (Assurance retraite) and the Agirc-Arrco supplementary pension scheme, as if you were in France. You are exempt from social security contributions in the host country.

The time limit: 24 months

According to the service-public.fr fact sheet on the effects of secondment and expatriation on retirement, the maximum duration of secondment to a member state of the European Economic Area (EEA), Switzerland, or the United Kingdom is 24 months. This fact sheet does not mention the European Union in this sentence.

The information sheet on secondment (verified on May 22, 2024) specifies "a country in the European Union, the European Economic Area, and Switzerland" and indicates that the duration "should not, in principle, exceed 24 months." The duration applicable to your assignment should be verified with the official source before departure.

Beyond the maximum duration, the document specifies: "an employee is considered an expatriate".

For other countries, the two information sheets on service-public.fr do not provide the same duration guidelines: this page does not publish them and does not decide between them. The expected duration of your mission should be verified with the official source before departure.

The expatriate: the host country decides

For an expatriate, the service-public.fr fact sheet distinguishes three cases.

Three points to clarify regarding the information sheet:

• If several zones are involved, the French pension system only considers one combination: European Union + Switzerland, European Union + EEA, or European Union + United Kingdom. The country not included in this combination pays its share according to its own rules.
• In some countries, a pension is not paid to a person who no longer lives there.
• The list of countries with agreements is not included on the information sheet. It should be consulted before departure.

Countries without a treaty: voluntary insurance

In a country that has not signed a social security agreement with France, voluntary insurance allows periods spent abroad to be taken into account. In this case, contributions to the local social security system must be paid in addition.

For basic retirement benefits: the French Overseas Pension Fund (CFE)

The form lists three conditions. One of them must be met:

• having contributed to the French retirement insurance for 6 months before leaving France, and having ceased to be covered by it for less than 6 months on the date the CFE receives the application; ;
• if you were not born in France, to have been covered by a French compulsory health insurance scheme for at least 5 years, continuously or not; ;
• If you were born in France, you may have been covered by such a scheme, without any time limit.

Membership does not cover periods already spent abroad. Contributions are paid to the French National Retirement Insurance Fund (Assurance retraite). The online application provides a free quote; the page does not specify the contribution amount. Required documents include proof of identity, the last three payslips certified by the employer, and a bank statement (verified on October 9, 2025).

For supplementary retirement

The information sheet mentions Malakoff Humanis International Agirc-Arrco. Membership is either through the employer, if they have a group contract, or individual, unless you are a national of the country where you work. In the first case, the employer can, according to the information sheet, enroll you "with your agreement." You must have contributed to Agirc-Arrco for previous employment, or contribute to the CFE for employment abroad. For individual membership, the information sheet states: "you have 12 months to join." The information sheet does not specify when this period begins. After this period, it states that "the membership date is set at January 1st of the current year"; it also mentions late payment penalties, the details of which are found on the information sheet.

Numerical example (fictitious profile)

Situation. Thomas, an executive, is sent to Germany by his French employer. The assignment begins on March 1, 2027, and is scheduled to last 30 months (based on the hypothetical scenario). He retains his employment contract with the French company.

Issue. Is the 24-month limit, which the factsheet applies in particular to the EEA, respected? Germany is an EEA member state (assumption of the profile).

Strategy. Divide the mission into the period of secondment and what extends beyond it.

Result.

For Thomas, the 24-month secondment runs from March 1, 2027, to March 1, 2029. The last 6 months, representing 20 days of the assignment, exceed the limit: according to the information sheet, he is therefore considered an expatriate. The sheet stipulates that periods worked in an EEA country are taken into account for French retirement as if they had been completed in France. This interpretation applied to Thomas is an illustration and should be confirmed with the source; the information sheet on secondment specifies "in principle," so the duration applicable to an actual assignment is accurate. The resulting pension amount is not calculated here.

This profile is fictitious: the country, start date, and 30-month duration are hypothetical. The calculation is a simple subtraction and division of durations (30 – 24 = 6 months; 6 / 30 = 20). It does not predict your situation.

During retirement: moving abroad

Moving abroad during retirement does not prevent you from receiving your pensions (fact sheet verified on April 26, 2024). Three practical points:

• The change of address must be reported to each pension scheme; ;
• a certificate of life must be sent to the funds within one month of arrival, and then every year: "Failure to produce this document will interrupt the payment of your pension"; ;
• The pension can be paid into a French or foreign account. The information sheet recommends keeping the French account open until payments into the foreign account are operational.

Regarding taxes, your tax residence determines your tax status: if you live outside France, you are taxed only on your French-source income, with some exceptions; if you remain in France, you are taxed on all your income. Only the tax authorities determine tax residence. Posted employees are also subject to specific tax rules (Article 81 A of the French General Tax Code), which are not detailed here.

Measure the impact on your case

Service-public.fr offers a free simulator, "Understanding the impact of periods worked abroad on your French pension" (page verified on August 26, 2025). According to the website, it is intended for "private sector employees, self-employed workers, notary clerks, or notary employees." It asks for your employment status, the type of contract you had abroad, and the geographical area.

What changes depending on your situation

• Your status : seconded or expatriate, and the expected duration of the assignment.
• The host country : European Union, EEA, Switzerland, United Kingdom, treaty country or other.
• Your history in France : it plays on the conditions of access to voluntary insurance.
• Your nationality : it may exclude individual membership in voluntary supplementary retirement.
• Your tax residence.

The rule depends on your situation. No results are guaranteed.