Formalities in France
EU citizens
If you are staying in France for up to 3 months, all you need is a valid ID card or passport. If you are staying over 3 months, you can ask for a “European Union” carte de séjour (residence card). It is not mandatory and delivered free of charge. It is valid for a maximum period of 1 year for students enrolled in a higher education institute. Alumni advise students to register with their Consulate, but doing so is not mandatory.
Non-EU citizens
Before you leave your country, you will need a long-stay visa and then have to apply for a temporary student carte de séjour (residence card). Students with long-stay visas have 3 months to apply for their residence cards (which will be valid for the duration of their stay, for a maximum of one year, and renewable).
As with EU citizens, alumni advise students to register with their Consulate, but doing so is not mandatory.
The carte de séjour
In most cases, you will have to apply for your residence card at a Préfecture. A Préfecture is the local branch of central government, running a department or region (group of departments). A residence card is valid for 1 year and you have to apply for a renewal 2 months before it expires (it costs about €26).
EU citizens:
Préfecture de Police - Service “Étrangers”
7 boulevard du Palais - 75004 Paris
(8.35 am to 5.25 pm) - Tel. +33 (0)1 53 71 51 68
Non-EU citizens:
Préfecture de Police - Centre de Réception des Étudiants Étrangers
13 rue Miollis - 75015 Paris
Tel.: +33 (0)1 53 71 51 68
Paris Police Préfecture website
Getting your residence card
You have to fill out a form and provide all the required documents. The list of required documents is fairly long, but more or less the same as the list of documents you need for your visa:
- Certificate of enrolment in a higher education institute
- Certificate of welfare cover
- Certificate of accommodation
- Certificate stating your financial resources
- 2 passport photos
- A self-addressed envelope with a €0.53 stamp
Non-EU citizens also need:
- A €33.54 fiscal stamp (tobacconists sell them)
- The medical certificate from your compulsory medical examination at the Office des Migrations Internationales (OMI).
The Schengen area
10 EU countries (France, Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Italy and Greece) signed the Schengen Convention to organise circulation and security for their citizens.
You may travel from any Schengen country to any other Schengen country of you have a visa or residence permit for one of them.
