Rising number of wealthy French fleeing abroad

http://www.france24.com/en/20150808-france-wealthy-flee-high-taxes-les-echos-figures



New figures published this week suggest that an increasing number of France’s top earners are leaving the country, with some observers blaming high taxes for the rising “wealth drain”.

Rising number of wealthy French fleeing abroad
Latest update : 2015-08-08

A total of 3,744 people who earned 100,000 euros per year or more left France in 2013, a 40 percent increase compared to 2012, French financial newspaper Les Echos revealed citing figures from the national tax-collecting office.

Furthermore, 659 people who earned 300,000 euros or more annually said ‘au revoir’ in 2013, a 46 percent rise on the previous year. By comparison, the overall French migration rate in 2013 increased by only 6 percent.

The well-respected French newspaper highlighted that the figures were incomplete due to various bureaucratic issues, and warned that it would be dangerous to use it to draw any conclusions. However, the article coincided with the recent publication of a report from the New World Wealth consulting group that listed France third on a list of countries with the biggest outflow of millionaires. Around 42,000 millionaires left France between 2000 and 2014, according to the report.

Both reports have raised eyebrows at a time when France is still trying to claw its way out of an economic slump and reduce its worryingly high unemployment rate.