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The general rule is that you pay your taxes in the country where you usually live, not where your employer is based. So if you're working remotely from abroad but you're officially a tax resident there, that's where you need to file. That said, it depends a lot on tax treaties between the two countries - France has agreements with quite a few countries to avoid double taxation, but they work differently depending on the situation.

What really matters is your tax residency status. Generally you're considered a resident if you spend more than 183 days a year in a country, or if you have your main home there, or even if that's where the center of your economic interests is. If you're working remotely from Portugal or Spain but you're French and you keep your apartment in France, things can get murky. You really need to look at your specific situation - how long you're staying abroad, whether you have an actual local contract, how your arrangement with your boss is structured.

The practical advice: contact an accountant or the tax authority before you start. They can tell you exactly where you need to file based on your situation, and it saves you from ending up with penalties down the line. Some countries also have special schemes for expats or remote workers, so it's worth checking. Also try to see if your employer has rules about this - a lot of companies ask their remote workers to stay in the same country to keep things administratively simple.

The thing that changes everything is your actual tax residence, not what's written on paper - if you're really spending most of the year in the same place abroad, that's where you need to file. Then you've got to check the double taxation agreements between your country and where you are, otherwise you can end up paying taxes everywhere.

Watch out for a detail a lot of people overlook: even if you're a tax resident somewhere else, your employer might be required to withhold taxes at source based on the double taxation treaties between the two countries. So you might end up paying something locally AND filing in your country of residence, then you claim a tax credit to avoid paying twice. That's why it's really useful to check the specific agreement between your home country and the one where you're based, because it changes everything.

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