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French visas and the titre de séjour in 2026 – which permit you need and what it costs

Last updated 25 September 2026Rules checked every MondayOfficial sourcesSources & methodology →

An EU passport means you can simply move to France. Everyone else needs the right visa and then a titre de séjour, and 2026 brought a civic exam, a French-language requirement and higher fees. Here is what applies to workers, the talent passport, students, families and visitors.

Smiling woman holding a passport and phone at an airport terminal
Photo: Chanakon/Adobe Stock

For most non-EU newcomers, life in France is built around the titre de séjour (residence permit), and its rules changed repeatedly in 2025 and 2026:

DateWhat changed
12 October 2025Non-EU short-stay visitors registered in the Entry/Exit System (EES), fully operational since 10 April 2026
1 January 2026French at A2 plus a civic exam for a first multi-year card; B1 plus the civic exam for a first resident card
1 May 2026Higher fees: first card €350, renewal €250, VLS-TS validation €300
1 June 2026Minimum wage (SMIC) €1,867.02 gross a month; several income thresholds follow it
1 July 2026Non-EU students without a needs-based grant lose housing aid (APL)
30 July 2026Temporary protection for people fleeing Ukraine extended until 4 March 2028

Source: Service-Public and France Diplomatie, read 23 September 2026.

Do EU, EEA, Swiss and UK citizens need a titre de séjour?

Not if you are an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen. You can stay up to 3 months with a passport or ID card and work without a permit. Beyond that you have a right of residence if you work, study, or support yourself with health insurance and enough money – but it is not unconditional.

The 'citoyen UE/EEE/Suisse' card is optional and free. If you do not work, the administration cannot demand more than €651.69 a month for a single person or €977.54 for a couple without children. After 5 years of legal, uninterrupted residence your right becomes permanent; you lose it after more than 2 consecutive years away. Your non-EU family members must apply for a card within 3 months of arriving.

UK citizens settled in France before 31 December 2020 keep their rights under the Withdrawal Agreement, with a free card valid 5 years, or 10 after more than 5 years' residence. Arrived on or after 1 January 2021? You need a long-stay visa from the French consulate in the UK, then an ordinary residence permit.

Which French visa do you need from outside the EU?

For more than 3 months you need a long-stay visa (type D) from the French consulate where you live, no more than 3 months before you leave. The usual form, the VLS-TS, doubles as your first residence permit for 4 to 12 months once validated – see part 3. Two months of consular silence means refusal; you can appeal to the CRRV commission within 30 days, by post, then to the administrative court in Nantes.

Your situationVisa and permitKey condition
Employee on a permanent contract (CDI)VLS-TS "salarié", then a "salarié" cardYour employer obtains a work authorisation; pay at least the SMIC
Employee on a fixed-term contract (CDD)"Travailleur temporaire" cardSame rules
StudentVLS-TS "étudiant", 4 months to 1 yearResources of at least €877.50 a month; work up to 964 hours a year
Retiree or other inactive person"Visiteur" visa and card; no work allowedAt least €1,477.93 net a month for a single person, plus health insurance
Spouse of a French citizenVLS-TS "vie privée et familiale"Issued unless there is fraud or a public-order threat; marriage recorded in French civil status
Graduate of a French master's1-year "recherche d'emploi / création d'entreprise" cardA related job paying over €2,800.53 gross a month skips the labour-market test

Source: Service-Public, read 23 September 2026.

Employers apply online for the work authorisation. The job must be on the shortage-occupation list (métiers en tension) or have been advertised for 3 consecutive weeks in the previous 6 months. The first 'salarié' card lasts 1 year; if you are still employed, the renewal brings a 4-year multi-year card.

Asylum seekers register at the préfecture (prefecture) before applying to OFPRA; recognised refugees receive a free 10-year resident card. Asylum rules changed in June 2026 under the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, and Service-Public is still updating its pages.

Just visiting? Stays are capped at 90 days in any 180 across the Schengen area; ETIAS, the planned travel authorisation, is not yet operational, according to France Diplomatie.

Talent passport (carte talent): who qualifies in 2026?

The carte talent, still widely called the talent passport, is the multi-year card for qualified people staying at least a year; for shorter stays a VLS-TS marked 'talent' is enough. It lasts as long as your contract or project, up to 4 years, and costs €350. Salaried holders need no work authorisation. Talent holders do not sign the CIR, so the A2 and civic-exam condition for a multi-year card does not apply to them. Researchers need a master's-level degree and a hosting agreement with an approved body.

CategoryMain conditionMinimum pay or funds
Salarié qualifié (qualified employee)French master's-level degree and a contract of more than 3 months€39,582 gross a year
EU Blue Card3 years of higher education or 5 years' experience; a contract of 6 months or more€59,373 gross a year
Porteur de projet (business creator)Master's-level degree or 5 years' experience and a serious project€30,000 invested and resources of at least €22,404.20 a year
InvestorInvestment in France that creates or safeguards jobs€300,000
Mandataire social (corporate officer)At least 3 months in the same group€67,212.60 gross a year

Source: Service-Public, read 23 September 2026.

The prefecture must answer within 4 months for most talent categories, 90 days for the EU Blue Card (30 if you already hold one in another EU country) and 60 days for researchers; silence counts as a refusal.

Can your family join you in France?

If you hold a talent card, your spouse and minor children use the simplified 'famille accompagnante' procedure: a 'talent-famille' card that lets them work, for €350, with no family reunification file.

Most other non-EU residents use regroupement familial (family reunification) for a spouse aged 18 or over and children under 18. You need a permit of at least a year, 18 months of legal residence and a stable income over the last 12 months:

HouseholdAverage monthly income needed
2 or 3 people€1,867.02 (the gross SMIC)
4 or 5 people€2,053.72
6 people or more€2,240.42

Source: Service-Public, read 23 September 2026.

The home must offer at least 22 m² for two people in zones A bis and A, 24 m² in B1 and B2 and 28 m² in zone C, plus 10 m² per extra person up to 8 people. You file with OFII; the prefect – in Paris, the police prefect – decides within 6 months of a complete file. Parents are not covered but may come as visitors with enough resources.

One assumption to drop: the 2024 immigration law's requirement to speak French before arrival was struck down by the Conseil constitutionnel on 25 January 2024 and never took effect. Refugees use a separate procedure, réunification familiale.

What does a titre de séjour cost after 1 May 2026?

The 2026 finance law raised almost every fee. You pay with tax stamps, usually when the prefecture hands over your card.

FeeSince 1 May 2026Before
First residence card€350€225
First card, reduced rate (for example students, seasonal workers, family reunification)€150€75
Renewal€250€225
Renewal, reduced rate€100€75
VLS-TS validation€300€200
VLS-TS validation, reduced rate€100€50
Regularisation visa fee (irregular entry or late application)€300, of which €100 is non-refundable on filing€200, of which €50
Naturalisation stamp duty€255€55
EU citizen card or Withdrawal Agreement cardFreeFree

Source: Service-Public, based on the 2026 finance law, read 23 September 2026.

What to do now

StepWhatWhen
1Find your route in the tables aboveBefore anything else
2Outside the EU: check your pay or resources against the thresholdBefore you apply
3Apply for the long-stay visa at the French consulate where you liveNo more than 3 months before departure
4Validate your VLS-TS, or apply for your card, on ANEFWithin 3 months (VLS-TS) or 2 months (card) of arrival
5Pass the French test and civic exam (multi-year or resident card)Before you file that application
6Renew onlineBetween 4 and 2 months before your document expires

Source: Service-Public, read 23 September 2026.

Official sources

The official pages this guide is based on, read 23 September 2026. Links open the authority’s own website.

Relocate in Europe provides general information, not legal or financial advice for your individual situation. Check with the authority named above before you act – rules change, and your case may differ.