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What happens with France’s controversial immigration bill on Thursday?

On Thursday France's highest constitutional authority will examine the government's controversial immigration bill - we look at what will happen, which parts of the bill could be rejected and whether the decision is likely to result in violent street protests such as those seen after the pension reform.

Published: 22 January 2024 10:13 CET
Updated: 24 January 2024 17:34 CET
What happens with France's controversial immigration bill on Thursday?
Thousands protest in Paris against the new immigration law, which will be examined by the Constitutional Council on Thursday. Photo by Guillaume BAPTISTE / AFP

What’s happening?

On Thursday, January 25th, France’s Constitutional Council will deliver its verdict on the immigration bill that was passed by the parliament just before Christmas.

The Council’s job is to scrutinise all new laws to ensure that they comply with the French constitution and with France’s legal and international obligations.

Decisions are delivered by the sages (wise people) who make up the council, who have been considering this bill since December 26th. Deliberations take place in private so we will only know the overall decision, not how each council member voted.

The council has three choices; approve the bill in its current form, reject the bill in its entirety or tell the government to make changes to certain parts of the bill.

The decision of the council is final and there is no right of appeal, so Thursday is the crunch day when we find out whether and in what form the bill will become law. 

What will happen?

Only a fool would try to second-guess the wise ones, but many political commentators expect that certain sections of the bill will cause problems for the Council.

It’s very rare for the Constitutional Council to reject an entire bill (it’s only happened once since 1958) but it’s not unusual for the government to be told to make changes, and in fact political insiders say this is that the government wants.

Huh? The government wants its own bill to be changed?

Yes, because the bill that finally passed in the Assemblée nationale in December was very different to one originally proposed.

It’s a long and complicated story – full details here – but basically the government had to do a lot of political horse-trading to get enough MPs to support the bill, and the result was dozens of extra amendments being added by right-wing parties.

The final version of the bill was described by one leftist as ‘a National Front pamphlet from the 1980s’ – that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but it’s certainly a lot more hardline than the original.

READ ALSO What’s in France’s new immigration bill and how will it affect foreigners in France

So which bits are likely to be changed or killed?

There’s not much in the government’s original bill that is likely to trouble the constitutional experts on the Council, so these bits seem likely to remain in, including the compulsory language tests for long-term residency cards. 

Several of the amendments that were added later are, however, expected to be either rejected outright or significantly altered. 

Here are some the sections that could be altered;

Benefit restrictions – the new law restricts access to benefits such as family allowance, housing allowance and top-up benefits for pensioners to people who who have lived in France to five years (unemployment benefits are not affected).

It is estimated that this will affect up to 110,000 legally-registered immigrants in France, including 33,000 children with charities warning that tens of thousands of people will be thrown into poverty by the changes. A total of 32 local authorities, including Paris, have already said that they will refuse to apply the new rules.

Migration cap – the bill demands an annual debate in parliament on the subject of immigration, and for parliamentarians to “determine the number of foreigners admitted to settle permanently in France” – in other words an immigration quota.

Family reunification – non-EU immigrants in France who wish to be joined by family member such as a spouse or children will have to wait 24 months before they can apply for a family reunification visa, up from 18 months currently. There are also enhanced financial requirements for applications.

Citizenship – the bill ends the droit du sol, or the automatic right of children born in France to foreign parents to French citizenship. This does not affect foreigners applying for citizenship through residency, marriage or ancestry.

Foreign students deposit – non-EU students coming to France to study will have to lodge a deposit with the State when applying for their visa, in order to cover “unexpected costs” during their stay in France. This will be refundable, but the exact amount has not been specified.

Medical care – one of the most controversial amendments proposed was an end to the Aide Medicale de l’Etat (AME) which provides healthcare for undocumented immigrants, in the final version of the bill this was watered down to a promise to review the AME system, and it is therefore unlikely to trouble the Constitutional Council.

British second-home owners – One amendment that has got a lot less attention in the French press – but which is of vital importance to British second-home owners – is the proposal to exempt Brits who own property in France from visa rules, in effect returning to pre-Brexit freedom of movement for Brits, but only those who own property in France.

This was initially in parliament on equality grounds (essentially giving one group special status because they are wealthy enough to own two properties) and could also potentially create problems with the EU since the 90-day rule is an EU one. 

We’ve got a look at this issue in more detail HERE. 

It’s possible that other parts of the bill will also be flagged by the Council – you can read a full explanation of what is in the bill HERE.

Will there be riots?

Last time we were waiting on a decision from the Constitutional Council it was over the pension reforms and their ruling was followed by days of street protest in cities across France, some of which turned violent.

It’s unlikely that we will see anything like the same scale of protest over the immigration bill, no matter how the decision goes as unlike pension reform this isn’t an issue that affects most people’s lives.

However there have been protests over the bill – over the weekend tens of thousands of people turned out to protests in several of France’s bigger cities, including Paris.

Earlier in the week, students in Paris blockaded several lycées (high schools) and set fire to bins. 

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LIVING IN FRANCE

Why you might get a letter about French benefits

France is introducing stricter residency requirements for certain benefits, including those that foreigners in France can qualify for, and has begun sending letters out to recipients.

Published: 30 April 2024 14:07 CEST
Why you might get a letter about French benefits

In April, the French government passed a decree that will tighten up residency requirements for different types of benefits, including the old-age top-up benefit.

Previously, the rule for most benefits was residency in France for at least six months of the previous year to qualify, though some required eight months and others, like the RSA (a top-up for people with little to no income) requires nine months’ residency per year.

However, the government announced in 2023 its intention to increase the period to nine months for several different programmes – which was put into decree in April – in an effort to combat social security fraud, as well as to standardise the system.

The changes, which will go into effect at the start of 2025, do not affect access to healthcare – foreigners can still access French public healthcare as long as they have been resident here for a minimum of three months. 

Similarly, the rules for accessing chômage (unemployment benefits) have not changed yet. Currently, you must have worked for at least six months out of the last 24 months to be eligible, as well as meeting other criteria including how you left your previous job.

This may change in the future, however, with the French government poised to reform the unemployment system again.

READ MORE: How France plans cuts to its generous unemployment system

Which benefits are affected?

The old-age benefit – or the ASPA – will apply the new nine month requirement. Previously, people needed to be in France for at least six months out of the year to qualify.

If you receive this benefit already, you will probably get a letter in the mail in the near future informing you of the change – this is a form letter and does not necessarily mean that your benefits will change.

If you are already a recipient – and you live in France for at least nine months out of the year – then you do not need to worry about your access to the ASPA changing.

If you want to access this benefit, it is available to certain foreigners, even though it is intended to help elderly (over 65) French citizens with low state pensions.

It is only available to foreigners who have been living legally in France for at least 10 years, and starting in 2025 you will need to spend nine out of 12 months a year in France. You can find more information at THIS French government website.

Otherwise, prestations familiales, or family benefits will be affected by the new nine month residency rule. These are available to foreigners with valid residency cards, as long as their children also live in France.

This includes the family allowance (given out by CAF), which is available for families on low incomes with more than two children, as well as the ‘Prime à la Naissance’, which is a means-tested one-off allowance paid in the seventh month of pregnancy to effectively help with the start-up costs of becoming a parent, will also be affected by the new nine month residency rule. 

READ MORE: France’s family benefit system explained

If you receive these benefits already, then you will likely receive a letter explaining the changes shortly.

And finally – the RSA, which is the top-up benefit for people with little to no income, was already held to the nine month standard, so there will be no residency-related changes.

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