Last verified: 4 October 2026, based on the official pages cited at the bottom of the page.
What is the OFII, and why do you hear about it as soon as you arrive
You validate your VLS-TS online, on the ANEF (Administration Numérique des Étrangers en France) website, an online procedure of the ministry in charge of the interior.
The OFII (French Office for Immigration and Integration) comes in later in the process: it prepares the Republican Integration Contract (CIR) and presents it with its translation, and it organises a medical examination in certain cases, such as family reunification. For a student who has just arrived, the real deadlines are elsewhere: online validation, then—if needed—renewal of the permit. This guide puts them in order.
Step 1 — Validate your long-stay visa online (ANEF), within 3 months
A VLS-TS (long-stay visa equivalent to a residence permit) counts as a residence permit (titre de séjour): it means you do not have to apply for a residence permit card (carte de séjour) at the prefecture (préfecture) as soon as you arrive—as long as you validate it.
- Within 3 months of your arrival in France, validate your VLS-TS online, on the ANEF website.
- Pay the validation fee, which is in addition to the visa fee (amounts just below).
- Afterwards, change of address is also done on ANEF: with a residence permit card lasting more than 1 year, you must declare your new address within 3 months of moving.
The online procedure allows you to be in regular stay and to cross the Schengen area border again.
How much does it cost? Since 1 May 2026, the fee for a long-stay visa equivalent to a residence permit is €300, with a reduced rate of €100 for certain statuses—students are on the list. For a student VLS-TS, you pay €100 when validating. The tax stamp (timbre fiscal) can be bought online or at an authorised retailer.
⚠️ Don't delay: it's the online validation that puts you in regular stay. Do it your first week and note the deadline in your calendar.
Read the mention on your visa before you start. Not all long-stay visas are VLS-TS: some say "carte de séjour to be applied for within 2 months of arrival". In that case, no online validation—you apply for your card at the prefecture within the stated deadline.
Step 2 — The Republican Integration Contract (CIR): who signs, who is exempt
The CIR is for non-European nationals holding a temporary or multi-year residence permit card (carte de séjour)—with exceptions. For common permits: VLS-TS salarié → yes, you must sign; student residence permit card → no; visitor card, "au pair" card and trainee card: also no. The procedure does not concern European nationals, nor their family members living in France with them. And if you have already completed at least 1 university year in France, you are exempt from the CIR.
In practice, the CIR is signed when you are admitted for the first time to stay in France and you plan to settle there long-term. The OFII prepares it and presents it to you with its translation in a language you understand. A French test (written and oral) is planned; if you are below level A2, a 600-hour language course may be required. The contract lasts 1 year and can be extended.
What you commit to by signing: attend the required courses, respond to OFII summons and report any change in situation or contact details. All good habits, even without the CIR.
Since 1 January 2026, the process leads to a civic exam: 40 multiple-choice questions, and you need at least 80% correct answers (32 correct answers) to pass. The compulsory civic training includes 4 sessions totalling 24 hours. Passing is required to obtain a multi-year residence permit (titre de séjour) or a resident card—as is French level A2 for the multi-year card and B1 for the resident card. Not all multi-year cards are concerned: service-public.fr specifies that residence permits not subject to the CIR—such as the student residence permit card—are not concerned by the civic exam or the language requirement.
And if you do not comply with the CIR? The prefect can terminate it: no multi-year card, and you are limited to 3 renewals of your annual permit. That's why you should never throw away a letter from the OFII.
Step 3 — The OFII medical examination: what the official pages really say
The rule that changes everything for students: your health check on arrival is the preventive health check-up, offered free of charge by the Student Health Services (SSE) at your university or your institution's health partners. It's a chance for a complete and free health check (prevention, screenings), confidential, by appointment. It's not an "OFII medical examination", nor a question of date or "at-risk country": it's the standard system for students. The law also says: "Higher education institutions are responsible for the preventive health check-up of foreign students" (CESEDA, article L. 422-3).
The OFII medical examination still exists, but for other cases. In family reunification, the family has a medical examination once they arrive in France—sometimes even in their home country, if the OFII has a representation there. And here, the document really matters: the medical certificate issued by the OFII at the end of the examination is essential to obtain a residence permit (titre de séjour).
In practice, if a letter from the OFII still lands in your mailbox, don't ignore it: responding to summons and keeping your address up to date are the two habits that avoid problems.
Step 4 — Renewing your student permit: good habits
The student VLS-TS is issued for a period of 4 months to 1 year. If it is about to expire and you are continuing your studies:
- Submit your application at the earliest 4 months and at the latest 2 months before the expiry date, and only online.
- As soon as you submit, you get a digital submission certificate, and you can track the progress of your application online.
- Budget, according to the "student" page on service-public.fr: €100 in fees and tax stamp for the 1-year permit; €150 (€100 in fees + €50 tax stamp) for the multi-year permit—in both cases, paid by tax stamps (timbres fiscaux). You will receive an SMS when your card is ready and with the amount of fees to pay. Tip: rely on the amount stated in this SMS.
- You must show proof of €877.5 per month in resources (grant, salary, financial support (prise en charge) or savings).
If you miss the deadline: a regularisation visa fee is added — except in cases of force majeure or if you present a valid visa. And if the prefecture (préfecture) does not reply within 90 days to your application for a temporary "student" card, this counts as an implicit refusal: you can appeal within 2 months.
After 1 year in France, you can apply for the multi-year student residence permit: its duration matches the number of years left in your study cycle — for example, 2 years after your first year of a bachelor's degree; this permit is valid for 2 to 4 years.
Step 5 — Classic pitfalls
🚨 Address not updated on the ANEF Changing your address is a procedure to do on the ANEF. If you move without updating anything, you risk missing a summons or a notification. As soon as you know your new address: update it.
🚨 Confusing OFII, ANEF and the prefecture (préfecture) Three players, three roles: the ANEF to validate the VLS-TS and submit residence permit applications online; the OFII for the CIR and certain medical examinations; the prefecture for physically issuing the cards. Writing to the wrong contact only wastes time.
🚨 Thinking a downloaded PDF makes your stay regular What makes you compliant is the validation procedure itself (and payment of the fee) — not having a particular document. Keep your supporting documents, but above all: complete the procedure within the deadlines.
🚨 Paying an intermediary for validation You don't need anyone: you do the procedure yourself on the ANEF website, the online portal of the ministry in charge of the interior. Beware of sites pretending to be the official portal and charging for "assistance".
🚨 Forgetting to read the visa mention "Carte de séjour to be applied for within 2 months of arrival" is not a VLS-TS: different procedure and deadlines (see Step 1).
Step 6 — Language barrier and special cases
- French still shaky? For the CIR, the contract is presented to you with its translation in a language you understand — this is provided for by the OFII. For everything else, bring a bilingual friend to administrative appointments, and ask to reread what you sign.
- Family reunification: the medical examination takes place once the family is in France, and the OFII certificate is essential to obtain the residence permit (titre de séjour). Plan for it in your arrival schedule.
- Student, no letter from the OFII? Nothing unusual: the student residence permit card (carte de séjour) does not require signing the CIR, your health check is done by your university's SSE (free), and your arrival procedure is the online validation. Complete the process with Assurance Maladie: registration is free and compulsory for all students, and is done on etudiant-etranger.ameli.fr — except if you are a European student holding a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC): as long as it is valid at least until the end of the academic year, the social security body in your home country continues to cover your reimbursements, and you do not need to register on the site.
Step 7 — And after the examination? What this certificate is really for
Two situations, two answers:
- Renewal of a student residence permit: the official list of documents to provide — valid permit or visa, proof of address (justificatif de domicile) less than 6 months old, e-photo, enrolment, transcripts, last diploma obtained in France, certificate of achievement, commitment to respect the principles of the Republic, proof of resources — does not include any OFII medical certificate. Your renewal does not depend on a medical examination.
- Family reunification: here, it's the opposite. The OFII medical certificate is essential to obtain a residence permit (titre de séjour): without it, the application cannot be completed.
Practical conclusion: as a student, your real health deadlines on arrival are the free check-up at the SSE and your registration with Assurance Maladie. Keep all letters from the OFII carefully: if you ever switch to a permit that requires signing the CIR (a first residence permit as an employee (salarié), for example), it is with them that you will sign this contract.
Step 8 — Official resources to bookmark
- 🇫🇷 Long-stay visa (stay of more than 3 months to 1 year) — service-public.fr
- 🎓 Foreign student in France: long-stay visa or residence permit (titre de séjour) — service-public.fr
- 💸 Residence permits: increase in the amount of fees charged to foreigners from 1 May — service-public.fr
- 🌐 Apply online for a residence permit, a change of situation, a travel document, a naturalisation application - ANEF — service-public.fr
- 📋 What is the Republican Integration Contract (CIR)? — service-public.fr
- 🗳️ Multi-year residence permit and resident card (carte de séjour): the civics exam — service-public.fr
- 🗣️ Resident card and multi-year residence permit card: required level of French — service-public.fr
- 👨👩👧 Family reunification — service-public.fr
- 🩺 Health coverage for international students — etudiant.gouv.fr
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Have you just completed this process? Share your experience in a comment or in a note — that's what will help those who arrive after you the most.