Immigration Law

A relative held in a waiting zone at a French airport? Refusal of entry, 4 to 20 days, the judge, your rights, asylum at the border, the 48-hour appeal and what the new EU return rules change.

The EU Council adopted the return regulation on 1 October 2026. OQTF, time to leave, detention, re-entry ban, appeals: what changes in France, and from when.

The EU border procedure has applied in France since 12 June 2026: 7 days of screening, asylum decided within 12 weeks, return without entry. Your rights and what to do.

Return hubs enter EU law with the regulation adopted on 1 October 2026. France refuses to open any. What changes, what you risk and how to challenge a removal.

Stopped at an internal border, in Menton or Hendaye? Internal border checks extended until 31 October 2026, refusal of entry, readmission to Italy or Spain, your rights and appeals.

A residence permit withdrawal follows strict rules: public order, fraud, lost conditions, republican principles. Prior hearing, the residence commission, removal orders and appeals.

Held in administrative detention in France? The 4-day order, the judge's review, 90 or 210 days at most, your rights in the CRA, the 48-hour appeal and house arrest as an alternative.

French nationality reinstatement works by decree or by declaration. Conditions, proof of your former nationality, language, stamp duty, children and appeals.

Want to bring your spouse and children to France? Family reunification requires 18 months of residence, income at minimum wage level and suitable housing. OFII file, deadlines and appeals.

Loss of French nationality can be a choice, or the result of 50 years of family life abroad. How it happens, desuetude, the article 21-14 declaration and how to appeal a refusal.

French nationality by marriage is claimed by declaration after four years of marriage. Conditions, level B2, the €255 stamp, the interview, the one-year deadline, opposition and appeals.

A re-entry ban often comes with an OQTF and closes the whole Schengen area to you. Duration, mandatory cases, appeal, lifting the ban, deleting the SIS alert and future visas.

A child born in France to foreign parents becomes French at 18, or earlier by declaration from age 13. Residence conditions, the steps, refusals, Mayotte and the nationality certificate.

Stripping of French nationality only targets people who acquired it, and never if it leaves them stateless. Offences covered, 10 and 15 year limits, procedure, appeal and residence.

A French nationality certificate proves that you are French. Who issues it, which documents, which deadlines, and how to challenge a refusal before the judicial court.

Tunisian nationals in France follow their own rules under a 1988 agreement: the employee permit, a list of occupations, a ten-year card after three years and a stay after graduation. What the agreement covers, and what the CESEDA still governs.

On 30 September 2026, the government announced a student multi-year permit covering the whole course, until 31 December of the graduation year. What has been announced, what already applies and how to prepare for the academic year.

Suffering violence and worried about your right to stay? The residence permit for domestic violence victims protects you: protection order, residence card, renewal, resident card and support.

Staying in France without working to raise your children? The right residence permit for a stay at home parent depends on your family: visitor card, spouse of a French national, family reunification or parent of a French child.

After four months without an answer, an implicit refusal arises. How to count the deadlines, ask for the reasons, choose between an administrative appeal, the court and urgent relief, and what the ANEF rulings change.

Separation or divorce: what happens to your permit as the spouse of a French national? Shared life, renewal, resident card, withdrawal and the exceptions for violence or a French child.

Residence permit fees in France rose sharply on 1 May 2026: €350 for a first card, €250 for a renewal. Rates by permit, exemptions, how to buy the electronic tax stamp and how to get a refund.

Moroccan nationals in France follow a 1987 agreement for the employee permit, with a ten-year card after three years. For everything else the CESEDA applies: students, talent, family and status changes.

A student to talent permit switch spares you the work authorisation and can open up to four years of stay. Qualified employee, EU Blue Card, business creation, researcher: the conditions and the 2026 salary thresholds.

A job offer while you live in France on a visitor card? A visitor to employee status change remains possible, but it goes through a work authorisation, a sometimes reluctant prefecture and a strict calendar.

You live in France on a visitor card or visa and want to go back to studying? A visitor to student status change sometimes happens at the prefecture, sometimes at the consulate. Here is how to tell which one awaits you.

A business project while you live in France on a visitor card? A visitor to entrepreneur status change requires a viable activity, income at least equal to the minimum wage and a precise order, with no early micro-business.

Your fixed-term contract becomes permanent? The move from temporary worker to employee requires a new work authorisation. It then opens the multi-year card, with its own conditions.

Leaving your job to start a company? An employee to entrepreneur status change requires the right permit: entrepreneur card, talent card, viability, minimum wage and timing.

Married to a French national, PACS partner, parent of a French child, or settled in France for years? The switch to a private and family life permit follows precise conditions, with or without a long-stay visa.

Want to launch your own business when your studies end? A student to entrepreneur status change goes through the \"entrepreneur / liberal profession\" card: a viable project, income at minimum wage level, an official opinion and the right documents.

A residence permit status change lets you move from one ground of stay to another without leaving France. Filing window, ANEF, extension certificate, processing times, the most common switches and appeals after a refusal.

Master's degree in hand and still looking for a job, or planning a business? The job search permit gives you one year in France. Eligible degrees, work allowed, the switch to employee or entrepreneur, and the return within four years.

For Algerian nationals, the residence certificate replaces the ordinary residence card. The 1968 agreement sets its own rules: one-year and ten-year certificates, status changes, regularisation and the traps of the general rules.

An expired residence permit changes everything the next morning, for work, family benefits and health cover. What still protects you, how to catch up within six months and how to avoid a removal order.

Residence permit renewal starts four months before expiry. The filing window, ANEF or prefecture, the documents, the 2026 fees, late filing and the silence of the administration: the full picture.

A residence permit refusal runs on a deadline of two months, or one month where a removal order comes with it. How to read the decision, the usual grounds, internal review, the court claim and legal aid.

An OQTF appeal runs on very short deadlines, from one month down to 48 hours. The grounds the prefecture relies on, the 2026 deadlines, how to file, what an appeal suspends and what the judge reviews.

A residence permit receipt proves your right to stay while the prefecture decides, and the ANEF certificates do not all carry the same effects. Who gets what, how long it lasts, working, benefits and travelling.

Holding a card does not end your duties. Residence permit obligations cover changes of address, the republican commitment contract, identity checks, replacement cards, absences abroad and the limits on working.

French naturalisation now requires level B2, a civic exam and a €255 stamp. Residence conditions, the 2025 circular on work and income, the NATALI file, the interview, the deadlines and the compulsory appeal.

The civic exam has been required since 1 January 2026 for a first multi-year card, a first resident card and naturalisation. Who has to sit it, the format, where to register, the price, exemptions and what happens if you fail.

Prefecture delays leave applicants waiting for months, sometimes losing a job in the process. What four months of silence means, the certificate that keeps you lawful, and five remedies from a written reminder to the judge.

A student status change follows a strict calendar, and a signed contract is not enough to work full time. Which permit to aim for, the work authorisation, the labour market test, when to file, the fees and the costly mistakes.

The ten-year resident card changes daily life, but its conditions tightened on 1 January 2026. Five years of lawful stay, income at minimum wage level, level B1, the civic exam, cards granted as of right, fees and how you can lose it.

Exceptional leave to remain is the usual route to regularisation, granted case by case. The 2025 circular, the shortage-occupation permit until 31 December 2026, the evidence to gather, the cost and the risk of a removal order.