Citizenship nationality nation

Does France have a ‘golden visa’ scheme for gaining nationality?

As an EU Schengen Area country, France is affected by golden visas obtained elsewhere that allow non-EU people to work, live, and travel in Europe

Dual nationals in France: We are a help not a hindrance

Officials respond to far-right’s June proposal to ban citizens with double nationality from holding certain jobs

How to get French citizenship – the 2024 requirements

There are two pathways to apply for French nationality: declaration and naturalisation by decree

news

Australia offers citizenship to Frenchman who blocked knifeman

‘Bollard man hero’ can ‘stay as long as he likes’, says Australian PM after fatal attack in Sydney

Can a person get French citizenship if their parents were French?

France’s nationality laws are protective of ‘rights by blood’ but there can be issues if parents cut off links to the country

Far-right terrorism ‘is a real threat’ in France

A recent march by far-right activists in Paris caused controversy, but political scientist Stéphane François says it is the less visible extremists we should be worrying about

What questions should I expect during a French citizenship interview?

Readers share what they were asked at this crucial meeting to become a French national

Will EU nationality help tax situation when selling second home?

Country of residence is in most cases the most relevant factor to capital gains

Eight key takeaways from landmark French immigration study

How many immigrants are there in France? Where do they come from? How has immigration shaped their lives?

I have dual nationality so will French inheritance law be imposed?

We look at whether or not people who have obtained French citizenship can still make use of an EU rule on choice of law

British teen cannot apply for fast-track French vet course

Teenager from Burgundy tells of frustration at rule which means she must do two extra years’ study to pursue her dream career

Scotland and Ireland, then France, top readers’ support in Six Nations

Have you switched allegiance to France now you live here or do you still proudly fly a Home Nation flag in your window? Your feedback on this year’s rugby tournament

New group will fight for rights of UK nationals in France and EU

European Britons claims lobbying for human rights will be its unique selling point to gain more representation in the EU

If I gain dual nationality can English law still apply to my estate?

We look at the options you have when it comes to governing your estate

Can my son born in France pass on his UK citizenship?

There are two ways that a grandchild can gain British citizenship if they wish to

Will British wife share same rights as Irish husband?

I am Irish, living in France, and my wife is British. Will she share the same rights as me after Brexit? T.P.

Can American citizens living in UK travel to France?

Does anyone know for certain if and when Americans resident in the UK/Channel Islands will be allowed to travel to France?

16 judges lined up to rule on Britons’ loss of EU citizenship

The judges will be sitting as the court’s ‘grand chamber’, which is used for particularly important or complex cases

Fears over UK’s challenging mixed nationality rules following Brexit

Ordinary British immigration rules now apply when a Briton moves back to the UK with family members who are not UK citizens, causing worry for mixed-nationality families

France grants citizenship to 12,000 foreign frontline Covid workers

A British-born man who works as a carer for the elderly in Nouvelle-Aquitaine is among those to benefit from a special scheme aimed at key workers during the pandemic

Obtaining French nationality can take up to four years, study shows

Applications can take four times as long in some areas of France, with one family even considering a move to Paris to speed up the process

Military parade but less fireworks: How France is celebrating July 14

The traditional fête nationale military parade is back this year, but some cities have still chosen to cancel their fireworks shows due to the pandemic and concerns over the Delta variant

Nurse denied French nationality for working too much to try again

Lawyers argue authorities are ignoring changes to government rules brought in during the pandemic after frontline worker's overtime meant he had worked 60-hour weeks

Brexit and the curse of having a UK passport

Natasha Linhart, a 19-year-old UK student who has studied in France, England and the Netherlands, has a problem. Her passport no longer gives her the freedom she grew up with - and getting a French one is not as easy as it seems

French residency cards ‘should depend on a language test’

Right-wing French political party Les Républicains wants to introduce obligatory language tests for anyone applying for a residency card

MEP puts forward plan for EU citizenship for Britons

MEP Charles Goerens wants a new kind of EU citizenship for Britons who value being Europeans.

French court advances case on Britons keeping EU citizenship

Regional court sends questions to EU's top court about whether Britons may retain European citizenship despite Brexit – ruling expected in 2021

Top EU court to be asked to rule on Britons' EU citizenship

A French barrister who has launched multiple cases on Britons' rights since the Brexit vote is optimistic over the results of a new case

France introduces new ‘ecocide’ offence with €4.5m fine

The new offence, which was proposed by the Citizens’ Climate Change Convention last year, will be punishable by up to €4.5million in fines and up to 10 years in jail

Fast-track nationality pledge for France's frontline workers

Applications for French nationality are to be accelerated for workers “in the front line” during the Covid-19 confinement period who had already submitted a dossier.

Dual nationality queries - should I choose UK or French law?

Every other day, we share a reader question from our Help Guide, Inheritance Law and Wills in France. Today's question: I have dual nationality so will French law be imposed on my estate?

Briton receives French nationality papers from the President

A British engineer from the Riviera was among five people who received their French nationality papers directly from President Macron at a ceremony at The Pantheon in Paris today.

UK quarantine: France to impose reciprocal measures on UK

France will impose reciprocal measures on arrivals from the United Kingdom after the UK removed France from its travel exemption list last night due to a rise in Covid-19 cases, a government minister stated in a tweet.

Applying for French nationality: What it's like

I am considering applying for French nationality and would like to know what it is like to go through the French naturalisation process

Dordogne still area of France after Paris with most Britons

Dordogne is still the department in France with the most British residents, after Paris, a new study has found, with more than half having lived in the area for at least 10 years.

'Accidental Americans' in France fight FATCA in court

'Accidental' US citizens in France are being discriminated against by French banks unwilling to fall foul of FATCA, association says

EU external borders now open to some countries, but not US

The European Union and Schengen Area have today (July 1) opened external borders to 15 countries, including Canada and Australia; but notably not the United States, Brazil, or Russia.

French climate convention voters reject 28-hour work week

The French citizens’ climate change convention, whose final session is sitting this weekend, has rejected proposals to make the working week 28 hours, but has said it wants to see “ecocide” recognised as a crime.

France to open non-EU borders from July 1

France is to gradually reopen to countries beyond Europe from July 1, it has announced. It comes as borders within the European area prepare to open from tomorrow (Monday June 15).

PM: Brits abroad for 15+ years to get UK right to vote

British citizens who have been living overseas for more than 15 years will get the right to vote in UK parliamentary elections, a letter from Prime Minister Boris Johnson has promised.

Carpenter’s low-income halts French nationality bid

A carpenter who has spent 27 years in France has spoken of his disappointment after being turned down for French nationality because his business had a bad year.

Married to a French person: do I need carte de sejour?

I live in France and am British but my wife is French. Will I be automatically entitled to continue living in France after the Brexit trans-ition period or do I have to do something? H.F.

'I will reapply for nationality in two years'

British man who hit the headlines after being refused nationality despite living in France for 27 years and raising a family here tells Connexion he will stay despite citizenship knockback

Residents are on the take

Until we live in Utopia, where we are all world citizens with freedom of movement and residence, we have to accept that countries have borders and rules.

57 years of French life

A British native, I have been living in France for the last 57 years. Before that, my home was in the north of England but when I was 15 I did an exchange with a girl in Alsace where I met the family.

French nationality ranked ‘best in world’ again

The French nationality has been ranked the best in the world for the eighth consecutive time, according to the latest ranking (2018) of the global Quality of Nationality Index.

Push to save EU Britons' post-Brexit citizenship

Effects of taking French nationality

We are British and live in France. Will our inheritance or tax status change if we take French nationality? G.R.

Where can I sit a language test to become French?

How do I find out where to sit a French language test to include in a nationality application? I was trying to find a centre in which to take the DELF test. C.P.

Nurse refused French nationality for working too much

Lawyer said unnamed woman who works at three hospitals should set herself up as an 'independent' worker to sidestep working hours rules for employees

More citizens will apply for French nationality

I found your figures on the numbers accepted for French nationality very interesting ( Citizenship test to get harder , May issue):

French barrister fights on over expatriates' rights

A French barrister who is challenging Brexit on the basis of the exclusion of many long-term expatriates from the 2016 referendum vote has had a second rejection from the European courts.

I sat culture test to become French

Two-and-a-half years ago, Connexion ’s Jane Hanks wrote about taking the Nationality language test. Recently she was called for an interview at the prefecture in Bordeaux. She tells us what it was like...

The French nationality culture test

What does France expect you to know about the country?

French departments test new document paperwork scheme

A trial to reduce the amount of paperwork required to obtain a driving licence, vehicle registration, identity card, or passport is underway across four departments in France.

Does French nationality help wife’s residency right

I have taken French nationality but my wife, who is also British, has not. Does my double nationality simplify things to make sure she can stay in France as well? G.M.

Can I become French if my job income is from abroad?

Connexion journalist Oliver Rowland answers the multiple diverse questions of whether one can become French if they're job income is from abroad.

French Assemblée votes to put flags in every classroom

The French Assemblée Nationale has voted in favour of the mandatory flying of French and European flags in every educational class, from maternelle (Reception) level up to lycée (high school).

Nationality and Brexit: French ministry advice

The French Interior Ministry has created new information pages for Britons in France after Brexit; we have translated key sections of them.

Being French solves it all

Many of your letters concern the administrative status of Britons resident in France.

Student born in France barred from French nationality

An actor from Paris contacted Connexion to tell how due to the complex rules on changes of nationality his son has been unable to become French despite being born in France.

'Spiderman of Paris' receives naturalisation papers

Mamoudou Gassama attends ceremony with 59 other naturalised French citizens, less than six months after he climbed the outside of a building to save a four-year-old child

Frenchwoman who lost memory launches identity search

A woman from Perpignan (Pyrénées-Orientales) who lost her memory in February this year has launched an appeal to see if anyone knows who she is.

Joke is on all taking pride in their chauvinist views

Extreme nationalism is the flavour of the decade and has disturbing parallels with history as we approach the centenary of the end of World War One.

Connect direct to state sites to avoid the fakes

Faced with an increase in the number of false – but legal – websites charging high fees for free state services, the government has launched a way for residents to click through from one official site to others via a button called FranceConnect.

Bid to keep Britons' EU rights to open today

A new ‘European Citizens' Initiative’ (ECI) bid to enable British people to keep EU citizenship and associated rights for life is set to go live today – but time and opportunities to sign will be limited.

What really happens in a citizenship application

Integration is more than a word

Dr Tim Blakemore, former senior law lecturer at the University of Northampton, living in France, looks at whether integration is about more than just language

'Spiderman' of Paris to become French citizen

After President personally thanks Mamoudou Gassama for his heroic rescue, it is revealed he will be given citizenship and will join fire service as a volunteer, with a view to joining permanently

Hero climbs building to save terrified child

'Spiderman' to meet President Macron amid French citizenship calls after dramatic rescue

Britons’ EU rights bid approved

Judge rules that case for continued EU citizenship can proceed to the European Court of Justice

Licence woes may be ahead

No panic on cartes

Take practical protective steps while talks continue

Here are our key tips ahead of Brexit

Will loan payments pose problem?

I am preparing to apply for French citizenship. One section of the form relates to income. Part of my income is from a loan repayment from a limited company: it is not declared in the UK or France. If the examiners of my application compare French bank statements with French tax returns, they will see a difference – could it pose a problem? G.P.