Residents » Overview » Considering The City

Paris has much to offer. Some would say that no other city offers more. Rightfully famous for food, music, art, cafe life, fashion and film, Paris offers its residents (especially those with a bit of money) endless opportunities. There is music on the street, the cafes are full, the Seine is lovely at sunset, people picnic on the Pont des Arts. You can walk nearly everywhere and the city is reasonably safe. Compared to New York or London, Paris is a bargain. However Paris, as with all cities, has its problems. The city can feel impenetrable to the foreigner and Parisians themselves can be cold and unwelcoming. Strikes and bureaucracy are national pastimes. If you’re not French, finding real employment here is very difficult. Sadly, if you’re not white, it can become even more so. Paris is an old city in an old country and the French, generally speaking, like things the way they are. Change, if it happens at all, happens slowly in France. Ideally you’ll be hired before you arrive and your new employer will take care of all aspects of your relocation, including housing and visas. If you’re not an EU citizen you simply won’t find (legal) work otherwise. With an EU passport you can legally work in France, but you’ll need to either be very talented or speak French well enough to survive inside a French company. If you do manage to be hired to work in Paris, you’ll see that the social charges which are taken from your salary are enormous.