Info concerning PACS and Visa's.

[mike7]

Hey im just looking to see if anyone know whether you can be in a PACs relationship status and also be on a one year working holiday visa?

I'm a Australia looking to move to France with my girlfriend in Dec. I was looking at going over on a working hoilday visa then we would look at changing it to a PACs status at some point in the year. I understand i would have to come back to Australia to process it all, but i would still like to be able to work. Any help concerning any of this would be helpful?

[_Sarah_]

I think you've gotten a bit confused; a PACS is not a 'status' as such, it's just a pact/contract like the registration of de facto relationships that we allow in Australia.
Yes, you can get PACSed while you are on your working holiday visa, provided you meet the requirements (each mairie/prefecture may differ in this regard). On a working holiday visa the conditions are very strict: you must leave France at the end of the year, that is, you cannot apply for a residency permit (carte de sejour), you cannot change to any other status, so if you want to return you have to come back on a different visa.

Being PACSed does not guarantee you the right to work in France. Usually if you remain PACSed for one year and prove that you live with your PACs partner, at the end of that year you can be considered for carte de sejour with working rights. The problem here is that you cannot stay on after a working holiday, so if you were to return to Australia you'd need a normal tourist long-stay visa to come back to France. You would then have to wait before applying for a carte de sejour (coming to France for the 3 month visa-free stay does not allow you to get a residency permit).

[mike7]

Thanks. So i can get Pacs while on the WHV then wait a year on that contact to then get a visa or residency to stay and work? they don't make it to easy.

[Bevdeforges]

What Sarah is trying to explain (and yes, this is France - it's difficult) is that you may be able to get PACS'd while you're in France on the WHV. You will need to check with your local Tribunal, as they seem to have different requirements for concluding a PACS where one partner is a foreigner. Some require 6 months to a year of co-habitation before you can be PACS'd, others want a carte de séjour or that you're on a renewable long stay visa. That's the first hurdle.

The rules are fairly unclear on the visa status of a PACS partner - and there's a fair chance things will change in the next year or so as the new government gets itself established.
Cheers,
Bev

[mike7]

thanks.