The "Caisse des Français de l’Etranger"
The C.F.E., Caisse des Français de l’Etranger, is an organization of the Social Security system set up specifically by the Legislature to handle coverage for expatriates.
Conditions of Membership
Must be a French citizen or citizen of a country in the European Union, under certain conditions.
must reside outside of France
not (or no longer) entitled to benefit from the mandatory French Social Security regime.
The Various Categories
salaried employee (with a French or non-French company).
non-salaried worker (commercial business, artist, farmer, freelance, etc.)
students: under 28 years of age on the date of enrollment, studies overseas.
retirees: recipients of one or more basic French retirement pensions with a minimum of 20 quarterly contributions.
other categories: persons without an occupation (recipients of welfare, workmen’s compensation, disability allowance, widow(er), divorced, separated from an uninsured person, etc.)
The Beneficiary of the Insured:
The spouse or common-law spouse who:
is completely, wholly and permanently dependant; the common-law spouse must, in addition, live on a permanent basis under the same roof as the insured;
is unemployed;
receives no retirement allowance, pension or other personal income;
is not covered by any mandatory French or other Social Security regime;
The dependent child(ren) of school age up to their 20th birthday (proof of registration required for children over 16 years of age).
National Insurance Contributions
Individual members contribute according to their income or, in the case of unemployment, family resources.
Membership in the C.F.E. does not exempt a person from paying mandatory contributions in the country of residence.
Better access to healthcare for persons living on low incomes: French citizens whose income was below the threshold for joining the Medical Insurance-Maternity of the C.F.E will be entitled to assisted payment of category 3 contributions thanks to the new social modernization law.
Those concerned shall be French citizens:
registered at the French Consulate nearest their place of residence
having an annual income of less than 14,112 euros in 2002.
Reimbursements
Like all Social Security plans, the C.F.E. reimburses medical costs on the basis of French rates. In some countries, like the US and Switzerland where the cost of care is much higher than these reimbursement rates, it is necessary to provide for supplementary protection so the insuree can be reimbursed on the basis of the expenses actually incurred. The C.F.E. has entered into such arrangements with various supplementary insurance providers.
How to Obtain Information ?
Caisse des Français de l’Etranger
Head Office
BP 100
77950 Rubelles
Tel 01 64 71 70 00
Fax 01 60 68 95 74
E-mail courrier@cfe.fr
www.cfe.fr
After Hours
12, Rue de la Boétie
75008 Paris
Tel 01 40 06 05 80
Fax 01 40 06 05 81