SOCIAL SECURITY

Living in Europe | Health insurance | France

The social security system in France

(Please note that information may change depending on the regulations in force when you arrive in France.)

In this section you will find information about:

The French social protection system
Affiliation to the CPAM (Primary Health Insurance Fund)
CPAM Cardholders
Doctors and pharmacies
Additional health insurance
Civil liability
Statutory coverage for work accidents and occupational diseases
Emergency numbers

The French social protection system

The French social protection system allows anyone residing in France on a regular basis to benefit from Social Security to cover health costs. The funding of these services is mainly provided by contributions from all employees and employers declared in France.

Social security reimburses part of the health costs (medical visits, drugs, surgical procedures) and it is advisable to take an additional health insurance, that is to say insurance to pay monthly which will complement and therefore better reimburse expenses related to health costs with different rates, for example for glasses or dental care.

Note that each major affiliate now has their own Social Security number. It is however possible to request to be attached to your spouse's insured number as a Beneficiary.

New: All Students, whatever their age, will be attached to the General Social Security Scheme!

The French social security system is basically a number of statutory schemes:

The compulsory general scheme which covers most employees and certain other categories (students, beneficiaries of certain benefits that have progressively come under the general scheme) ;
Various "special" schemes covering specific categories of non-agricultural workers against all or some risks (usually old-age, with other risks being covered by the general scheme).

For more information, please consult the website of the CLEISS (Centre of European and International Liaisons for Social Security), in particular the webpages dedicated to sickness insurance and accidents-at-work and occupational-diseases branch.

Affiliation to the CPAM (Primary Health Insurance Fund)

To join social security, that is to say to benefit from reimbursements on medical expenses, you must apply to the CPAM (Caisse Primaire d'Assurance Maladie).

The procedures vary depending on your personal and professional situation.

You are a student from the European Union or the European Economic Area and you hold the European Health Insurance Card (CEAM).

This name card makes it easier to pay for the medical care necessary during a temporary stay in France and gives you access to the public health service.

Present it during each visit to a health professional to ensure your care.

To be reimbursed, you must deposit the treatment sheet given by your doctor, your prescription and the copy of your EHIC to the CPAM of your place of residence.

Please note: its period of validity varies depending on the issuing country (ask your social welfare organization in your country of origin or consult the CLEISS website - Periods of validity of the European Health Insurance Card.

You have a visa/residence permit "Passeport Talent Chercheur"

You and your family will be attached to the Primary Health Insurance Fund (CPAM) from the first day of your employment contract.

As "Passeport Talent Chercheur" employee, you must join the Paris CPAM from the start of your activity.

Registration can now be done online by the employer or the Euraxess service center.

You must collect the following documents:

The form "Request for affiliation to the general scheme"
A copy of your passport: page (s) with your identity and validity dates
A copy of your "scientifique-chercheur" or "passeport talent chercheur" residence permit OR of your "scientifique-chercheur" or "passeport talent chercheur" long stay visa in your passport (no OFII sticker required)
A copy of your birth certificate with parentage (no need for legalization or an apostille). Albanian, German, English, Danish, Croatian, Spanish, Finnish, French, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Dutch, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Swedish, Czech, and Turkish are admissible. Otherwise, it will have to be translated, either by a sworn translator, or by the French Embassy or Consulate in the country where the document was issued.
A copy of your Hosting Agreement
Your Bank Identity Statement (RIB) at your current address. If not, add a recent proof of address to your current address.

If you are accompanied by your family

A) For spouse, partner, and children over 18, the same supporting documents must be printed as for the researcher (identity, stay, civil status, supporting documents status and bank statement). The process can also be done online by the Euraxess service center.

The request for social security registration can be made at the same time as your request (as an employed researcher) at the CPAM of Paris, and your partner can benefit from the reimbursement of his/her health costs from the start of your contract.

Your partner must indicate on his/her forms the date of the start of your employment contract.

Please note: the bank details must include the name of your spouse.

B) For children under the age of 18, a request must be made to attach minor children to one or both insured parents (+ ID and birth certificate)

When complete, send it to:

PARIS HEALTH INSURANCE

SRI / Talents

75948 PARIS CEDEX 19

You will receive an information letter as soon as your file is saved. If you have medical expenses while waiting for your vital card, it is also to this address that you will have to send your proof of payment and care form to obtain reimbursement once you have received your social security number.

If you are a citizen of the European Union

You and your family will also be attached to the CPAM under the same conditions.

You will need to obtain the E 104 form from your affiliation body in your country of origin and give it or send it to the CPAM of your place of residence.

You will receive an information letter as soon as your file is saved. If you have medical expenses, it is also at this address that you will have to send your proof of payment and care form to obtain reimbursement once you have received your social security number.

If you have a Residence Permit "Passeport Talent Chercheur"

If you have a Residence Permit Passeport Talent Chercheur, and you are a grant holder or, if you come on your own funds, you and your family can benefit from the health coverage of the Social Security via the Universal Health Protection (PUMa). (see here also).

This is free. However, you must prove that you have been in France for three months before you can submit your application.

Please note: you belong to the CPAM of your place of residence.

If you are a PhD student with a Student residence permit

Doctoral students are subject to the same rules as all students enrolled in the french higher education system.

As soon as you arrive in France, you can join Social Security with your French student card. It is a free via an online procedure.

If you come with your underage children, they may also benefit from Social Security as Beneficiaries of one or both insured parents. It will be necessary to fill in a form "Application to add minor children to one or both parents insurance accounts."

Special cases

Salaried researchers who are nationals of countries not belonging to the European Union but signatories to bilateral social security agreements with France, and who benefit from social security at home, may be reimbursed for their health costs in France.

Before your departure, check with your social protection organization to find out if this agreement includes health and accident insurance.

If this is the case, you can obtain reimbursement of your health costs by presenting to the International Relations Service of the Primary Health Insurance Fund (CPAM): a Certificate of affiliation to the health insurance scheme of your country original with proof of your costs.

If you come for a stay of less than 3-4 months as a self-employed person, you will not be able to benefit from health insurance from Social Security.

This concerns students, doctoral students or researchers on a research internship with a scholarship or with equity, spouses with Visitor status.

In this case, we strongly advise you to subscribe to a private health insurance which will cover your current health expenses at least equivalent to the coverage of Social Security.

Before departure, it is sometimes possible to take out insurance in the country of origin with a private company, which will cover you throughout your stay in France.

In this case, take a certificate of support from this company, which will exempt you from purchasing new health insurance in France.

Otherwise, once in France you can always subscribe to a French private insurance offering insurance contracts to people who cannot or who are not required to contribute to a compulsory Social Security scheme.

Study and compare the offers and prices offered by different companies. For example, you can contact AXA insurance via the Fnak website or ACS AMI who have developed packages for researchers.

Access to care

How to get the french health insurance card: "carte vitale"

The "Carte vitale" is your social insurance card. It certifies your affiliation and your rights to health insurance. You will find all the information to order it online.

Doctors and pharmacies

In France, you can choose your doctor freely, but health insurance nevertheless requires you to choose a "treating doctor" by completing this form with him. Its role is to coordinate the various consultations and examinations necessary to monitor your health. This may be a general practitioner (for all health problems) or a specialist (specializing in specific pathologies in one or more parts of the body). It is this doctor that you should consult as a first resort, who can, if necessary, redirect you to a specialist doctor or any other health professional.

Please note: Non-approved doctors who have not signed an agreement with Social Security can set their own rates (which are higher).

In France, drugs can only be bought in pharmacies and pharmacists are able to advise patients on which drugs to take.

In case of an emergency at night, on weekends or during holidays, you can call a doctor on call.

Social security reimbursement is low, but good complementary health insurance can possibly reimburse these costs.

For more information

Additional health insurance

Social Security generally does not reimburse all health costs (around 70% of costs). This is why it is advisable - but not compulsory - to contribute to additional health insurance, which will cover a portion not reimbursed by Social Security.

If you are an employee, your employer must in principle offer you additional company health coverage whatever your seniority.

The rate of your contribution depends on the contract taken out by your employer, who bears part or even all of its cost.

If your employer does not offer you one, there are many, which offer formulas ensuring the more or less complete reimbursement of the costs remaining payable by the insured, as well as certain services, which are poorly or even not reimbursed by the Security. social (vaccines, glasses, dental prostheses, etc.).

If you are not an employee, you must take out additional health insurance yourself.

If you have few resources, you can benefit from Health Insurance Payment Assistance (ACS). The request must be made to the CPAM on which you depend.

Civil liability

The law of civil liability requires you to repair the damage you cause to others, whether through recklessness or infringement. You may also be held liable for damage caused by people, animals and objects for which you are responsible. So that the compensation of victims is not directly at your expense, you must have previously contracted a "civil liability guarantee" with your mutual or your bank for example.

It is important to note that some insurances (automobile, home, etc.) include civil liability guarantees, but which are generally limited. If you have already taken out such insurance, find out what it covers, to see if it is sufficient.

If you are not already covered, you must take out a liability insurance policy. For example, you can contact AXA via the Fnak website.

Double-check the nature and limit of the guarantees offered, to see if they correspond to your needs.

Finally, with regard to professional activity, although there are professional civil responsibilities exclusively reserved for practitioners (doctors, veterinarians, etc.), you will normally be covered by your host establishment, if it is of a public establishment: in France, the State is “its own insurer”. However, ask your host to find out if it is not necessary for you to take out specific insurance (private research).

Statutory coverage for work accidents and occupational diseases

Employed

When the researcher comes to France, most of the time he works in a laboratory. And when the researcher's stay in France results in the signing of an employment contract (the researcher is an employee), he is protected in the event of industrial accidents, without minimum wage conditions. He therefore automatically benefits from “Workplace Accident / Occupational Illness” (ATMP) coverage.

Self-employed

In the absence of an employment contract, for example when the researcher finances his research stay with his personal funds, or if he receives a research grant regardless of his origin (country of origin, French, European, etc.), he must make a voluntary application for the Accident at Work / Occupational Illness insurance (AT/MP) with the Caisse Primaire d'Assurance Maladie (CPAM) of his place of residence.

They must complete a membership form that can be withdrawn from the CPAM or downloaded online. This form must be completed and submitted to the CPAM 48 hours before the start of the mission in the laboratory.

You will be able to join as a volunteer at a higher education institution. The subscription due will be paid per quarter.

Exception: if the self-employed researcher comes from a country that has signed a bilateral social security agreement with France, and depending on the content of this agreement, he may automatically benefit from AT / MP insurance.

To find out if the researcher's country of origin has signed this agreement, click here.

Note: the researcher can also subscribe to a Business Travel Insurance from his country of origin. Indeed, some private insurances cover their policyholders in the event of an accident occurring during their research in France.

Emergency number

The emergency numbers allow you to reach the emergency services 24 hours a day free of charge. Be sure to specify the following 3 points:

- Who am I? victim, witness, etc., give a phone number to stay reachable.

- Where am I? give the precise address of the place where the services must intervene.

- Why am I calling? Specify the reasons for your call.

European emergency number: 112 (emergency centre closest to the call point)

SAMU: 15 (medical emergencies)

Firefighters: 18 (serious emergencies)

Emergency number dedicated to deaf and hard of hearing people: 114

Free European number for missing children: 116000

SAMU social: 115 (emergencies concerning homeless people - 7 days a week from 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.)

Allo abused childhood: 119

Pharmacies on duty: 3237 or http://www.3237.fr/