FRANCE

France Airport Transit Visa is needed when someone remains in the airport’s international zone while waiting for the transfer flight to the final destination, and the final destination is located outside the Schengen area.

 Who needs “A” Airport Transit Visa

• An ordinary, service or special passport issued by: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Iran, Iraq, Nigeria, Pakistan, Somalia, or Sri Lanka;
• An ordinary passport issued by: Angola, Bolivia, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mali, Mauritania,  the Philippines (except in the case of seafarers holding a seaman’s book issued in accordance with international conventions), the Republic of Guinea, the Republic of the Congo, Russia (if you are travelling from an airport located in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Turkey or Egypt), Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria or India;
• A service passport issued by the Republic of Guinea;
• A travel document for Palestinian refugees;
• A travel document for Palestinian refugees issued by the Egyptian, Lebanese or Syrian authorities.

This requirement does not apply to holders of diplomatic passports.

Who don’t require an Airport Transit Visa –

• An aircraft crew member or national of a country that is party to the Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation (except China);
• A holder of a valid residence permit issued by a Member State of the European Union or the European Economic Area;
• A holder of a residence permit guaranteeing the right of return and issued by Monaco, the Principality of Andorra, Japan, Canada, the United States or the Republic of San Marino, by one or more countries or public bodies from the Caribbean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, Bonaire, Saba and Sint Eustatius);
• A holder of a valid visa for a Member State of the European Union or the European Economic Area, Canada, the United States or Japan, by one or more countries or public bodies from the Caribbean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, Bonaire, Saba and Sint Eustatius);
• A family member of a national of the European Union, the European Economic Area or Switzerland;
• A holder of a valid Schengen visa, a national long-stay visa, or a residence permit issued by a Schengen country.

Three types of Airport Transit Visa (ATV):

• A one-way ATV, which authorizes one-way transit through a Schengen country;
• A return ATV, which authorizes return airport transit through one or two Schengen countries;
• A multiple ATV, which authorizes several transits through one or more Schengen countries.

Holders of ATVs are not authorized to enter the Schengen Area. If someone have a connection between two airports in the Schengen Area, or if the airport through which someone wish to enter the French territory is closed overnight for the duration of the transit, then they must hold a valid short-stay Schengen visa.

If someone is travelling from an airport in a third country and you will remain in the international zone of an airport located in a French overseas department, community or territory while waiting for their connection to the final destination, which is also located in a third country.

The same rules apply as for transit through metropolitan France (see above). If you wish to leave the international zone and enter the French overseas department, community or territory in which the airport you are transiting through is located, you must hold a valid short-stay visa for the territory concerned.

France Tourist Visa is needed if someone wants to visit France for under 3 months for tourism reasons without engaging in any professional activity during your stay.

► Visa Requirement

After checking whether the nationality requires a visa, you must then apply for a short-stay visa (uniform Schengen visa or national visa depends on the destination i.e. in France’s European or non-European territory).

► Supporting Documentation

This will depend on the Home country of residence and on the nationality. The purpose is to check whether the applicant have financial resources (cash, travellers’ cheques, international bank cards, etc.) sufficient for the duration of the planned stay and return to the country of origin.

Visa for Medical Care

If someone needs to consult a doctor or specialised clinic, receive treatment in a hospital or receive aftercare.

The visa issued for medical care reasons is a short-stay visa and does not exclude a private stay or tourism. The cost of any medical care the applicant receive in France will not be covered by the French health insurance system.

► Supporting Documentation

In addition to the general documentation usually required for any short-stay visa, the applicant will also be asked to provide specific supporting documentation. It will be examined in strict respect of medical confidentiality.

Stay exceeding 3 months

If someone wants to visit France for private reasons, for a period exceeding 3 months without engaging in any professional activity during the requisite stay. Then the person must apply for a long-stay “visitor” visa. The applicant will be issued with a long-stay visa serving as a residence permit (VLS-TS). This visa is subject to an online validation procedure after you arrive in France.

Where appropriate, a temporary long-stay visa (VLS-T) can be issued to people who are certain that they will not extend their stay beyond the duration of their visa.

► Supporting Documentation

This will differ depending on the country of residence or on the nationality. One must prove information about the socio-economic situation (leave, retirement, etc.),  resources, accommodation and  medical cover in France. The applicant must also formally agree not to engage in any professional activity during your stay in France.

To apply for France short stay study visa, one must be over 18 years of age and must have already chosen the training course or studies. The applicant must be accepted by a higher education establishment. Enrolment conditions differ depending on the nationality to apply on the online enrolment scheme.

Important: under certain conditions (age, enrolment in the first year of studies), the applicant must follow the Parcoursup (in French only) procedure and respect the schedules.

List of EEF-procedure countries or territories

Visa requirement

• For a training course not exceeding three months, the applicant will be issued a short-stay visa;
• For a training course exceeding three months or six months, the applicant will be issued a temporary long-stay visa, which will require no further formalities on your arrival in France;
• For training or a course exceeding six months, the applicant will be issued a long-stay visa, equivalent to a residence permit, which will be subject to further formalities on your arrival in France.

Visa pricing for countries or territories with EEF procedure: 50 € *Visa pricing for other countries: 99 € *

* This amount is given as an indication, some special cases may give rise to different rates.

► Supporting documents

Apart from the basic documents like passport, educational documents, etc the applicant must especially include the certificate of enrolment in the higher education institution that has accepted the candidate application.

► Digitization

As of April 7, 2021, France-Visas will provide students with the possibility of sending digital copies of their supporting documents when completing their visa application online. This optional procedure will allow an accelerated process by the external service provider (ESP). This feature will at first be accessible only to applicants for long-stay student visas residing in a country where the visa application is outsourced to an ESP and available online. 

Medical students

All higher education establishments in France charge enrolment fees. These fees vary depending on the establishment i.e. from a few hundred Euros to over 10,000 Euros per annum for certain private establishments.

In addition, the applicant may be required to pay additional fees for certain services.

► Accommodation

Do not forget to contact the international relations service in host establishment. The majority have guides for overseas students containing useful information about preparing for the applicants time in France.

For the applicant’s visa application, one must provide a temporary address for the first three months of the stay or the applicant’s permanent address if the applicant have already found accommodation. Important: conditions may vary depending on the country.

 Working in France during the studies

The law authorises foreign students to work 964 hours, which corresponds to 60% of normal working hours in France (except for Algerian nationals whose working time is limited to 50% of normal working hours in France). Part-time work will not be sufficient to cover all the expenses and should be considered as a secondary source of income.

France has a minimum wage – SMIC (Salaire Minimum Interprofessionnel de Croissance).

The France Family visa is a French long stay visa has been established in order to permit foreigners to come to France and visit their family members, spouse, child or parent, for more than three months, up to a year.

The main eligibility criteria for those who wish to join a family member that is permanently or temporarily living in France, aside from the supporting documents, is that this relative residing in France must be:

• A national of the European Union or the European Economic Area
• A French National
• A foreign national legally residing in France.

If the applicant enter France through a long-stay visa, then they will have to register and obtain a residence permit at the French authorities, upon your arrival in France.

Who needs a France Family visa

Whether the applicant need a French long-stay Family visa or not, it all depends on the nationality and the part of France the applicant wish to visit. There are some categories of foreign nationals who wish to enter France and remain for more than three months that do not need to obtain a long stay visa in order to be permitted to stay.

However, even those persons who are exempt from France long stay visa requirements will have to obtain a residence permit as soon as they arrive in France if they are planning to remain for more than 6 months in the country.

If the applicant is employed in France for more than three months, the applicant must submit an employment contract along with the application, and the applicant’s employer must apply for a work permit. The applicant will be issued with a long-stay visa serving as a residence permit, which is valid for up to 12 months.

Professional purpose

Engaging in a professional activity in France is subject to different formalities depending on the persons’ situation, whether the applicant is self-employed, an employee, your business and the length of your stay.

As a self-employed person, one can:

• Come to France for business to meet the commercial and professional obligations;
• If one wants to start or take part in a self-employed activity or in a liberal activity.

As an employee, one can:

• Be posted by the employer to provide a service;
• Take part in intra-group mobility while remaining contractually attached to the employer as an ICT (Intra Corporate Transferee) or have a local contract with the French company that is hosting them;
• The applicant have been hired for a fixed period or an indefinite period by a French employer. This may be a seasonal contract;
• Following a professional course in a training organisation or a company.

Important: Certain professions (doctors, teachers, etc.) must meet certain conditions before they can engage in their activity.

If the applicant is developing France’s economic attractiveness as an employee or a self-employed person i.e. an “international talent”, one can also arrange for their family to accompany them for a long stay in France.

Special and more favourable provisions are in place for young employees.

The long-stay visa valid as a residence permit for students (visa long séjour valant titre de séjour “étudiant”, abbreviated to VLS-TS “étudiant”) allows the applicant to stay in France from four months to one year to pursue higher education studies.

France working holiday visa

Depending on the applicant nationality and age, one may be able to benefit from the work holiday programme. This programme allows the applicant to visit France for a period of more than three months with the right to work, so as to supplement the applicant financial resources on site.

Conditions

• The main reason for the stay is tourism and discovering France’s culture;
• The applicant’s country or territory must have signed an agreement with France. Today, this applies to 15 countries or territories:
  • Australia;
  • Argentina;
  • Brazil;
  • Canada (agreement on youth mobility);
  • Chile;
  • Colombia;
  • South Korea;
  • Japan;
  • New Zealand;
  • Hong Kong;
  • Mexico;
  • Peru;
  • Russia;
  • Taiwan;
  •  
• One must meet the terms and conditions of the agreement regarding duration of stay and expected financial resources provided for in the agreement.
• Applicants must be, as of the date of request submission, between 18 and 30 years of age (i.e. until the day before their 31st birthday), regardless of country or territory of origin, except for :
  • Argentina, Australia and Canada where the maximum age is 35 years (up to the date of 36th birthday).
• Australian, Canadian and Colombian nationals may file their visa application with the visa centre of their choice. Nationals of other countries or territories, in contrast, must file their application with the visa centre empowered in their country or territory of nationality

► Visa

This is a long-stay visa containing the statement: “vacances travail” (working holiday). Its duration is one year and may not be extended, unless otherwise stipulated. It will entitle you to undertake paid employment on a secondary basis, without prior approval from the French Administration.

Prepare the documents

Visa application

Submit application

Tracking application

The multi-year “passport talent” residence permit was created to help foreign employees and self-employed persons develop France’s economic attractiveness. Your employment contract and the applicant’s stay in France must exceed three months. It will allow the applicant to stay for a maximum of four years commencing on the date of their arrival in France.

The applicant’s family members may also accompany them and will be issued with multi-year residence permits. This permit will authorise applicant’s spouse and any children entering into their 18th year to work. In the three months following their arrival in France, the applicant’s and their family must visit the local police station in France to request a multi-year residence permit corresponding to your situation.

A France Business visa is an authorization to enter France and stay here for a period up to 90 days within a six-month period, as permitted. It permits its holder to engage in business-related activities as the following: Attending meetings or conferences. Conducting or attending training.