Plan your arrival in France
Moving to France: start with your circumstances
Study, employment and a family move involve different questions. Put your plans in order before collecting documents or booking appointments.
- First
- Check whether you need a visa
- Then
- Identify your purpose of stay
- On arrival
- Check the formalities for your visa
Check the route before preparing an application
For mainland France, stays exceeding 90 days generally require a long-stay visa unless an exemption applies. Nationality and residence status matter: do not assume you need the same procedure as someone else. Long-stay visas
The official France-Visas assistant helps you check whether you need a visa and the supporting documents for your circumstances. Open the official visa assistant
Describe what you plan to do in practical terms
For study, identify the institution, programme and dates. For an employment-related move, clarify who will employ you and where you will work. For a family move, note who is relocating and the relationship between each person.
Use those facts to check the appropriate category through the official channel. Keep a list of questions before ordering translations, arranging housing or committing to an arrival date.
A visa and arrival formalities are two stages
Depending on the visa, you may need to validate a VLS-TS online or apply for a residence card. Check the exact wording on your visa and the official deadline applicable to your situation. Formalities on arrival in France
Prepare a separate arrival checklist: address, documents available and outstanding tasks. If you will keep ties with Spain, also identify what needs attention here.
Does your move to France involve decisions in Spain too?
Tell us about your plans and their connection with Spain. Before you engage us, we will explain which part MEDLA can review and which questions belong with the destination country.
