Country-wide policy
A Contract Signed With the State, an Examination With a Pass Mark, and Three Different Levels of French
A foreigner admitted to stay in France for the first time who wants to remain durably enters a personalised republican integration pathway and signs a contract with the State undertaking to follow the training prescribed to them. Article L. 413-3 says what the pathway contains: civic training on the values, principles and institutions of the Republic and on the organisation, history and culture of French society; language training; professional orientation and support, which is itself conditioned on attendance and seriousness in the first two; and support adapted to the person's needs. The civic training ends in an examination, which may be retaken at any time if the mark falls below the thresholds. Those thresholds then decide residence. Article L. 433-4 makes the step from a one-year card to a multi-year one conditional on attendance, on a pass mark fixed by decree, and on a level of French described as understanding frequently used expressions, communicating in routine tasks and discussing immediate needs. Article L. 413-7 asks for more for the ten-year carte de résident: a higher examination result and a level of French described as understanding reasonably clear conversation, producing simple connected speech and setting out an idea briefly. And article 21-24 of the Code civil asks for more again for naturalisation. Three thresholds, three descriptions, three different moments.
Topics it changes
- Residency through work
- Residency through marriage
- Residency on passive income
- Residency through ancestry
- Becoming a citizen
What it requires
- Signature of a republican integration contract on first admission to stay, unless exempt under article L. 413-5
- Attendance at and serious participation in the prescribed civic and language training
- A pass mark in the civic examination at the level required for the card applied for
At a glance
- Who signs
- A foreigner first admitted to stay, or entering lawfully between sixteen and eighteen, who wishes to remain durably
CESEDA article L. 413-2, subject to the exemptions in article L. 413-5.
- What the pathway contains
- Civic training, language training, professional orientation and support, and individual support
CESEDA article L. 413-3. The orientation is conditioned on attendance at and seriousness in the first two.
- The examination
- The civic training ends in an examination, retakeable at any time on request where the mark is below the thresholds
CESEDA article L. 413-3, sixth paragraph.
- For the multi-year card
- Attendance, a pass mark fixed by decree, and French enough to understand frequently used expressions and discuss immediate needs
CESEDA article L. 433-4, 1° to 4°.
- For the ten-year carte de résident
- A higher examination result, and French enough to follow reasonably clear conversation and set out an idea briefly
CESEDA article L. 413-7, which also sends the file to the mayor for an opinion.
- The mayor's opinion on integration
- Deemed favourable after two months
CESEDA article L. 413-7, second paragraph.
- Over sixty-five
- Not subject to the French-language condition for the carte de résident
CESEDA article L. 413-7, third paragraph.
- Which cards the condition applies to
- The spouse, French-child-parent and family-reunification resident cards, the long-term residence cards, and the permanent resident card
CESEDA article L. 413-7, which names articles L. 423-6, L. 423-10, L. 423-16, L. 421-12, L. 421-25, L. 424-5, L. 424-14, L. 426-19 and L. 426-4.
- Where the levels are fixed
- By decree - the code describes what the applicant must be able to do and names no label
Articles L. 413-7 and L. 433-4 describe the levels; the thresholds are fixed by decree and the decrees were not read.
What the law says
«L'étranger admis pour la première fois au séjour en France ou qui entre régulièrement en France entre l'âge de seize ans et l'âge de dix-huit ans révolus, et qui souhaite s'y maintenir durablement s'engage dans un parcours personnalisé d'intégration républicaine. Ce parcours a pour objectifs la compréhension par l'étranger primo-arrivant des valeurs et principes de la République, l'apprentissage de la langue française, l'intégration sociale et professionnelle et l'accès à l'autonomie.»Who is in the pathway and what it is for. It catches a first admission and a lawful entry between sixteen and eighteen.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The official consolidated text of French codes and statutes. Each code has a stable address built from a LEGITEXT identifier, and the page offers the whole code as a PDF under 'Telecharger le code', which is the only form that carries the text of the articles.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: The domain is behind a bot challenge and answers 403 to every request this project makes, including to the PDF endpoint its own page links to - so every reading here was downloaded by a person in a browser and stored as `manual-read`, and cannot be refreshed by running a command. A browser is not reliable either: one page saved by hand came back as the challenge itself, 5,883 bytes titled 'Just a moment...'. The code page at /codes/texte_lc/ carries only the plan, article numbers in a list with no text, so a reader following a citation to it will not find the quoted words there and has to take the PDF. The PDF states its own two dates on the last line, the last modification and the day it was generated, and the cut-off recorded against a quotation is the first of those. What is not here at all is practice: French immigration decisions rest heavily on circulaires and on prefectural discretion, and neither is published in the code.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«Sous réserve des exceptions prévues à l'article L. 413-5, l'étranger qui s'engage dans le parcours personnalisé d'intégration républicaine conclut avec l'Etat un contrat d'intégration républicaine par lequel il s'engage à suivre les formations et dispositifs d'accompagnement qui lui sont prescrits. S'il est parent, l'étranger s'engage également à assurer à son enfant une éducation respectueuse des valeurs et des principes de la République et à l'accompagner dans sa démarche d'intégration à travers notamment l'acquisition de la langue française.»The contract itself, and the undertaking a parent gives about their child's education in addition to their own.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The official consolidated text of French codes and statutes. Each code has a stable address built from a LEGITEXT identifier, and the page offers the whole code as a PDF under 'Telecharger le code', which is the only form that carries the text of the articles.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: The domain is behind a bot challenge and answers 403 to every request this project makes, including to the PDF endpoint its own page links to - so every reading here was downloaded by a person in a browser and stored as `manual-read`, and cannot be refreshed by running a command. A browser is not reliable either: one page saved by hand came back as the challenge itself, 5,883 bytes titled 'Just a moment...'. The code page at /codes/texte_lc/ carries only the plan, article numbers in a list with no text, so a reader following a citation to it will not find the quoted words there and has to take the PDF. The PDF states its own two dates on the last line, the last modification and the day it was generated, and the cut-off recorded against a quotation is the first of those. What is not here at all is practice: French immigration decisions rest heavily on circulaires and on prefectural discretion, and neither is published in the code.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«Le parcours personnalisé d'intégration républicaine prévu à l'article L. 413-2 comprend notamment : 1° La formation civique prescrite par l'Etat, relative aux valeurs, aux principes, et aux institutions de la République, à l'exercice des droits et devoirs liés à la vie en France ainsi qu'à l'organisation, l'histoire et la culture de la société française ; 2° La formation linguistique prescrite par l'Etat, visant à l'acquisition de la langue française ; 3° Un conseil en orientation professionnelle et un accompagnement destiné à favoriser son insertion professionnelle, en association avec les structures du service public de l'emploi. Cet accompagnement est subordonné à l'assiduité de l'étranger et au sérieux de sa participation aux formations mentionnées aux 1° et 2° du présent article ; 4° Un accompagnement adapté à ses besoins pour faciliter ses conditions d'accueil et d'intégration.»The four components. The third is conditioned on the first two, which turns attendance into something with a consequence.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The official consolidated text of French codes and statutes. Each code has a stable address built from a LEGITEXT identifier, and the page offers the whole code as a PDF under 'Telecharger le code', which is the only form that carries the text of the articles.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: The domain is behind a bot challenge and answers 403 to every request this project makes, including to the PDF endpoint its own page links to - so every reading here was downloaded by a person in a browser and stored as `manual-read`, and cannot be refreshed by running a command. A browser is not reliable either: one page saved by hand came back as the challenge itself, 5,883 bytes titled 'Just a moment...'. The code page at /codes/texte_lc/ carries only the plan, article numbers in a list with no text, so a reader following a citation to it will not find the quoted words there and has to take the PDF. The PDF states its own two dates on the last line, the last modification and the day it was generated, and the cut-off recorded against a quotation is the first of those. What is not here at all is practice: French immigration decisions rest heavily on circulaires and on prefectural discretion, and neither is published in the code.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«La formation civique mentionnée au 1° donne lieu à un examen. L'étranger peut se représenter à cet examen, à sa demande et à tout moment, lorsqu'il a obtenu un résultat inférieur aux seuils mentionnés au premier alinéa de l'article L. 413-7 et au 2° de l'article L. 433-4.»The examination and the right to retake it, with both thresholds named by reference.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The official consolidated text of French codes and statutes. Each code has a stable address built from a LEGITEXT identifier, and the page offers the whole code as a PDF under 'Telecharger le code', which is the only form that carries the text of the articles.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: The domain is behind a bot challenge and answers 403 to every request this project makes, including to the PDF endpoint its own page links to - so every reading here was downloaded by a person in a browser and stored as `manual-read`, and cannot be refreshed by running a command. A browser is not reliable either: one page saved by hand came back as the challenge itself, 5,883 bytes titled 'Just a moment...'. The code page at /codes/texte_lc/ carries only the plan, article numbers in a list with no text, so a reader following a citation to it will not find the quoted words there and has to take the PDF. The PDF states its own two dates on the last line, the last modification and the day it was generated, and the cut-off recorded against a quotation is the first of those. What is not here at all is practice: French immigration decisions rest heavily on circulaires and on prefectural discretion, and neither is published in the code.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«La première délivrance de la carte de résident prévue aux articles L. 423-6, L. 423-10 ou L. 423-16, de la carte de résident portant la mention " résident de longue durée-UE " prévue aux articles L. 421-12, L. 421-25, L. 424-5, L. 424-14 ou L. 426-19, ainsi que de la carte de résident permanent prévue à l'article L. 426-4 est subordonnée à l'intégration républicaine de l'étranger dans la société française, appréciée en particulier au regard du résultat obtenu à l'examen mentionné au sixième alinéa de l'article L. 413-3, qui doit être supérieur à un seuil fixé par décret, et de sa connaissance de la langue française de nature à lui permettre au moins de comprendre des conversations suffisamment claires, de produire un discours simple et cohérent sur des sujets courants et d'exposer succinctement une idée.»The integration condition for the ten-year cards, with the language level written out as a description of what the applicant must be able to do.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The official consolidated text of French codes and statutes. Each code has a stable address built from a LEGITEXT identifier, and the page offers the whole code as a PDF under 'Telecharger le code', which is the only form that carries the text of the articles.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: The domain is behind a bot challenge and answers 403 to every request this project makes, including to the PDF endpoint its own page links to - so every reading here was downloaded by a person in a browser and stored as `manual-read`, and cannot be refreshed by running a command. A browser is not reliable either: one page saved by hand came back as the challenge itself, 5,883 bytes titled 'Just a moment...'. The code page at /codes/texte_lc/ carries only the plan, article numbers in a list with no text, so a reader following a citation to it will not find the quoted words there and has to take the PDF. The PDF states its own two dates on the last line, the last modification and the day it was generated, and the cut-off recorded against a quotation is the first of those. What is not here at all is practice: French immigration decisions rest heavily on circulaires and on prefectural discretion, and neither is published in the code.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«Les étrangers âgés de plus de soixante-cinq ans ne sont pas soumis à la condition relative à la connaissance de la langue française.»The age exemption, which reaches the language condition and not the rest.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The official consolidated text of French codes and statutes. Each code has a stable address built from a LEGITEXT identifier, and the page offers the whole code as a PDF under 'Telecharger le code', which is the only form that carries the text of the articles.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: The domain is behind a bot challenge and answers 403 to every request this project makes, including to the PDF endpoint its own page links to - so every reading here was downloaded by a person in a browser and stored as `manual-read`, and cannot be refreshed by running a command. A browser is not reliable either: one page saved by hand came back as the challenge itself, 5,883 bytes titled 'Just a moment...'. The code page at /codes/texte_lc/ carries only the plan, article numbers in a list with no text, so a reader following a citation to it will not find the quoted words there and has to take the PDF. The PDF states its own two dates on the last line, the last modification and the day it was generated, and the cut-off recorded against a quotation is the first of those. What is not here at all is practice: French immigration decisions rest heavily on circulaires and on prefectural discretion, and neither is published in the code.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«Au terme d'une première année de séjour régulier en France accompli au titre d'un visa de long séjour tel que défini au 2° de l'article L. 411-1 ou, sous réserve des exceptions prévues à l'article L. 433-5, d'une carte de séjour temporaire, l'étranger bénéficie, à sa demande, d'une carte de séjour pluriannuelle dès lors que : 1° Il justifie de son assiduité, sous réserve de circonstances exceptionnelles, et du sérieux de sa participation aux formations prescrites par l'Etat dans le cadre du contrat d'intégration républicaine conclu en application de l'article L. 413-2 ; 2° Il a obtenu un résultat à l'examen mentionné au sixième alinéa de l'article L. 413-3 supérieur ou égal à un seuil fixé par décret ;»The step up to a multi-year card: a year of lawful stay, attendance at the prescribed training, and a pass mark in the civic examination.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The official consolidated text of French codes and statutes. Each code has a stable address built from a LEGITEXT identifier, and the page offers the whole code as a PDF under 'Telecharger le code', which is the only form that carries the text of the articles.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: The domain is behind a bot challenge and answers 403 to every request this project makes, including to the PDF endpoint its own page links to - so every reading here was downloaded by a person in a browser and stored as `manual-read`, and cannot be refreshed by running a command. A browser is not reliable either: one page saved by hand came back as the challenge itself, 5,883 bytes titled 'Just a moment...'. The code page at /codes/texte_lc/ carries only the plan, article numbers in a list with no text, so a reader following a citation to it will not find the quoted words there and has to take the PDF. The PDF states its own two dates on the last line, the last modification and the day it was generated, and the cut-off recorded against a quotation is the first of those. What is not here at all is practice: French immigration decisions rest heavily on circulaires and on prefectural discretion, and neither is published in the code.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
«3° Il justifie d'une connaissance de la langue française lui permettant au moins de comprendre des expressions fréquemment utilisées dans le langage courant, de communiquer lors de tâches habituelles»The lower of the two language descriptions. The quotation stops where the article crosses a page in the published text; the sentence continues with discussing subjects that correspond to immediate needs.
Read it at the sourceAbout this source
The official consolidated text of French codes and statutes. Each code has a stable address built from a LEGITEXT identifier, and the page offers the whole code as a PDF under 'Telecharger le code', which is the only form that carries the text of the articles.
Standing: Maintains the text in force
Cannot be cited for: The domain is behind a bot challenge and answers 403 to every request this project makes, including to the PDF endpoint its own page links to - so every reading here was downloaded by a person in a browser and stored as `manual-read`, and cannot be refreshed by running a command. A browser is not reliable either: one page saved by hand came back as the challenge itself, 5,883 bytes titled 'Just a moment...'. The code page at /codes/texte_lc/ carries only the plan, article numbers in a list with no text, so a reader following a citation to it will not find the quoted words there and has to take the PDF. The PDF states its own two dates on the last line, the last modification and the day it was generated, and the cut-off recorded against a quotation is the first of those. What is not here at all is practice: French immigration decisions rest heavily on circulaires and on prefectural discretion, and neither is published in the code.
We re-read it every 90 days. More about this source
Practical notes
The code never names a language level. It describes, at each step, what the applicant must be able to do with French, and leaves the level and the way it is assessed to decrees that were not read. A reader comparing France with Austria, whose nationality Act states a level by reference to another statute, is comparing two different drafting habits as much as two different standards.
The civic examination is the newer half of this and the one that moves. It did not exist in this form in earlier versions of the pathway, and both article L. 433-4 and article L. 413-7 now hang a residence decision on a mark in it.