“Kathleen, yes, if you are poor, France is the ideal place to live (beautiful, relatively cheap, and great quality of life). But if you are middle class, stay away. You will just have to pay too much in taxes!”
–Andre A., France
Unless you’re retired. Relocating to France in retirement should be a tax-neutral event. That is, you’d pay no taxes in France on your retirement income from outside that country.
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“Kathleen, in response to the reader’s e-mail from earlier this week, I wanted to point out that the VK Hospital he mentioned has been in Nha Trang for about two years and was discussed (with the website link) in the December (Nha Trang) issue of the Overseas Retirement Letter that I prepared.
“As I explained in that Overseas Retirement Letter report, I do not recommend it. In fact, again, as I’ve pointed out in past discussions about Nha Trang, I would not recommend this city as an option for anyone with existing health issues.
“When taking blood, the nurses don’t use gloves. They do not know how to interpret lab results. Their ambulances have no life-saving equipment. They are just vans that can hold gurneys. There is modern, brand-new diagnostic equipment there that has never been used because none of the staff knows how to use it.
“Doctors in Vietnam have gone to medical school in Vietnam. The country does not employ foreign physicians, unlike Thailand and Malaysia, where most or all doctors have had their schooling in the United States, the UK or another developed country.
“This is why Hua Hin is the ‘winner, hands down’ for health care, as I explained in my recent report.
“I have known people who have gone to the VK Hospital with infections or other minor issues and been satisfied with the care received. But, again, for anything complicated or serious, the VK is not yet functioning at that level.
“Also, on the other point the reader raised in his recent comments, regarding the lack of a marina in Vietnam, I saw this in the Saigon Times.
“Nha Trang is expected to have an international marina soon. The project will begin in July of this year and will ‘pave the way for the participation in the International Council of Yacht Clubs and development of the tourism industry,’ according to the article.”
–Wendy Justice, Asia Correspondent
