“Earning a living”, “earning a crust”, “earning a bread
”. These are all French expressions used when talking about being able to support yourself from your own work. If you have plans to do this and want to know which are the 10 highest paid professions in France , this article can help you.
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From the list put together by the website Parcours Métiers , we find that the 10 highest-paid professions in France in 2022 and their respective annual salaries, on average, are:
- General practitioner or specialist
As in Brazil, the career of a general practitioner or specialist offers several avenues of action. The métier can be exercised both in the private and in the public sector; in an environment outside the hospital, or inside it, whether in clinics or in an EPHAD, the Établissement d’hébergement pour personnes âgées dépendantes; or even in humanitarian organizations.
In France, for a general practitioner starting their career, the average annual salary is €43,200 . For those at the end of their careers , the remuneration can reach an average of €180,000 per year.
- Pharmacy Manager
Every pharmacist can become a pharmacy manager as long as he holds a license from the Agence Régionale de Santé (ARS), that is, the regional health authority. In addition, the agreement of the regional council of the order of pharmacists is also needed.
Thus, the type of career will depend on the size and income generation of the pharmacy, as well as the number of pharmacists employed.
In France, the average income for this profession is €120,000 a year.
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- Architect
In the case of architects, they can work for a private or public client, and their career can evolve according to the chosen role. There are many options: from the most classic, such as urban planning, landscape, decoration, to the more specific, such as judicial expertise, conservation of historical monuments and even teaching.
Depending on the field of activity and length of career, the annual income can vary from €36,000 to €120,000 , which makes it one of the highest paid professions in France.
- Finance Director
This professional is usually found in large companies and business groups. It is common that before reaching such a position, the person is already a member of the management team of a company. This means that it is rarely a position in which professionals at the beginning of their careers appear.
In this way, the salaries assigned to them will depend on their professional experience, initial training, the sector of activity and the size of the company.
It is estimated that his annual income in France is €108,000 .
- Lawyer
In this case, career evolution will also depend on the chosen domain and sector. Although the best known are criminal law and civil law, it is worth mentioning that the lines of business, the environment and new technologies offer good growth opportunities in France.
Depending on experience, reputation, region and fees, the average annual income can reach €102,000 .
- IT officer
An IT officer can work either for a specific environment or in the format of providing services to various entities. To become one of them, you need a certain amount of experience in the field, as well as a few years of practice in other positions in the field.
The average salary for the post in question in France is €102,000 .
- Product Manager
One of the benefits of this career is the possibility of acting. A wide variety of companies can hire a product manager: retailers, car companies, pharmacies, IT companies, etc. The list is long!
This is because it is a necessary profession both in companies that produce direct for consumers, and in those that produce for other companies.
The average annual salary for a product manager in France is €102,000 .
- Security Engineer
Career development prospects for security engineers will depend on the domain of expertise. He will be able to work in digital services companies, but also in sensitive sectors such as finance, defense and telephony, for example.
Thus, after a few years of professional experience, it is possible to apply for management or responsible positions.
In France, these professionals earn an average of €90,000 per year.
To get a job in the highest paid professions in France, you need an excellent CV.
- Marketing Director
The position of marketing director requires, at least in France, about eight years of experience in other fields of marketing: as head of product, commercial director or head of group.
This is a highly qualified function, which exists both in smaller companies and in larger companies.
Annually, the average income of this professional is €90,000 per year.
- Software Designer
Multiple opportunities can be offered to a software designer: system administrator, technical expertise of networks and database are some of them.
Thus, such a professional can work for a computer company, directly with clients or on a freelance basis.
Regardless of career format, the main employers in France are computer engineering service companies and the average annual salary is €78,000 .
Why are these professions the highest paying?
Understanding why certain professions appear among the 10 highest paid in France requires us to look at the situation. Some of its aspects can explain to us the reasons that lead to the appreciation of salaries in certain specific areas.
The COVID-19 pandemic and health-related professions
The COVID-19 pandemic ended up stimulating certain professions from the above list, so this is one of the key points to understand why these positions are the ones that receive the highest salaries in France today.
One of the most impacted was that of a general practitioner or specialist. The shortage of qualified professionals to provide care in relation to the existing demand increased the salary in this area.
Something similar can be said about the case of a pharmacy manager. According to PNE Partner , in 2020 the turnover of pharmacies in France had its biggest increase after more than 10 years.
The strong demand for certain products and services due to the health crisis, as well as the increase in sales may explain this.
The boom of internet-related professions
Also due to the new dynamics that emerged with the pandemic, there is the stimulus of professions related to the internet . This is the case of IT manager, security engineering and software designer.
The need for specialized professionals in this sector is increasingly important, especially with the massive migration of businesses, studies and other experiences to the virtual environment. Such changes began to demand safe and intuitive tools capable of guaranteeing the productivity and speed of several processes.
In addition, in general, the best-paid professions in France are those that have been increasingly open to the use of digital tools in their daily lives. No wonder, they also tend to evolve over the years.
Mastering digital tools is important to secure a spot in the best-paid areas in France
As for the finance director profession, Michael Page , a world leader in specialized recruitment, states that the growth of international transactions has made it necessary to strengthen technical skills in the area, as well as improve risk management tools. and of a strategic dimension.
A similar future has professionals who seek to become head of product. Although this profession is expanding, it is imperative to adapt to digital media, based on what has been learned over the years of study and experience in the job market.
The same can be said of the legal profession. On the subject, Dominique Perben , lawyer and former minister of justice, says that entering new markets and expanding the field of activities in the area appears to be essential for the continuity of the profession.
In this way, technological developments should not be seen as a threat, but as a tool for professionals.
Permanent demand from certain professionals
Finally, another point that justifies why certain professions are well paid in France is the permanent need for certain services and the updating of possibilities for action.
In the case of marketing, although the area has undergone transformations in recent years, even splitting into distinct parts, the position of marketing director remains essential to ensure the good positioning of brands.
As for architects, in addition to traditional activities, experts in the field, such as Martha Thorne , believe that the future of the profession lies in the domain of the council. Projects for smart cities, placement of autonomous vehicles on the streets, concern for the environment, among other innovations, stand out.
But if your training profession is not on this list we have prepared, don’t be discouraged! Moving to France and finding a place to start working in the country is completely possible and well worth it. One of the reasons that most attracts the attention of Brazilians in this regard is the salary. Let’s see the values below.
What is the minimum and average wage in France?
France stands out for being one of the countries that offer the highest minimum wages in Europe , along with Spain, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland and Luxembourg.
In the country, the minimum wage for croissance (SMIC) corresponds to the legal minimum wage that the worker must receive.
The official website of the French administration, the Service Public , states that the minimum working hour allowed by law is €10.85 , which is equivalent to €1,645.58 monthly and €19,747.00 annually, considering a gross salary. . With deductions from salary contributions, the monthly net amount reaches €1,302.64 and the annual net amount reaches €15,631.75.
By way of comparison, we converted it into Brazilian real, based on the June 2022 exchange rate: the monthly net amount would correspond to approximately R$6,833 and the annual net amount to R$81,998.
Regarding the average salary in France, the Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques (INSEE), responsible for this type of calculation, carried out a study whose results show that, in 2022, the average salary corresponds to 2,340 euros net a month. Converting to real, this would be the equivalent of 12274.83 reais monthly.
As we have shown, the highest-paying professions in France offer an annual income relatively higher than these numbers. Considering its great quality of life , the country turns out to be quite attractive!
Where are the best salaries in France?
Now that you already know about the best paid professions in France, and you have the minimum and average salary values as a parameter, let’s investigate where we can find these best salaries .
The Journal du Net regularly organizes some rankings that provide such information. The data that we will present below were taken from that source and based on the year 2019.
In terms of regions
- Île-de-France, with €3,087;
- Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, with €2,376;
- Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur, with €2,347.
In terms of departments
- Paris professionals top the list, with an average monthly salary of €3,921;
- The ones from Hauts-de-Seine follow soon after, with €3,797;
- And those of Yvelines in third, with €3,403.
But if we leave cities
- The first to win wildly is Saint-Nom-la-Bretèche, in the department of Yvelines, with €7,352net;
- Then Neuilly-sur-Seine, in the Hauts-de-Seine department, with €6,551;
- Finally, Le Vésinet, also in Yvelines, with €6,546 per
Do you need to validate a diploma to work in the highest paid professions in France?
Yes , but the validation procedure varies greatly.
Having a valid degree is the first step to securing a good spot
To find out whether or not you need to validate diplomas to work in the highest paid professions in France, it is first necessary to divide the professions into two groups: regulated and unregulated .
How to validate diplomas of regulated professions?
The regulated professions ( réglementées ) in France comprise the liberal and ministerial professions , as well as commercial and artisanal professions .
Within the group shown at the beginning of the article, doctors, architects and lawyers are included here. For these cases, the validation of the diploma will depend primarily on the country that issued the diploma.
Diplomas issued within the European Union
For diplomas issued by member countries of the European Union, the process is simple.
Simply access the European database of regulated professions and complete the required fields. From the data of the country issuing the diploma, the country where you want to work, and the profession in question, you can have an overview of all the information, contacts and procedures necessary for the validation of the diploma.
Diplomas issued outside the European Union
For professionals who graduated in countries outside the European Union, in principle it is not possible to practice in France only with the original diploma. In this way, the validation of the diploma will depend on each profession .
In general, graduates should look for a commission specific to their field (for example, the Direction régionale de l’économie, de l’emploi, du travail et des solidarités for paramedical professions, or the Ministère de la Justice, for the professions legal entities), which will provide the necessary documents for each case.
Among such documents, it may contain the original diploma (sometimes authenticated or apostilled); the official translation of the diploma by a sworn translator (sometimes diplomas in Portuguese do not need translation); a student grade report and, in some cases, an attestation of comparability.
Such a certificate of comparability is a document delivered by the Center Enic-Naric when a foreign diploma can be compared to a level of training in France. Thus, the certificate describes the level of studies of the foreign diploma and compares it with the level of French studies using an analysis table.
To make this comparison request , simply make the demand through the Center Enic-Naric website. Once the necessary documents have been attached and the fee paid (approximately €70), the demand will be processed and the result will be sent via email.
The time between the assessment and the submission of the certificate varies depending on the moment of the request, but normally lasts from 15 days to 3 months.
How to validate diplomas from unregulated professions?
In the case of non-regulated professions ( non réglementées ), it is the future employer who assesses the candidate’s qualifications for the intended post.
However, it is normal to be asked to justify the level of studies and the training carried out. In this case, a certificate of comparability of the original diploma may be requested, that is, the certificate issued by the Center Enic-Naric , explained above.
Therefore, for most professions, whether regulated or unregulated, the procedure performed by the Center Enic-Naric ends up being necessary . So, if you want, you can take the first step to work in France right away!
Another way to start working in the country, and which follows a slightly different path from those mentioned so far, is entrepreneurship: let’s remember that we are talking about an attractive country in terms of investment, so opening a company in France ends up being a very interesting option too.
We hope that this information about the highest paying professions in France, the job market in the country and the possibilities of starting a career there has helped you to plan your next adventure – perhaps a little longer than a vacation trip – in the country of Molière.
