Becoming a French citizen – naturalisation and other routes

According to Service-Public, you must normally have lived in France for five years before applying. "Living in France" means that France is the centre of your material interests, including your work, and of your family ties, not just that you were physically present.

• The period is reduced to two years if you successfully completed two years of higher education in France, or if you can show an exceptional integration path.
• There is no minimum period for refugees, for people from French-speaking countries whose mother tongue is French or who were schooled in French for at least five years, for people who served in the French armed forces, and for people who rendered exceptional services to France.

You must hold a valid residence permit when you apply, unless you are an EU, EEA or Swiss citizen.

• French at level B2 of the Common European Framework, oral and written, since 1 January 2026. Accepted proof includes certain French diplomas (such as the national brevet or a diploma at level 3 or above), a diploma certifying B2, or a TCF or TEF certificate less than two years old. Exemptions exist for people whose health or disability makes testing impossible, and for some older refugees and stateless people.
• Civic exam: a 40-question multiple-choice test in French with a pass mark of 32 correct answers, taken before you apply. The Ministry of the Interior publishes the official list of knowledge questions and the approved test centres on its civic training site.
• Assimilation interview: if your file is admissible, the prefecture invites you to an interview on your integration and your adherence to the principles of the Republic, and you sign the Charter of rights and duties of the French citizen.

• Resources: stable and sufficient income to support yourself and your household.
• Good conduct: no conviction for a crime, for terrorism-related offences or offences against the fundamental interests of the nation, and no prison sentence of six months or more without suspension.

1. Prepare your language certificate, civic exam certificate, civil status documents (full, original versions, translated and legalised or apostilled where required), proofs of residence and resources, and tax notices for the last three years.
2. Apply online through the naturalisation online service on Service-Public. If you cannot use it, you may apply by post to your local naturalisation platform with proof that online filing was impossible.
3. Pay the €255 stamp (since 1 May 2026) as an electronic tax stamp.
4. Attend the interview at the prefecture if invited. Missing it without a valid reason leads to your file being closed.
5. Decision: the administration has up to 18 months to answer, reduced to 12 months if you have lived in France for ten years or more. A positive decision is published as a decree in the Journal officiel, and you are usually invited to a citizenship welcome ceremony.

If the application is declared inadmissible or refused, you can appeal to the Minister of the Interior within two months, and then to the administrative court of Nantes.

If you are married to a French citizen, you can make a declaration of nationality after four years of marriage if you have lived in France continuously since the marriage, or after five years if you have not and your French spouse was not registered with a French consulate abroad. You must still live together, materially and emotionally, and prove sufficient knowledge of French. The fee is also €255. The administration has one year from the receipt of your declaration to refuse registration, or two years if it opposes the acquisition.

France allows multiple nationalities: French law does not require you to renounce your nationality of origin when you become French. When you apply, you state the nationalities you hold and which you wish to keep. Your other country's law may treat the acquisition of another nationality differently, so check with its authorities.