How to get a French residence permit in 90 days in 2026

Four months of waiting just became 90 days. Since October 30, 2026, French prefectures must decide most residence permit applications within 90 days of a complete file. The catch: silence after that deadline counts as a refusal, not an approval.

In detail

You can now get a French residence permit decision in 90 days: since October 30, 2026, that is how long the prefecture has to reply in writing to most residence permit applications. The clock starts when you file a complete application. The general deadline used to be four months, so French bureaucracy has officially sped up by a month. In a country where booking a prefecture appointment can feel like a sport in its own right, that is real news.

There is a flip side that gets less attention. If there is no answer after 90 days, the law treats it as a refusal. This is called an implicit refusal (refus implicite), and it does not arrive by letter. Below is what changed, who it affects and how not to miss the moment when a prefecture's silence becomes a legal fact.

What changed on October 30, 2026

The reform rests on Decree No. 2026-1001 of October 26, 2026. It was published in France's Official Journal (Journal officiel) on October 29 and took effect the next day. The decree brings into French law the EU single permit directive (directive permis unique), which sets a common floor of rights for workers from outside the EU. The government portal service-public.gouv.fr explained the changes on November 6, 2026.

The key points in brief:

• 90 days for a decision on most residence card applications instead of four months, counted from the date of a complete file.
• Plus 30 days if the file is particularly complex. The prefecture must tell you about the extension.
• 6 months instead of 12 is now the period you must work after your first work authorization before changing employer without risking refusal at renewal.
• Protection after job loss for holders of the temporary worker card (travailleur temporaire), meaning people on fixed-term contracts.
• New EU Blue Card rules (carte bleue européenne): moving from another member state and six months to find a new job.

How the 90-day deadline works in practice

The key phrase is complete file. As long as the prefecture considers something missing, the clock does not run. So the first weeks after filing are best spent confirming that every document was accepted and that no request for extra paperwork is sitting in your online account.

Almost every card is now filed online through ANEF (Administration numérique pour les étrangers en France, the digital administration for foreigners in France). Your filing date and file status are visible in your account, and that date is worth saving: both the 90 days and the appeal deadlines run from it.

Ninety days is the general rule, not the only one. Some cards keep their own clock. For example, part of the talent-researcher (talent-chercheur) cards remain on a 60-day deadline. Check which card you need first, then set the calendar reminder.

Murblz expertsThey answer right here, in the chat

Your case is different? Ask an expert

Your questionAsk

How to get a French residence permit in 90 days: I have a questionHow does this work for my family?What should I do first in my case?

First consultation is free. We keep your details private.

What to do if the prefecture is silent for more than 90 days

An implicit refusal is not removal. An obligation to leave France (OQTF, obligation de quitter le territoire français) is a separate decision issued separately. But the silence does start the appeal clock, and that is easy to miss.

The steps are simple:

• Record the date of your complete filing and every later request from the prefecture.
• On day 90, check your ANEF status and email, including any notice of a 30-day extension.
• If there is no answer, ask the prefecture for the grounds of refusal and prepare an appeal: an administrative appeal to the prefecture itself or a court appeal to the administrative tribunal.

Files lodged before October 30, 2026 sit in a grey zone. The decree has no transitional rule, so you cannot assume every older application automatically moved to 90 days from filing. These cases are worked out from the dates and documents of each file, and this is where legal support pays for itself fastest.

Changing jobs and losing a contract: the new rules

Before the reform, the prefecture could refuse the first renewal of a work authorization if the contract ended within the first 12 months. That period is now 6 months, with exceptions for involuntary job loss and serious breaches by the employer. Good news for specialists who get poached after half a year, and France has plenty of them.

But a residence permit and a work authorization are different documents. The right to live in France does not automatically mean the right to start a new job. Check whether a new authorization is required before your first day at the new employer, not after.

Holders of the temporary worker card can no longer lose their permit solely because they lost their job through no fault of their own, as long as their total time without work stays under 3 months during the card's validity. For people who were exploited at their previous job (forced labour, trafficking, conditions incompatible with human dignity), the limit is 6 months.

EU Blue Card: what highly skilled workers gained

In France the EU Blue Card is called talent - EU Blue Card (talent - carte bleue européenne). It is a multi-year permit for specialists with a degree of at least three years of higher education. The salary threshold in 2026 is €59,373 gross a year, one and a half times the reference salary of €39,582. The wider family of talent cards is covered in our guide to France's talent passport.

What the decree changes:

• Moving from another EU country. To transfer to France under the simplified procedure, 12 months with a Blue Card in another member state now suffices instead of 18. From the second move, 6 months.
• Card length. With a contract of two years or more, the card covers the contract, up to 4 years. With a shorter contract, it covers the contract plus 3 months, up to 2 years.
• Six months to find a job. If the card is withdrawn or not renewed because the employer broke its obligations (tax, social security, workers' rights), the prefecture must give you 6 months to find a new position, extended up to the end of your unemployment benefit rights.
• Family. For spouses and children, 5 years of legal residence across EU states counts, with the last 2 years in France.

For intra-corporate transfers (ICT cards, an employee moved within one group of companies) there is now an annual salary threshold. A separate ministerial order will set the amount, and it has not been published yet. Staff of UK-based companies sent on projects in France may, in certain sectors, work up to 12 months in total without a separate work authorization.

Which routes to France work in 2026

The new deadline applies to almost every route, but the routes themselves are unchanged. The main ones:

A step-by-step guide to every ground is in our article on how to get residency in France, and the country overview with taxes and costs is on the France programmes page. If you have a city in mind, start with our Paris guide.

What else you need to move to France

A residence permit settles your right to live in France, not where to keep your money or how to pay tax. A French bank account for a new resident rarely opens in a single visit, and compliance for foreigners is noticeably stricter than a couple of years ago. The options are covered in our piece on a bank account abroad.

French tax residence arises when your main home or main activity is in France, so model the consequences before you move. Regimes are compared in our expat taxes section. If you plan to buy a home, read our guide to buying an apartment in France. Buying property does not by itself give you a French residence permit.

If you will not work for a French employer and simply need a status in Europe, compare France with its neighbours: the Spanish digital nomad visa and the one in Portugal are simpler for remote workers. The full list is in our remote work visas section and the residence permits by country catalogue.

Our French residence services

We run the path to France from choosing the right ground to the residence card and its renewal. The main areas:

Plus the formalities where people get stuck most: prefecture appointments, the ANEF account, receipt renewals, changing employer without losing status, a bank account and moving your savings.

FAQ