Moving to Monaco: the practical checklist

1. Reserve the street for the removal lorry

• Send the Mairie's form "Demande d'OVP stationnement" (Police Municipale) by post, fax or email ([email protected]) at least five working days before the move; weekends and public holidays don't count.
• One space is 5 metres long and costs €33 per day in 2026. The authorisation is issued once the invoice is paid; display a copy behind the windscreen on the day.
• A lorry over 7.5 tonnes, or longer than 18.75 m, wider than 2.60 m or higher than 4.30 m, also needs an authorisation from the Direction de l'Aménagement Urbain. A furniture lift may need a site plan with the request.
• If someone is parked in your space on the day, call the Sûreté Publique on +377 93 15 30 15.

2. Apply for the residence card

Anyone aged 16 or over who stays more than three months a year must apply. File online (teleservice.gouv.mc) or at the Section des Résidents, 9 rue Suffren-Reymond (Monday to Friday, 9:00–17:00, +377 93 15 30 15). A first card is a one-year temporary card and costs €80, paid when it is handed over after an interview. The application needs a home in Monaco: see our residency guide for the documents.

3. Electricity, gas, water and internet

• Electricity and gas (SMEG): sign up at the Boutique by SMEG, 11 allée Guillaume Apollinaire, or by email ([email protected]), even before you move in. Bring your lease or deed showing the floor and flat number and the previous occupant's name. Activation takes a few business days, and you need a contract in your own name even if the supply is already on.
• Water (SMEaux): go to 29 avenue Princesse Grace with ID, bank details (RIB) and your lease or deed. The water is on within 24 hours of signing. From 1 July to 31 December 2026 it costs €4.28 per m³ including VAT, plus a subscription that depends on the meter.
• Internet and landline (Monaco Telecom): go to a shop (Gabian or Moulins) with ID, RIB, proof of address and the five-character code on the "logo" square above your front door.

4. Register your car and exchange your licence

• Only residents can register a car in Monaco, so the residence card comes first. The Service des Titres de Circulation (STC) sees people by appointment at 5 Promenade Honoré II, Hall B, 6th floor (+377 98 98 80 14).
• Bring form STC001, your residence card and the old registration. A car from an EU country needs a VAT certificate from Monaco's Direction des Services Fiscaux, and one from outside the EU needs the French customs receipt "846 A". Cars over four years old need an inspection report less than six months old.
• Registration costs €122 (€69 for a fully electric car). Plates are ready within 72 hours, and the registration must be renewed every year: the invoice arrives in September and must be paid by 31 December.
• Exchange a recognised foreign licence within one year of becoming resident (residence counts from your 186th day): online or with form STC010, for €117. After that deadline the foreign licence is no longer valid in Monaco.

5. Schools

• School is compulsory from 6 to 16 and free in the public sector. Nursery school takes children from 3, within the places available. A public school is assigned by where you live; a change of sector is requested by letter before 1 May.
• Enrolment windows for 2026–27: nursery and primary 5 January to 13 March 2026, public collège 1 May to 19 June, public lycée 12 January to 19 June. The dates change every year.
• Arriving mid-year: apply to the Direction de l'Education Nationale (DENJS, 5 Promenade Honoré II, Hall A, 2nd floor, +377 98 98 80 05) online or on paper, with your residence card or its application receipt, the birth certificate and the last three school reports. Children whose first language isn't French sit a placement test.
• Private options outside the state contract include the International School of Monaco (IB, bilingual English–French teaching in the early years) and the British School of Monaco.

6. Health cover and insurance

• Employees are covered by the CCSS, which the employer joins for them; a spouse and children without their own cover who live in Monaco or France are included for sickness and maternity.
• The self-employed join CAMTI (health) and CARTI (pension) within one month of starting their activity.
• Motor insurance is compulsory; Monaco's insurance rules largely follow French law.

7. Customs, belongings and cash

• Monaco is inside the French customs territory under the 1963 customs convention, so there is no customs check between France and Monaco, and French customs rules apply.
• From an EU country, French customs require no particular formality for household goods.
• From outside the EU, belongings are exempt from duty and tax if you lived abroad for at least 12 months and used them for at least six months. Bring them within 12 months of the move and don't sell or lend them for the next 12 months. The file is a detailed inventory in two copies plus form cerfa 10070, and customs then issue the 846 A certificate you need to register the car.
• Cash of €10,000 or more carried into or out of Monaco must be declared to customs.

8. Pets

• Dogs must be on a leash in the street, in places open to the public and in the common parts of buildings.
• Attack dogs (first category) are banned. Guard dogs (second category) must be declared to the Sûreté Publique, insured and muzzled in public.
• To travel, dogs, cats and ferrets need a microchip, a valid rabies vaccination and an EU-style pet passport; France accepts the Monaco passport.