General Archives - LBS in France

Top Tips to Learn the Lingo

My dream of moving to a foreign country began at the ripe old age of 8. I spent most of my early years daydreaming of where I wanted to live, and France was often the top of my list. As I got older my daydreaming transformed into my vision and I travelled extensively looking for my dream home. It was not until I arrived on the cote d’Azur in 1992 that I really started to settle down. Of course, the dream life does not happen with a click of the fingers, the following two years were filled with a multitude…

LIVE YOUR BEST LIFE in France

Residency, Visas, Work Life Balance

As I look at social media and see everyone ‘living their best life’ doing lots of activities, holidays and posting about living their best life and their dream lives, and I wonder what that means to different people? Social media paints a picture that is often false and puts pressure on us all to do more, do bigger, do better, do something. What if living your dream life is doing ‘nothing’? Doing ‘nothing’ is an acquired art. We need to remember how to spend time with ourselves doing nothing, especially women. It has been my motto for over 11 years now, ever since…

Why January and February are the best months of the year

General, Healthcare, Residency, Work, Work Life Balance

January is renowned for being a month of new beginnings, fresh starts and wiping the slate clean. A month of taking our desires and putting them to the forefront. It’s a month of let’s get on with this and make it a better, bigger, more successful, healthier than last year, year! Such pressure for everyone and I fight against every year.

Why my cleaner is an important part of my team

General, Work Life Balance

I Last year we invited women from around the world to try something new, we invited them to join us for our annual “Around the World in 60 Days” as women joined forces to pay forward our book in as many countries as they could, and wow they didn’t let us down. Join us ….

New French Language Test Requirements in 2026: What You Need to Know

Language, Residency, Visas

If you’re planning to apply for a long-term residence permit, a 10-year resident card, or French citizenship, big changes are coming from 1st January, 2026. You have no doubt been hearing about this for quite some time via various news and media channels and wondering how this will affect your application. The French government is raising the required language levels for these applications, and the TCF IRN (Test de Connaissance du Français – Intégration, Résidence et Nationalité) will be at the heart of the process. At LBS, we want to make sure you are fully informed and prepared for these new rules and how that…