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MOVING TO FRANCE

Reader question: How can I get a French address before arriving in France?

It can seem like Catch 22 - you need a French address for a visa or to enter the country, but you can't rent a place until you're in the country. Here is how to secure your first French address.

Published: 29 August 2023 17:38 CEST
Reader question: How can I get a French address before arriving in France?
(Photo by FRED TANNEAU / AFP)

There are several situations where a foreigner wishing to spend extended time in France might need to show proof of address here – even before they have arrived in the country.

The first and most common situation is visa related – certain types of visa including the long-stay visitor visa require proof of accommodation as part of the application.

However, even when entering France for a short stay, non-EU visitors can be asked to show proof of accommodation. 

If you already own property in France this is easy – just show the deeds to your property.

If you intend to rent once you’re in France, then here are some options for fulfilling the accommodation requirement:

Airbnb, hotel or similar

This is the easiest option if you do not know people already living in France – simply book an Airbnb, hotel, B&B or similar short-term accommodation for the initial part of your stay in France and attach the receipt or proof of booking to your application.

Typically, the booking should show at least three months worth of accommodation for a long-stay visa. If you are worried about price, consider prioritising a hotel or Airbnb that allows cancellations.

There is also a possibility that consular authorities will not accept this alone as your proof of accommodation, so it is advised to also write a letter explaining how you will find more permanaent housing once you get to France.

Staying with friends or family

If you know someone living in France, then they can provide an attestation d’accueil, which is a document that confirms you will be staying with them. 

This must be acquired in advance by the host, and then sent to the guest so that they can include it in their visa application or present it at the border as required.

Essentially, the host contacts their local mairie (for people living in Paris, Lyon and Marseille that’s the arrondissement mairie) and requests the form for the attestation d’accueil (or form number n°10798) – you can find a sample copy of the form here.

If you’re travelling as a family then spouses or legally registered partners plus children aged under 18 can all be covered by the same form.

The Local has put together a guide to requesting and presenting an attestation d’acceuil.

Signing a lease in advance

Getting an long-term rental on an apartment or house before you arrive can be tricky – landlords will usually require a dossier of documents including proof of your right to live in France if you are not an EU citizen and often also ask for a French bank account. Banks, on the other hand, usually require you to have a French address in order to open an account.

There are some agencies and relocation services geared toward foreigners moving to France which allow you to sign a short-term lease without having the full dossier of documents. Keep in mind that prices are likely to be higher than going market rates.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about your vital French ‘dossier’

The other option is subletting – not all sublets are legal which means that you can be left in a vulnerable position if things go wrong, but it can be an option particularly if you know the person you are subletting from.

Showing extra funds

If you’re coming to France for a long-stay on a visa then depending on your visa type you may need to provide proof of funds in a bank account – you can learn more about individual visa requirements using The Local’s guide.

For tourists or visitors coming for a short stay who benefit from the 90-day rule, the alternative to providing proof of accommodation for the duration of your trip is showing proof of funds. This can be useful if, for example, you’re planning to tour France as a backpacker or you simply don’t want to commit yourself in advance by booking a place to stay for your entire stay. 

The gist is that tourists who are visiting for under 90-days must show that they can support themselves financially during their trip, which depends on your housing situation when in France.

Short-stay visitors must show at least €32.50 per day if they are being hosted by a French resident, €65 per day if they are staying in a hotel or Airbnb, or €120 per day if accommodation has not yet been secured.

What about once I have arrived in France?

After arrival in France, several administrative procedures, including opening a French bank account, will require a proof of address, or attestation de domicile. 

Usually, this is in the form of recent utility bills (phone, internet, electricity, etc) with your name on them or a rental contract. Property owners may also show their deed.

If you have not secured a permanent address in France yet and you are being hosted by someone, then you can ask that they write you an ‘attestation d’hébergement’. This is a document swearing that you are currently living with your host. You can find a model for how to write one of these documents on the French government website Service-Public.

Keep in mind that an attestation d’hébergement is different from an attestation d’accueil. The former promises that you are currently living with the French resident in question, whereas the latter states that you will be hosted by the French resident.

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VISAS

Ask the expert: What are the French immigration laws for ‘pacsé’ couples?

The French civil partnership known as Pacs is an alternative to marriage - but the situation is complicated if you're hoping to get a French visa or residency permit through being pacsé with a French or other EU national, as immigration lawyer Paul Nicolaÿ explains.

Published: 2 May 2024 11:59 CEST
Ask the expert: What are the French immigration laws for 'pacsé' couples?

In a 2018 judgement, the Conseil d’Etat, France’s highest administrative Court, put an end to a long-running controversy as to whether or not an individual, signatory of a civil partnership under French law (Pacs) with a European citizen could be considered as a family member of the latter and therefore benefit from favourable EU regulations on immigration.

One of the core principles of the European Union has always been to facilitate the movement of European citizens within the territories of the Member States. And obviously, expatriation is a much more attractive option if family members are allowed to remain united without time limit and with rights equivalent to those of local citizens.

These assumptions form the basis of the European directive 2004/38/EC of 29 April 2004 on the right of citizens of the Union and their family members to move and reside freely within the territory of the Member States.

This regulation gives a precise definition of a “family member” that includes the spouse, the descendant, the ascendant in a state of dependance, and also “the partner with whom the Union citizen has contracted a registered partnership, on the basis of the legislation of a Member State, if the legislation of the host Member State treats registered partnerships as equivalent to marriage and in accordance with the conditions laid down in the relevant legislation of the host Member State”.

In other words, if a civil partnership, implemented by an EU Member State such as France, confers on its signatories the same status and the same rights and obligations as a marriage contracted in the same country, then civil partners must be considered as spouses under the EU aforementioned directive, and therefore benefit from the right to move and reside freely within the EU.

Quite logically, the issue was raised concerning the French civil partnership implemented in 1999 and called Partenariat civil de solidarité (Pacs).

After all, Pacs and marriage have in common the same obligation of common life, a commitment to mutual material support and the same consequences on taxes. In the meantime, unlike marriage, Pacs contracts have little to no effect on parentage, nationality, property, and inheritance and are much easier to rescind.

READ ALSO What are the differences between Pacs and marriage?

The first answer given to that question by the French legislative power in 2006 was that Pacs and marriage were not equivalent.

In the following years however, several administrative Courts have ruled otherwise, in contradiction with French national law, and considered that the most important aspects of a Pacs contract make it roughly similar to a civil marriage.

The final word belonged to the Conseil d’Etat, France’s highest administrative Court, which in 2018 overturned this position and definitely ruled that, due to the essential differences between Pacs and marriage, only married spouses are considered family members under EU law.

In practical terms, the main outcome of this legal controversy is that non European nationals cannot apply for a French visa or residence card as family members of an EU citizen, simply due to the fact that they signed a Pacs contract with an EU national.

Of course, other solutions exist for them but, undoubtedly, they do not benefit from EU law and remain under a much less favourable status than spouses of EU citizens residing in France.

READ ALSO What type of French visa do I need?

Their main option is to apply for a residence card under the status vie privée et familiale (private and family life), but in this case préfectures require the proof of a stable and continuous common life of at least one year.

From our experience, we know that some préfectures agree to issue 5-year residence cards to third country citizens pacsé with a European citizen living in France, as family members of an EU citizen. Such applications are processed via ANEF now. However this cannot be considered a general rule and we strongly advise you to contact your local prefecture as soon as possible in order to know what you can and cannot do.

Paul Nicolaÿ is a French lawyer based near Paris and specialising in French immigration and nationality law – find his website here.

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