The `Pirates of the Caribbean` actor makes sure he doesn`t spend longer than 183 days at his home in the South of France to ensure he doesn`t have to make a payment on his earnings to the government and he also doesn`t want to give up his US citizenship by becoming a full-time resident in the European country.

Speaking about the legal practice, he is quoted by The Sun newspaper as saying: "If I spend more than 183 days in France I have to start paying income tax there.

"So I live between wherever I am on location and the States. France wanted me to become a permanent resident for money.

"But permanent residency status changes everything. I`m not ready to give up my American citizenship."

The 48-year-old star - who has two children, daughter Lily-Rose, 12, and son Jack, nine, with his long-term French partner Vanessa Paradis - has previously admitted he prefers spending time at his French home rather than in Hollywood because he can relax.

He said: "We have a great place in the south of France. It`s a little hamlet - only about 45 acres - and I don`t do anything.

"I`ve not left the property for three months at a time. I literally just wake up, go out, check the garden and see the vegetables growing. It`s a pristine existence in terms of simplicity."
sections: Celebrities