Which residence permit fits your situation?
Two answers are enough for a first result; salary, degree and years already in France refine it.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
Permit that matches your answers
Talent card: skilled employee or innovative company
| Year 1: VLS-TS validation | €300 |
| Year 2: first card | €350 |
| Alternative | “Salarié” (employee) residence permit |
| Resident card (B1 French, civic exam) | in 5 years |
| Naturalisation by decree (B2 French) | in 5 years |
A French degree at least equivalent to a master’s and a salary of at least €39,582 gross a year (contract over three months).
Rules applied and sourcesA non-EU adult staying in France for more than three months needs a long-stay visa or a residence permit (titre de séjour); EU, EEA and Swiss citizens do not. Which permit depends on the purpose of the stay. For a skilled job paying at least €59,373 gross a year, it is the EU Blue Card; with a French master's degree and at least €39,582, the talent card for skilled employees; below those levels, the employee ("salarié") card, after the employer obtains a work authorisation. A student arrives on a VLS-TS visa validated for €100, an employee for €300. A French national's spouse receives a private and family life card, then the resident card after 3 years of marriage. The family of a foreign national living lawfully in France goes through family reunification, which opens once the sponsor has 18 months of residence. The calculator applies these rules and shows how many years remain before the multi-year card, the resident card and citizenship.
How the decision tree reads your answers
The first question sorts by nationality. A European citizen needs no permit at all, as the official page on permits required beyond three months confirms. An Algerian falls under separate residence certificates. Everyone else moves to the second question, your plan in France, which picks the ground for residence under the CESEDA (the immigration code). The remaining fields refine that ground: salary and degree for skilled work, years of marriage for a French national's spouse, years already spent in France for family reunification and for the later steps.
| Situation | Permit suggested | Next step |
|---|---|---|
| Engineer, €62,000 gross a year | EU Blue Card | Resident card in 5 years |
| French master's, €42,000 | Talent: skilled employee | Citizenship in 5 years |
| No master's, €42,000 | Employee card | Resident card in 5 years |
| Married to a French national for a year | Private and family life | Resident in 2 years, citizenship in 3 |
| Joining a spouse in France for a year | Family reunification | Wait for the sponsor’s 18 months |
Work: three thresholds, three permits
Salary decides. From €59,373 gross a year, with three years of higher education or five years of experience and a contract of at least 6 months, the EU Blue Card. From €39,582, with a master's earned in France, the talent card for skilled employees. Both appear on the official talent card page. Below them, the employee card on the employee permit page requires a work authorisation obtained by the employer.
Family, study, own means
The spouse and the parent of a French child come under the private and family life card (vie privée et familiale). The spouse of a foreign resident goes through family reunification. A student must show €877.50 a month (student page), a visitor the net minimum wage, €1,477.93 a month (visitor page). For someone in France without a permit, only exceptional admission remains possible, case by case. The cost of each route is broken down in the cost calculator.