French residence permit cost: the total for your application
Choose the permit and the procedure: the calculator separates tax from stamp duty and adds up the years of your route.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
Payable in tax stamps
€350
Standard rate · First issue
| Tax | €300 |
| Stamp duty | €50 |
| Over 3 year(s), per person | €900 |
Amounts due when the permit is handed over (or the visa validated), in force since 1 May 2026. The visa fee paid at the consulate comes on top; it varies by country.
Fee schedule and sourcesA French residence permit (titre de séjour) is paid for in tax stamps (timbres fiscaux) when the card is handed over, and the price depends on three things: the permit's rate, the procedure and your route. Since 1 May 2026, a first issue at the standard rate costs €350 (€300 tax plus €50 stamp duty) and a renewal €250; at the reduced rate, €150 and then €100. An employee card therefore costs €350 the first time, and an employee's full three-year arrival, visa validation included, €900. A student staying four years pays €450. Someone who entered without a long-stay visa and applies for a private and family life card pays €650, regularisation fee included. A visitor-card renewal filed late rises to €430. The visa fee paid at the consulate before departure comes on top and varies by country.
What the calculator adds up
It reads each permit's rate on its own official page: 15 of the permits offered are at the standard rate, 9 at the reduced rate, the others at stamp duty only or free. It then adds the amounts that depend on your route: the VLS-TS validation tax in the first year, the regularisation visa fee if you entered without a long-stay visa, and the €180 fee if a renewal is filed after the deadline. The "route" line assumes the most common sequence: visa validated in year one, first card in year two, then one renewal a year.
| Procedure | Standard rate | Reduced rate |
|---|---|---|
| First issue or replacement | €350 | €150 |
| of which tax | €300 | €100 |
| Renewal | €250 | €100 |
| VLS-TS validation | €300 | €100 |
Amounts added by your route
The €300 regularisation visa fee applies to someone who entered France without a long-stay visa and asks for a first card: €100 is paid at filing and kept even if the application fails. The €180 fee hits a renewal filed late, unless there is force majeure or a valid visa. Both amounts appear on each permit's page, for instance the official employee-card page, and rest on sections L436-1 onwards of the CESEDA immigration code.
Limits
The calculator does not know the consulate's visa fee, which depends on the country, or the cost of translating and legalising documents. Algerian nationals fall under the Franco-Algerian agreement, under which some certificates are free. The tax stamp page explains how to buy the right stamp.