Procedures
What to bring. What to say. How long it takes.
Open a French bank account
A French RIB is the unblock-everything document. APL, CAF, salary, URSSAF, landlords: all of it expects one. This procedure picks a path, lists the docs, and walks the application.
75 min4 docsBuild your rental dossier
Assemble the documents French landlords and agencies expect, in one shareable PDF. Reuse it for every visit so you can apply within minutes of seeing a flat.
60 min20 docsValidate your VLS-TS visa
Within 3 months of landing in France on a VLS-TS, validate the visa online and pay the timbre fiscal. Some categories then get an OFII summons for a medical visit and welcome interview. Missing this window makes your renewal harder.
45 min6 docsOpen your French social security file
First-time registration with CPAM, the public health insurer. Gets you a numéro de sécurité sociale (provisoire then définitif) and eventually a Carte Vitale. File this within your first 3 months in France, because most other procedures wait on it.
60 min6 docsRequest APL housing aid
Monthly housing benefit from CAF. Most tenants in France qualify, though since 1 July 2026 non-EU students need a bourse sur critères sociaux. Apply the day you sign your bail: APL pays from the month you apply, not the month you moved in.
45 min5 docs- Professional
Claim Prime d'activité
Monthly top-up from CAF for people in work whose net pay is below ~€2050/month (more if you have kids). Tax-free, paid the 5th of each month, must be re-declared every quarter. Lots of working expats qualify and never claim it.
35 min4 docs File your French income tax
Annual income declaration on impots.gouv.fr. Filed April-June for the previous year. Mandatory if you were fiscally resident in France 6+ months, even if your income was zero. Generates the avis d'imposition that unlocks half the admin you'll need.
60 min5 docs- Student
Renew titre de séjour étudiant
Annual renewal of the student residence permit on ANEF. File between 4 and 2 months before your current titre expires. File too late and you risk losing your right to stay legally during processing.
90 min8 docs - Student
Pay your CVEC
€105/year flat fee paid once per academic year via the CROUS. Universities won't finalise enrolment without your CVEC attestation. Pay it the day you know your school year; there's no advantage in waiting.
10 min - Professional
Register as auto-entrepreneur
Get a SIRET so you can legally invoice clients in France. Free, online, and fast (1-4 weeks). The catch: pick the right activity type up front, because changing it later means closing and reopening the business.
60 min5 docs Apply for French citizenship (décret)
Acquérir la nationalité française par décret. The standard path for residents without a French spouse. Long process (18 to 24 months on average from filing) and a thick dossier. Done right, you walk away with a French passport.
480 min14 docs