French language requirement: A2, B1 or B2 depending on your application
Pick the application and enter your age: the mini-calculator gives the level to prove and says whether the civic exam applies too.
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Which French level for your application?
Level required (spoken and written)
A2
| Civic exam | 32/40 correct |
| Age exemption | 65 and over |
Since 1 January 2026, French has to be proved at one of three levels depending on what you apply for. A first multi-year residence card (carte de séjour pluriannuelle) needs level A2 of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR); a first resident card, EU long-term resident card or permanent resident card needs B1; naturalisation and citizenship through marriage need B2, spoken and written. People aged 65 or over are exempt for the cards, but age gives no exemption for citizenship, except for a refugee or stateless person over 70 who has lived in France for at least fifteen years. The level is proved with a French diploma (brevet, CAP, BEP, any level-3 qualification or higher), a language diploma (DELF, DALF, DCL, DUEF, DFP) or a TCF or TEF test under two years old taken at an approved centre. A diploma issued abroad, even in a French-speaking country, is not accepted for the cards. The one general exception is a disability or health condition that makes assessment impossible, certified by a doctor.
Three applications, three levels
The mini-calculator above applies the grid below, taken from the official page on proving French for the resident and multi-year cards and the official page on French for citizenship.
| Application | Level required | Age exemption | Civic exam |
|---|---|---|---|
| First multi-year residence card | A2 | 65 and over | yes (except 65 and over) |
| First resident card (incl. EU long-term, permanent) | B1 | 65 and over | yes (except 65 and over) |
| Naturalisation or reinstatement by decree | B2 | refugee or stateless person over 70 with 15 years’ residence | yes |
| Citizenship declaration through marriage | B2 | none | no |
| Renewing a card | none | - | no |
What A2, B1 and B2 mean
They are levels of the Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. At A2, you understand isolated sentences and everyday expressions about personal details, shopping and work, can handle simple exchanges on familiar topics and describe your background and surroundings in simple terms. At B1, you follow the main points of clear standard speech about work, school or leisure, cope with most everyday situations, can tell a story and briefly explain a plan. B2, required for citizenship in both speaking and writing, means a clearly more fluent command.
Residence cards: who is affected
For the first multi-year card, A2 applies to people under 65, with three exceptions: permits outside the republican integration contract (contrat d’intégration républicaine, CIR), subsidiary-protection holders and their families, and stateless people and their families. For the first resident card, B1 applies in particular to the spouse of a French national, the parent of a French child, family members who came through family reunification with a resident, the EU long-term resident card (talent and EU Blue Card holders after five years, refugees, subsidiary protection, five years of lawful residence) and the permanent resident card. The resident card page works out when your residence period is met; the multi-year card page gives the filing window.
How to prove your level for a card
Four routes are accepted, governed in particular by article R413-15 of the CESEDA immigration code:
- a language certification from a body recognised by the Interior Ministry: only the TCF (France Éducation international) and the TEF (Paris Île-de-France Chamber of Commerce) qualify. Four separate papers, in person, on one day, supervised and with an identity check; the certificate is valid for two years;
- a French language diploma at the required level or above: DUEF from the university French-studies centres, the Paris Chamber’s professional French diploma (DFP), DELF, DALF or DELF Pro from France Éducation international, or the national education DCL;
- a vocational certification at level 3 or above, registered in the national register of vocational certifications (RNCP);
- a national diploma at level 3 or above (CAP, BEP, certificat de formation générale) or the brevet.
Diplomas issued by a foreign authority are not accepted, even from a French-speaking country. With a disability or chronic illness, test arrangements are possible, and a full exemption if assessment is impossible: your GP fills in a medical certificate, which the prefecture can have checked.
How to prove your level for citizenship
For naturalisation and for the marriage declaration alike, the file must contain one of these: the brevet; a state diploma or vocational certification at level 3 or above, registered nationally; a diploma showing level B2; or a TCF or TEF pass certificate issued within the last two years (order of 22 December 2025 on language tests). The case officer may order a fresh medical assessment to check a health exemption. A political refugee or stateless person over 70 who has lived in France for at least fifteen years with a valid permit does not have to produce a diploma for naturalisation.
At work and on arrival
According to the official page on French for non-EU employees, a foreign national settling long term normally signs the republican integration contract and takes a spoken and written test run by OFII (the French immigration and integration office); depending on the result, you follow a language course or are exempted. An employer can offer training towards A2 in its skills-development plan, and you can use your personal training account. Working towards B1 early avoids being blocked at the resident-card stage five years later.
In practice
Check the date on your certificate: a test more than two years old is no longer accepted on the filing day. Plan the order of your steps too: a TCF taken for the multi-year card at A2 will have expired by the time you can apply for the resident card, so you will sit a new test at B1 then, and another at B2 if you later apply for citizenship. Keeping copies of every certificate and diploma in one folder saves time, because the prefecture and the naturalisation platform each ask for the original. For citizenship, add the civic exam, which is separate from the language test. This is information, not legal advice; only the prefecture or the ministry assesses your file.