In January 2015, a footballer's wife described the day of her husband's transfer on Sud Radio. In the morning, the children had gone to school; by the afternoon, their father had left to join his new club. That was a move between two French cities. With a transfer abroad, the family also faces another language and administrative rules it discovers on arrival.
The calendar explains the rush: FIFA, as a rule, only allows a player to be registered during two periods per season, and many contracts are signed in the final days. This checklist follows the order in which the formalities come up, first before departure, then during the first weeks. Where France is the country being left or the country of arrival, the deadlines quoted come from official websites, consulted in October 2026.
What the club handles in an international transfer, and what falls to the family
The sporting side has its own procedure. In football, the new club's federation can only register the player once it has received the International Transfer Certificate, issued by the federation he is leaving. Basketball works in a similar way, with a Letter of Clearance. This procedure belongs to the club and the federations; the agent negotiates the contract.
For everything else, practice varies from one club to the next. Some employ someone to welcome new signings, while others leave the family to find housing and a school on its own. The question is worth asking before signing: who takes care of what, and for how long.
Before departure: what can be prepared remotely
The files to open as soon as the transfer abroad takes shape
The French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs publishes a general expatriation checklist. For an athlete's family, five files can move forward from the country being left:
- Passports for the whole family: check the expiry dates, as some countries require more than six months of remaining validity.
- The children's records: school reports, enrolment certificates and vaccination records, translated if the host country asks for it.
- The move: a detailed inventory and a collection date, even a provisional one. The inventory will also be needed at customs.
- The home being left: notice on the lease, energy and insurance contracts, mail forwarding.
- Health cover: ask your health insurer and supplementary insurer what they will still cover once the family has settled elsewhere.
Residence permits for the player and his family
An EU citizen who signs in another EU country can settle there without a visa. After the first three months, the host country may ask him to register with the local authorities. An identity document and proof of employment are enough, according to the Your Europe portal.
Outside the EU, the club usually files the player's work permit application. The visas for the spouse and children are separate files, each with its own documents. It is best to submit them at the same time as his, so that the family can travel together.
In France, a family member's long-stay visa equivalent to a residence permit (VLS-TS) is validated online, for a fee, within three months of arrival.
Tax formalities when leaving France
A player leaving France reports his new address to his last tax office. The following year, he declares the income for the year of departure, following the tax authority's instructions. His bank will tell him whether certain accounts or products need to be closed.
Housing and daily life: the first month on site
Temporary accommodation, then the long-term lease
Choosing a home for several seasons in a few days, from another country, rarely works out well. A furnished apartment or a serviced residence, booked for four to six weeks, leaves time for viewings. A rental car or a driver covers the same period, since the family's own vehicle has not yet arrived or been registered.
The search for a permanent home starts from the daily journeys. The time spent each day between home and the training centre, then on the school run, matters more than a neighbourhood's reputation, especially mid-season.
The rental application is put together before the viewings, with the employment contract and the guarantees required locally. The signed lease then provides the proof of address that most other formalities require. In France, for example, the town hall asks for it to enrol a child in school.
Banking and healthcare
The local bank account is opened once proof of address has been obtained. Rent and school fees will be paid from it, and home and car insurance are taken out right after.
In the host country, the player's health cover usually comes with his employment contract. The spouse's and children's entitlements follow local rules and may start later; international health insurance then covers the gap.
The club's medical staff look after the player, but his family needs a GP and a paediatrician near home, chosen before the first fever.
The children's schooling: start as soon as the contract is signed
International and bilingual schools have few places, and arriving mid-year narrows the choice further. The school file therefore comes first, even before the permanent address is known, where the school accepts this.
In France, enrolment in a state primary school is done at the town hall, with proof of identity and proof of address. A child aged six or over arriving from abroad is assessed by specialist teachers. Depending on their level of French, they join a mainstream class or a unit for newly arrived non-French-speaking pupils, alternating with time in their class, as Service-Public explains.
For a French family moving abroad, the network of French schools abroad has 640 schools in around 140 countries, according to the AEFE (September 2026). Their accreditation by the French Ministry of Education ensures continuity with schooling in France, which makes a return or another transfer easier.
Vehicle and removals: the official deadlines in France
The vehicle and the driving licence
The deadlines below run from the date of settling in France:
- Registration: anyone who establishes their main residence in France must register their vehicle there within one month, whatever their nationality.
- European licence: a licence issued in the European Union or the European Economic Area remains valid in France until it expires. Exchanging it is optional, except in a few cases such as an offence leading to a loss of points.
- Non-European licence: it is recognised for one year from the date normal residence is acquired. The licence exchange is requested online within that period, for a €40 stamp duty since 1 May 2026, provided the issuing country has a reciprocity agreement with France. Otherwise, the French driving test must be taken.
In the other direction, a vehicle taken abroad must be registered in the host country. The European Union has no common rule on this point: each state sets its own deadline and taxes.
Personal belongings and customs
A move to France from a country outside the European Union can enter free of duties and taxes. French customs sets the following conditions in particular:
- having lived outside the EU for at least twelve months;
- importing goods that have been in private use for at least six months;
- bringing them in within twelve months of the change of residence;
- not selling, renting out or lending them for twelve months after their entry;
- the goods must already have borne the duties and taxes of the country of origin.
Customs requires a detailed, dated and signed inventory, in two copies, together with Cerfa form 10070. Each non-EU country applies its own rules on entry, which international removal companies know well.
Mistakes that delay settling in abroad
A checklist does not protect against four mistakes of method:
- Dealing with tax after the fact. The tax residence of an athlete who changes country mid-year depends on the treaties between states. It should be reviewed with a tax lawyer before signing.
- Signing the long-term lease remotely. A viewing avoids discovering the real journey to the training centre once the lease is signed.
- Forgetting the country being left. The notice period on the home and ongoing contracts keep generating bills, and a car left behind must keep a registration address.
- Leaving the spouse to handle the move alone. The player trains from the day after he arrives. His partner goes from one appointment to the next in a language they do not always speak well, and help with translation or paperwork makes those first weeks lighter.
The deadlines quoted in this article apply in France. The consulate and the official websites of the host country give the timelines that apply elsewhere.
Conclusion
For the family, a transfer abroad is prepared in a precise order. Residence permits and schooling come first; housing follows, along with the formalities that depend on proof of address. In France, official deadlines range from one month for the vehicle to one year for the driving licence, and the shortest fall during the first weeks of competition.
At Art de Vie, we prepare these moves with players and their families, in liaison with the club and the agent. What we take on is described on our concierge page. If an arrival or a departure is in the works, write to our team.
Further reading
Can a minor be transferred to a club abroad?
In principle, no: FIFA regulations only allow the international transfer of a footballer from the age of 18. They allow exceptions, in particular when the parents move to the country for reasons unrelated to football. A player aged 16 to 18 may also be transferred within the European Union or the European Economic Area, subject to conditions.
What happens to a car left in France after the move?
It can stay registered in France if its holder keeps an address there. Without a French address, the registration cannot remain in their name alone. The option is then to entrust the car to a relative living in France and add them online as co-holder, according to Service-Public.
