VerifiedGet matched with vetted international mover We match you with only accredited partner for your route: fewer calls, less stress, and a clearer quote.
France is the single most popular international relocation destination for British movers. The Channel Tunnel makes it the fastest major international route from the UK, and the scale of British property ownership and residency across Normandy, Brittany, the Dordogne, Charente, Provence, the Languedoc and the Côte d'Azur means UK-to-France generates more removal enquiries than any other European route. These are the top 10 removal companies France recognised for international routes, covering UK to France, European corridors and intercontinental moves. The list includes French-based operators with nationwide networks, UK specialists, a Belgian corridor expert and a global company with permanent French offices. Each company holds FIDI FAIM certification; UK-origin companies also hold BAR Overseas accreditation.
International Removals Companies is a free route matching platform operated by Darren Benjamin since 2010 (DATACONTEXT (UK) LTD, company number 07425576). We match each enquiry with one suitable FIDI-certified removal company based on your origin, French destination, timeline and volume. Your details are not passed to all 10 companies. One contact. One quote.
Prices vary by service type, origin and destination in France. These are indicative guides only. The matched FIDI-certified removal company gives the confirmed price before you book. The matching service is free.
Road freight via Channel Tunnel
Part Load: from approx. £750 to £1,400
Dedicated Vehicle: from approx. £1,600 to £3,200
Container-based sea or air freight
Sea Freight: from approx. £2,800 to £5,200
Air Freight: from approx. £4,500 to £8,000
Container-based sea or air freight
Sea Freight: from approx. £3,500 to £6,000
Air Freight: from approx. £6,000 to £10,000
Typically included: Professional packing, origin collection, Channel Tunnel or sea crossing, international transport, French customs clearance, delivery to your French address and goods-in-transit insurance. Remote rural deliveries in France may carry an access supplement. Confirm exact inclusions with your matched removal company before booking.
All prices are indicative planning guides only. The matched FIDI-certified removal company confirms the actual price after surveying your goods, origin and French delivery address.
This list includes French-based removal companies with nationwide French networks, alongside UK specialists, a Belgian corridor operator and global companies with French offices. All hold FIDI FAIM certification; UK-origin companies also hold BAR Overseas accreditation. The list covers the full range of French destinations: Paris, the regions, rural France and the Alps. FIDI FAIM requires more than 200 independent quality checks and an Ernst and Young audit every three years.
PSS International Removals is a UK-based family company with over 40 years of experience and France among its most active routes. FIDI FAIM certified, BAR Overseas accredited, and a member of both Euromovers and Demeco International, PSS has achieved FIDI Top Performer Status. The company provides door-to-door France removals with dedicated French customs documentation support and a named account manager throughout. Its Euromovers and Demeco membership gives it a strong French partner network across all regions.
Suited to: UK families and individuals moving to any French region who want a specialist British-based company with proven French route credentials and dedicated account management.
Founded in 1884, John Mason International is one of the UK's most established FIDI FAIM and BAR Overseas accredited removal companies. France is one of its longest-running European routes, with regular part-load and dedicated services covering all French regions from Paris and Normandy to the Dordogne, Provence and the Côte d'Azur. The company assigns an experienced Move Manager to every France enquiry and has won the National Packer of the Year award on multiple occasions.
Suited to: customers moving to any French destination who want a long-established, award-winning UK company with a consistent track record on the France route.
White and Company is a FIDI FAIM and BAR Overseas accredited UK removal company and founding member of the BAR. France is one of its most active international routes. The company has local French partner agents across all major regions and provides complete packing, customs clearance and post-Brexit Transfer of Residence documentation. Its French partner network gives it access to local knowledge in rural regions where access, parking and property types vary significantly from urban moves.
Suited to: UK households moving to France, particularly to rural properties and regions away from major cities, where local delivery knowledge and partner networks matter.
GB Liners is a FIDI FAIM and BAR Overseas accredited third-generation family company with 11 branches across England and Scotland. Its London branch is its designated France centre of expertise, with decades of direct operational experience on UK-to-France moves. GB Liners handles French customs documentation in-house rather than outsourcing, and its crews operate the France route regularly, meaning they know border procedures, access routes and French delivery logistics from direct experience.
Suited to: UK customers who want a company with direct, hands-on France route experience managed from a dedicated UK France specialist team rather than a generalist booking service.
Cadogan Tate is a FIDI FAIM and BAR Overseas accredited UK company with full operational offices in London, Paris and the Côte d'Azur. Founded in 1977 as fine art movers, it provides complete international household removals alongside its art and antiques specialism. Its Paris and South of France offices give it a unique dual-country operational footprint that no other removal company on this list can match, enabling direct service management on both the UK departure and French arrival sides without relying on agents.
Suited to: clients moving to Paris or the Côte d'Azur, and anyone with art, antiques, sculptures or high-value contents requiring white-glove specialist handling.
Robinsons Relocation has been moving families and businesses since 1895 and is a member of FIDI and OMNI. France is described by the company as its most popular European destination, and it operates regular scheduled European services with vehicles that comply with 2025 EU transport legislation for uninterrupted border crossings. Robinsons also provides specialist services for Alpine destinations including helicopter delivery for properties in Val d'Isère and other high-altitude French ski resort addresses inaccessible by standard lorry.
Suited to: customers moving to all French regions, including French Alpine ski resorts and remote mountain properties where specialist access and helicopter delivery may be required.
Santa Fe Relocation is an Asia-Pacific headquartered FIDI FAIM certified company with strong corporate relocation capabilities across Europe. For France, the company provides complete move management including pre-move surveys, French customs coordination and destination support services. Its teams assist with French visa and titre de séjour process guidance, school-search assistance and settling-in support for corporate transferees and their families relocating to Paris and major French cities.
Suited to: companies relocating employees to France and corporate transferees who need destination support including French administrative guidance alongside the physical removal.
The Seegmuller Group is a French-based FIDI-certified removal and relocation company founded in Strasbourg in 1881 and a FIDI member since 1962. In 1977 it joined forces with Demeco, the number-one moving company in France by volume, giving the group a national French network covering over 8,000 moves and 2,000 relocations per year. Its Alsace origins give it a natural strength on cross-border routes from Germany, Switzerland and the UK through France. Operating under the Harmony Relocation Network, the group provides full household removals, customs clearance and settling-in services across all French regions with its own depots and staff throughout the country.
Suited to: customers moving within France or arriving from Germany, Switzerland, Belgium and neighbouring countries who want the depth of France's largest national removal network behind their move.
Gosselin Group is a Belgium-based FIDI FAIM certified international removal company with one of Europe's strongest cross-border logistics networks. Its France operations cover UK, Belgian, Dutch and German origins with regular consolidated runs and dedicated container services. Gosselin manages intercontinental sea freight arrivals at Le Havre and Marseille for container moves from North America, Asia and Australia, coordinating French customs clearance and onward delivery across all French regions.
Suited to: European-origin moves to France and intercontinental container arrivals at French ports needing established European corridor logistics.
Grospiron International is a French-based FIDI-accredited removal and relocation company founded in 1840 and part of the FG Mobility Group. With offices in Paris, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nice and Toulouse as well as international offices in Dubai and Hong Kong, Grospiron provides inbound and outbound France moves with genuine French operational infrastructure. Its national French office network means it manages French delivery directly rather than through sub-agents at major city and regional destinations.
Suited to: customers moving to France who want the delivery side managed by a deeply rooted French removal company with direct offices in their destination city or region.
Stage 1: Collection from your UK or European address (Day 1)
Stage 2: Road to Folkestone and Channel Tunnel crossing to Calais (35 minutes). Alternatively, Dover to Calais or Newhaven to Dieppe by ferry.
Stage 3: French motorway network south to destination. France has no internal tolls until the motorway system proper; long-distance routes incur péage (toll) costs included in the removal price.
Stage 4: French customs clearance, 1 to 2 days. Delivery to your French address.
All 10 removal companies France cover every French city and region: Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Strasbourg, Nantes, Rennes, Grenoble, Montpellier, Aix-en-Provence, Cannes, Antibes, Cognac, Périgueux, the Dordogne, Charente, Normandy, Brittany, the Loire Valley, Provence and the French Alps including Val d'Isère and Chamonix.
France is generally pet-friendly and well-equipped for dogs and cats. Since the UK left the EU, however, the documentation process changed significantly: EU pet passports no longer cover UK pets entering France. Every trip now requires a fresh Animal Health Certificate.
Quarantine: France does not require quarantine for dogs and cats from the UK, provided all documentation is correct and the AHC is valid on the date of entry.
Category 1 dogs (prohibited from entry into France): Includes pit bull terriers not registered with the Société Centrale Canine (SCC), Boerbulls, Tosas not SCC-registered, and Filas Brasileiros. These breeds are banned from French territory.
Category 2 dogs (restricted in France): Includes American Staffordshire Terrier and Rottweiler not SCC-registered. These dogs require: muzzle and lead in all public places, owner permit from the préfecture, neutering and a brevet d'aptitude (trained dog certificate). If your dog is a Category 2 breed, apply for the permit before travel.
The AHC is valid for only 10 days from issue. Book your Official Veterinarian appointment no earlier than 10 days before your travel date and allow time for APHA endorsement. Pets can travel with you through the Channel Tunnel in your vehicle or by air freight. If travelling by Eurotunnel Le Shuttle, pets remain in the car throughout the 35-minute crossing. Eurostar does not permit pets. For a removal by lorry, your pet travels separately: plan the logistics of both journeys together.
France uses the Euro (EUR). Your removal is quoted in GBP. Any property purchase, rental deposit, savings transfer or ongoing French living costs are in EUR. These are two financially significant and separate decisions.
At typical exchange levels, a 5% movement in the GBP/EUR rate on a €300,000 French property changes the sterling cost by approximately £13,000 to £15,000. French conveyancing runs from the compromis de vente (preliminary contract, with a statutory 10-day cooling-off period under the Loi SRU) to the acte authentique (final deed signed before a notaire). This process typically takes 2 to 4 months, during which the GBP/EUR rate can move materially. The full purchase price is transferred through the notaire's client account at completion.
A currency specialist can lock in today's GBP/EUR rate for the EUR transfer that will be needed at the acte authentique stage, removing rate risk between the compromis signing and the final payment. This is especially valuable for buyers who cannot absorb a rate movement during the conveyancing period.
Currency specialists typically offer materially better exchange rates and significantly lower transfer fees than high street banks for GBP to EUR transfers of property-purchase size. The saving for a €250,000 transfer can run to over a thousand pounds.
To receive EUR in France and to transact with the French notaire, you need a French bank account (compte courant). Most French banks now allow non-residents to open an account before moving to France, which is useful for depositing funds ahead of the acte authentique. You will need your French address, passport and proof of income. Some expat-focused banks (BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole) have English-speaking teams for British customers.
Once resident in France, you are assigned a numéro fiscal (French tax number) by the Direction générale des Finances Publiques (impots.gouv.fr). This is needed for completing French tax returns and for certain property-related transactions.
Regular French costs (loyer/rent, charges/utilities, taxe foncière property tax, taxe d'habitation for second homes, charges de copropriété) are all in EUR. A standing EUR payment facility with a currency specialist typically costs less than repeated international bank transfers.
Right-hand drive UK vehicles are legal to drive in France. French law requires that headlights do not dazzle oncoming drivers. Headlight beam deflectors (self-adhesive stickers applied to the headlight lens) are required and must be fitted before driving on French roads. They are available at UK ferry terminals, Channel Tunnel terminals and French petrol stations.
Paris, Lyon, Grenoble, Strasbourg, Bordeaux, Rouen, Toulouse and other French cities operate Zones à Circulation Restreinte (ZCR) or Zones de Basse Émission (ZBE) low-emission zones. A Crit'Air sticker (vignette) is required to drive in these zones. UK vehicles can apply for a Crit'Air sticker from the French government's official site. The sticker category (1 to 6) is based on the vehicle's Euro emissions standard. If your French home is in one of these cities, confirm your vehicle's Crit'Air category before shipping.
UK vehicles driven regularly in France must be registered in France within one year of establishing French residency. Registration is handled through ANTS (Agence Nationale des Titres Sécurisés), the French online vehicle registration system. You will need: your passport, French residency document, proof of insurance with a French insurer, and the UK V5C logbook. French number plates replace the UK plates and the UK registration document is surrendered to DVLA.
France requires a contrôle technique (French MOT equivalent) for vehicles over four years old. A valid CT is required for registration. If the vehicle does not have EU type approval, an individual approval may be needed before the CT can be carried out.
Most UK cars move to France by road transporter via the Channel Tunnel or ferry alongside or separately from household goods. Transit from the UK to northern France is 1 to 2 days. Household removal companies may handle vehicles directly or refer to a specialist vehicle shipping agent. Always tell us at the enquiry stage if you have a vehicle to ship.
UK storage is needed when your French property purchase is delayed between the compromis and acte authentique stages, or when your UK property sale completes before the French purchase. Options include:
Indicative UK container storage cost: from approximately £80 to £150 per container equivalent per month. Confirm with your matched removal company.
French storage (garde-meubles) is needed when the French property is not yet ready for delivery, when renovation work is underway, or when the customs clearance process extends beyond the standard timeline. Options include:
Indicative French garde-meubles cost beyond free period: approximately €15 to €28 per cubic metre per month. Confirm with your matched removal company.
Storage charges are separate from the removal price. Confirm inclusions, free storage period and additional costs with your matched removal company before booking.
International removal companies typically offer two levels of goods-in-transit insurance:
1. Limited liability: Cover based on the weight of your goods (typically £40 to £60 per kilogram). For a 2-bedroom household at around 2,000 kg this gives approximately £80,000 to £120,000 of cover, which is typically below the replacement value of most households. This is the default level if you do not specify otherwise.
2. All-risks cover (full replacement value): Cover based on the declared replacement value of your goods. If a £2,000 item is damaged, it is replaced at £2,000. All-risks is the recommended level for international moves to France where goods pass through customs, multiple handling points and long road transit.
You declare the replacement value of your goods at the outset. Under-declaring saves on premium but leads to under-payment on any claim. A room-by-room inventory with replacement values for major items is required. International removal insurance typically costs 2% to 4% of the declared replacement value.
Since Brexit, goods leaving the UK for France are exports to the EU and require French customs clearance on arrival. The franchise douanière de transfert de résidence (transfer of residence exemption) can remove 20% TVA and import duty on household goods owned and used for at least 6 months, provided qualifying conditions are met. Your FIDI-certified removal company France confirms what applies for your specific origin and route.
Conditions to qualify for the franchise:
Restricted and prohibited items:
International Removals Companies was founded by Darren Benjamin in 2010. Company number 07425576, registered in England and Wales. Only removal companies meeting all three criteria below are included. Accreditations are verified independently on a rolling basis.
British Association of Removers Overseas membership. Independent quality checks, Furniture Ombudsman dispute resolution and adherence to published industry service standards. Mandatory for all UK-origin international moves in the network.
The international quality standard for removal companies. More than 200 independent quality checks. Audited every three years by Ernst and Young for operational excellence, financial stability and customer service. Only a small percentage of global removal companies hold this standard.
Demonstrated France route operations. Expertise in French customs procedures (franchise douanière, cerfa forms, la douane clearance), delivery logistics across all French regions including rural and Alpine access, and French-speaking agent support at the delivery end.
Valid UK passport, French long-stay visa (visa de long séjour) or titre de séjour, proof of prior UK residence for 12 or more months, the franchise douanière declaration form (cerfa 10070), and a detailed numbered inventory. Your matched removal company France confirms the full list for your specific route before you book.
UK to Paris and northern France by dedicated vehicle: 1 to 2 days. Bordeaux, Loire, Brittany: 1 to 3 days. Provence and the Côte d'Azur: 2 to 4 days. French Alps: 2 to 4 days. Part load (groupage): 5 to 10 days. France is the fastest major international destination from the UK due to the Channel Tunnel. North America: 21 to 35 days sea freight. Asia and Australia: 28 to 42 days. Air freight: 4 to 8 days.
Prohibited: firearms without permits, protected wildlife (CITES), counterfeit goods, plants or food without phytosanitary certificates. Restricted: all alcohol must be declared (no duty-free allowance for UK to France moves since Brexit), prescription pharmaceuticals, cultural artefacts, and cash over €10,000. All FIDI-certified removal companies France provide item-specific guidelines before your move.
Since Brexit, UK to France moves require customs clearance. Used personal household goods can enter France duty-free and TVA-free under the franchise douanière de transfert de résidence if: goods were owned and used for 6 or more months, you permanently transfer your primary residence to France, and you hold a valid French residency document before goods arrive. New items or commercial goods may be subject to 20% TVA and import duty. Your matched removal company confirms what applies.
Yes. The car must be owned for at least 6 months and be for personal use. Right-hand drive is legal in France; fit headlight beam deflectors before driving. A Crit'Air sticker is required for driving in Paris, Lyon, Grenoble, Strasbourg and other cities with low-emission zones. Register the vehicle in France via ANTS within 12 months of establishing residency. SORN the vehicle in the UK before export. Tell us at the enquiry stage if you have a vehicle to ship.
Yes. Dogs and cats need: ISO microchip, valid rabies vaccination given after microchipping, and an Animal Health Certificate (AHC) from an Official Veterinarian endorsed by APHA and valid for 10 days from issue. No quarantine is required if documents are correct. France bans Category 1 dogs (certain pit bull types, Boerbulls, Fila Brasileiros). Category 2 dogs (including American Staffordshire Terrier and Rottweiler) require a préfecture permit, muzzle and lead. Pets enter via approved Border Inspection Posts including the Channel Tunnel. Mention your pets in your removal enquiry.
France uses EUR. Your removal is quoted in GBP. A 5% GBP/EUR rate movement on a €300,000 French property changes the sterling cost by approximately £13,000 to £15,000. French conveyancing runs 2 to 4 months from compromis de vente to acte authentique. A forward contract with a currency specialist locks in today's rate for the notaire transfer. A French bank account is needed before the property completion. International Removals Companies does not provide currency exchange services. Seek advice from an FCA-authorised currency specialist.
All 10 removal companies France cover every city and region: Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Strasbourg, Nantes, Rennes, Grenoble, Montpellier, Aix-en-Provence, Cannes, Antibes, the Dordogne, Charente, Normandy, Brittany, the Loire Valley, Provence, the Côte d'Azur and the French Alps. See the France removals hub for individual city and region pages.
Comparison sites send your details to multiple companies simultaneously, generating several sales calls. International Removals Companies matches you with one suitable FIDI-certified removal company based on your route, volume and timeline. That one company contacts you, confirms the service scope and gives the confirmed quote. No spam. No multiple firms. The matching service is free.
Tell us your origin country and French destination. We match you with one certified removal company France from our network. One contact. One confirmed quote. The matching service is free.
Get Your Free France Removals Quote📞 07551 855 064 | WhatsApp: +44 7551 855 064
International Removals Companies — DATACONTEXT (UK) LTD, company 07425576. Norman House, Abbey Street, London SE1 3DH.