French Pension Fraud Crackdown: Auditors Demand Stricter Controls on Retirees Abroad

The Court of Auditors is calling for strengthened controls on French retirees who receive their pension abroad. This is in order to combat fraud. In reports published in May and June 2025, the jurisdiction reveals that the State continues to pay pensions to retirees residing abroad, even after their death, due to failure to report or false certificates of existence. The Court also calls for tighter controls on retirees who combine employment and retirement, as reported by Le Monde.

To put an end to these frauds, the Court proposes to require retirees abroad to provide mandatory certificates of life, a valid identity document and an original birth certificate within three months, their physical convocation to the consulate or bank in certain countries such as Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia or Turkey, and the use of facial recognition via a mobile application to remotely verify the identity and presence of the retiree.

Retirees abroad will have to comply with these new requirements, risking suspension of their pension. The Court also warned of the notable increase in the number of active retirees, estimated at 710,000 in 2025 compared to 381,000 in 2022.