One of the French visa application conditions is that the candidate must pay application fees prior to application submission. Once fees are paid, a receipt will be sent to the applicant which confirms that the application is complete. This quick guide will provide each candidate with all the information they need to know about French visa fees.
What are the French visa fees?
According to the purpose of the visit – different fees apply. Here are all visa types and fees in both euros and dollars in brackets:
- Airport Transit Visa – €80 ($88.43)
- Short Stay – €80 ($88.43)
- Short Stay visa for French Overseas Region/Department – €80 ($88.43)
- Short Stay visa for French Overseas Territory – €15 ($16.70)
- Short Stay visas for Children – €40 ($38.90)
- Student Visa – €50 ($55.60)
- Long Stay Visa for Adopted Child of French citizen – €15 ($16.70)
- Long Stay Visas – €99 ($110.10)
- For African citizens – €80 ($88.43)
Additionally, a fee for biometric (fingerprints & photo) information will have to be paid. In some cases, if the applicant is using a private sub-contracted company additional administration fees may apply.
Exemptions to visa fees
In some situations a fee reduction or full exemption is applicable. Here are the following categories that benefit from the reduced fee:
- short-stay visas issued to minors aged 6-11 that permit entry to all French territories – €40
- short-stay visa for citizens from countries that are under a facilitation agreement with the EU (Georgia, Russia, Ukraine and Kosovo). This applies to biometric passport holders only – €35
Categories that are fully exempt from paying a visa fee are:
- wife or husband of a French citizens
- diplomatic passport holders
- a family member of a citizen from an EU or EEA member state
- a family member of Swiss citizen
- foreign government visa holders, foundations, or EU study grants
- government study grants visa holder
- minors under the age of 6 (excluding New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Wallis and Futuna, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Mayotte and French Southern and Antarctic Lands)
- seasonal worker
- scientific researcher
- a teacher who is travelling for purpose of study trip or educational training & students that are travelling with the teacher
- a language assistant or teaching assistant
- a foreign individual who is taking advantage of the working holiday from a France-Japan, France-Korea, France-Argentina or France Columbia agreement
France Residence Permit fees
- VLS-TS – €250 (€ 60 for students and trainees)
- Private and family life – €269
- Temporary worker – €269
- Visitor card – €269
- Passport Talent– €269
- Seasonal worker– €19
- Retired – €19
- EU Blue Card – €269
- Citizen EU / EEA / Switzerland – €25
- Citizen EU / EEA / Switzerland (permanent stay) €25
- Family of a European (permanent stay)– €25
- Foreign student/intern in France – €79
- Foreigner graduated from higher education in France – free
- 10-year resident card of a foreigner in France – €269 (€19 for refugees and stateless people)
- EU long-term resident card – €269-449
- Permanent Resident Card – €269
France EU Blue Card fee
An EU blue card is a residence permit for those that do not qualify to work in the EU – aimed at non-EU nationals. A Blue card allows one to enter, remain and work in an EU country.
The application fee for a French EU Blue card is equal to €260, whilst renewal is an additional €200. A replacement for another type of residence permit is €2,016! Moreover, the application fee is non-refundable – so if the application is rejected, money won’t be returned.
Other requirements for French visa
Other than the visa fee, other general requirements for a French visa application include:
- completed application form
- recent copies of visa photos
- a valid passport (with two blank pages for stamping purposes)
- evidence confirming the applicant’s address
- evidence of exit flights and travel itinerary
- evidence of purchased insurance
- cover letter (explaining the purpose of the trip)
- evidence of booked accommodation – or letter of invitation if stying at a friends house
- evidence of civil status
French visa photo guideline
Here are all standard requirements for a French visa photo:
- Photo’s size must be: 45mm x 35mm.
- Photo must be in colour and have a white background
- The head position should be centred and forward-facing
- The face must be between 30mm-36mm (and cover 50-70% of the photo)
- Photo must be recent – no older than 6 months
- Smiling, frowning or other facial expressions other than neutral are not allowed
- Glasses and headwear must be removed for the photo
- Dress Code – casual daily wear (uniforms and white coloured clothing won’t be accepted)
