Who can apply for French citizenship?
Children of a French national (including those not born or living in France) can apply for French citizenship; People married to a French national for at least four years can apply for French citizenship. Note that if you were married outside of the country you will have to register your marriage in France’s marriage registry.
If neither of these scenarios applies to you, you might be able to acquire French citizenship through naturalization. The road to obtaining naturalized French citizenship from scratch usually starts with permanent residency. Typically, you will have established permanent residence in France for five years before you can apply. But there are some exceptions that make the process speedier. If you’ve studied at a French higher education institute, or have made exceptional contributions to the French state, or if you are from a Francophone country it’s possible that the French citizenship procedure can be fast-tracked. Still, other people live decades if not a lifetime in France as permanent residents without taking out French citizenship.
French permanent residence vs citizenship. Pros and cons
The permanent residency permit is known as a carte de résident de longue durée. You must have established residency in France for 5 years before you become eligible for permanent residence, unless you are married to a French citizen or are the parent of a child of a French national, in which case you can apply for a residency permit after three years in France. To get your hands on a carte de résident de longue durée, you need to complete an application, including with it several documents such as:
- Your passport
- Birth and marriage certificates
- Proof of residence and health insurance
- Employment contract and or proof of financial stability.
You can look at or request a copy of this application through the government website. A French permanent residence is renewable every ten years. You could choose to live in France indefinitely with this status. And if retaining residency in your home country is important or you don’t foresee a move to France for the long haul, then there are advantages to keeping permanent residence and not applying for citizenship. Of course, if you aren’t a citizen you won’t have the right to vote in elections.
As for citizenship: France allows dual citizenship so you don’t necessarily have to give up your first citizenship as long as your country of origin also accepts dual citizenship, as well. Besides having the right to vote, another advantage of having French citizenship: it opens doors to other countries in the EU under the Schengen agreement. If you think you foresee a future where you’d want to travel, live and work without restrictions imposed on non-EU citizens, this is an obvious advantage.
Citizens will have the duty to both laws and principles of the land. The benefits and responsibilities of French citizens are all set out on the Interior Ministry website.
French residency rules after Brexit
Since Brexit came into effect on 1 January 2021, British nationals can no longer up and move to France, just like that, as they could as members of the EU. Now, like other non-EU citizens, they need to obtain a temporary visitor visa, known as a ‘VLS-T Visiteur’ if they are planning a stay in France between three and six months in a year. (Like other non-EU visitors, UK nationals have the right to free movement for three months in France, or any other Schengen country, but can’t legally work in the country). There are multiple paths to obtaining the long-stay visa, including moving to France for work with a non-French company that has offices in France, through self-employment or buying property to name a few. The type of residence permit depends on the length and nature of stay. For stays longer than six months in a year one must apply for a more prolonged-Long Stay Visitor Visa (visa de long séjour valant titre de séjour VLS-TS « visiteur »).
Excluded from these Temporary Visitor Visa or Long Stay visa scenarios are British citizens married to EU nationals; they are not required to have a visa to settle in France under the EU withdrawal agreement.
EU citizens who have resided in France for 5 years can almost automatically obtain a permanent residence permit. You need only prove you've started in France for more than five years.
For more information, we invite you to check out our guide on : Things you should know when Moving to France after Brexit.
How to apply for citizenship
The process for applying for French Citizenship starts with the compiling of a dossier, (aka all that famous paperwork).
You need to fill out the application form, known as the demande d’acquisition de la nationalité française par naturalisation ou réintégration (Formulaire 12753) You can access it through the French Ministry of the Interior.
If you’re applying for citizenship through naturalization you will need to bring your dossier to the local prefecture or to the nearest French embassy or consulate if you are outside of the country.
Since February 6th 2023, it's been now possible to submit applications directly through the French government website.
If you are applying for citizenship by birth - you’ll not take the application to the local French prefecture but to the local town hall, or again, or to the French embassy or consulate if you are outside of France. Your local prefecture or mairie or embassy will tell you what to expect when you submit your application. Don’t be discouraged about all the form filling. Just fill out everything you’re asked to fill out, even if you don’t see the logic in a particular part of it.
Service-Public.fr has a very useful interactive questionnaire to help work out what documents you need.
Following the application, you will have at least one, or likely several interviews which will include a test of your knowledge of the French language (in fact your meetings will be in French unless under exceptional circumstances so the meeting itself will be a test of your language proficiency), the country’s values and principles, laws, the rights of French citizens and systems and organization of government.
In addition, any way you can show that you are integrating or will integrate into French society is helpful as this is something the French government expects you to do. Even taking an art history class or tutoring someone in French history, for example, could score points. Again you want to show that you intend to contribute to French society, both professionally and personally. The Livret du Citoyen gives information on the kinds of information they could ask you to provide during an interview.
The processing of the application typically takes several months, but it depends on each applicant’s particular story. Always remember to provide additional information they may ask for, or it will hold up your application longer.
Once your citizenship has been granted you will have a carte d’identite and can apply for a French passport as any French citizen.
Summary
Whether starting the journey to becoming a French citizen or a permanent resident, the process can seem long and complex. However, with a little patience and a good grasp of French, you can navigate the system and be on your way to a permanent life in La République.
