Residence permits for students

Visa, residence permit?

Visa and residence permit are two different notions:

A visa gives you the right to enter France
A residence permit gives you the right to stay in France

STUDENT

RESIDENCE PERMIT

IF YOU ARE A CITIZEN OF A EUROPEAN UNION (EU) MEMBER STATE

You do not need a residence permit for a period of studies in France.

IF YOU ARE A CITIZEN OF A NON-EU COUNTRY

The residence permit is mandatory.
Once you are in France, depending on the type of visa you have been issued, you must carry out residence formalities in order to be authorized to live in the country as a student.

IF YOU HAVE A “STUDENT” RESIDENCE CARD DELIVERED IN THE CONTEXT OF A MOBILITY PROGRAM BY ANOTHER EUROPEAN UNION (EU) STATE

You must follow the “Notification of the mobility in France of a foreign student authorized to stay in another EU Member State” procedure

Visas entitling you to a residence permit

Visa D – long stay – marked “card to request within 2 months” or “C. SEJ. A SOLLIC.”
Visa C – short stay – marked “competitive exam” OR “Visa concours” provided you have passed the exam for which the visa was delivered.
Visa D – long stay – marked “school-going minor” OR “Mineur Scol.” once you have reached the age of majority (18 years old).

Important: If you arrived in France with a long-stay visa valid as a residence permit (VLS-TS), you do not have to request a residence permit but you must validate your visa in order to give it full residence permit value.

Requesting a residence permit

You must submit a request for a residence permit between 4 and 2 months before the expiry of:

your entry visa to France, for a first request for a residence permit
your current residence permit, for a renewal request

Important!

Be sure to comply with the submission deadline. Without a valid residence permit, you will be in France illegally and will not be able to:

benefit from health insurance or CAF housing assistance
work part-time as a student
carry out an internship in a company or a work-study contract
cross Schengen area borders again if you leave it, unless you reapply for a visa

To apply for a residence permit, you must:

be registered in a French higher education institution
have accommodation in France
have at least 615 euros per month in financial resources (apart from CAF housing assistance)
be able to prove the effectiveness and seriousness of your studies (transcripts, certificate of attendance)

You cannot apply for a residence permit online if you have a:

“competitive exam” visa
“school-going minor” visa
residence permit that expired more than 9 months ago

In all these cases, contact us: drie-info-contact@univ-lorraine.fr

Apply for your residence permit online

Steps in the residence permit application procedure

The time taken to process an application for a residence permit varies from one Prefecture to another.

First, the Prefecture will issue you a “certificate of extension of instruction” or “attestation de prolongation d’instruction” (ADP) of your residence permit request (1).
When the Prefecture has examined your application, it will issue you a “certificate of decision” or “attestation de décision” (2).
At last, if the decision is favorable, it will issue you a “residence permit” (3) valid for a year or longer, depending on your personal situation and the degree you are preparing.

Calculate when to start your application

Documents dElivERED BY YOUR PrEfecture OF rEsidence AT EACH STEP OF THE procEdure

Attestation de prolongation d’instruction de demande de titre de séjour (ADP) (1)

This is a provisional document delivered by your Prefecture of residence when your residence permit request file is complete and has been examined. It is usually valid for 3 months.

Case of a first request : unless otherwise stated on the ADP, it does not entitle you to health insurance or housing assistance, or to work (unless you have obtained a work permit) or cross Schengen area borders (if you leave the territory, you will have to request a “return” visa at the French consulate before coming back to France).
Case of a renewal : the ADP is only valid if accompanied by the previous residence permit (Residence Card or VLS-TS), even if it has expired. The ADP enables you to keep all the rights for which the previous residence permit entitled you to within the validity period of your ADP (health insurance, housing assistance, work part-time as a student, travel in and entry to the Schengen area at whatever entry point).

All this information is clearly stated on the ADP

Attestation de décision (2)

If it is “favorable”, this certificate is issued to you while you wait for your residence permit to be produced. Meanwhile, the certificate entitles you to health insurance, housing assistance and to work part-time as a student, and authorizes you to cross Schengen area borders.

Residence Permit (3)

This is a residence card delivered by the Prefecture when your residence permit request has been accepted. It is valid for 1 or more years (except for Algerian citizens). Its duration depends on your personal situation and level of studies.

Consult:

Tutorial: Submitting a request for a residence permit online (Campus France)
How to renew your residence permit (titre de séjour) (Campus France)