I married a French citizen: how do I get my residence permit?
Married to a French citizen, you are entitled to a vie privée et familiale (private and family life) residence permit, as long as you keep living together. If you married abroad, the marriage must first be transcribed into the French civil registers. From outside France, the route is the long-stay spouse visa. Inside France, the answer depends on how you entered and where you married.
You married outside France
- Ask the French consulate responsible for the place of marriage to transcribe it. Without transcription, there is no permit.
- Ask the consulate for the long-stay spouse visa. It can be refused only for fraud, annulment of the marriage or a threat to public order.
- After you arrive, validate the visa online. Before the end of the first year, apply to the préfecture for the vie privée et familiale residence permit.
You married in France
If you entered France lawfully, married here and have lived with your spouse in France for at least six months, you can apply for the permit directly at the préfecture. You do not need to go back and get a visa. Entering without a visa, for a nationality that does not need one and within the period allowed, counts as lawful entry.
Foreign documents
- A full birth certificate, recent, with an apostille. For a Brazilian: certidão de nascimento de inteiro teor com apostila.
- An apostilled marriage certificate, if you married abroad.
- A French translation by a sworn translator in France (traducteur assermenté).
- Your passport and proof that you live together: a joint account, a lease in both names, household bills.
What can go wrong
- The marriage abroad was never transcribed. The préfecture will not accept the application. Start with the transcription.
- Your life together is questioned, for example because you live at different addresses. Gather proof from the start.
- You entered France unlawfully. The route is different, and harder. Talk to me before you apply.
The other routes for families are on the page family reunification in Nice.
I sign a written fee agreement with you before any work starts, and I accept legal aid (aide juridictionnelle). Details: legal notice.
Common questions
- Can I work while I wait for the permit?
- With a validated spouse visa, yes. If you applied for the permit in France after marrying here, the temporary document does not always allow work; I check with you.
- How long before I can apply for French nationality?
- A declaration of nationality by marriage is possible after several years of marriage and life together. The exact period depends on where you have lived; I will let you know when the time comes.
- My marriage has ended. Do I lose my permit?
- Not necessarily, but the renewal is at risk. Some situations protect you, such as domestic violence. Talk to me before the préfecture decides.