Upon your arrival in France, you must validate your long-stay visa valid as a residence permit (VLS-TS, visa long séjour valant titre de séjour). You have three months to take the necessary steps. Good news: since 18 February 2019, everything can be done online!
Validating your VLS-TS visa is done online
As soon as you arrive in France, you must validate your visa. The process is entirely digital: you can do everything remotely, at home, on your computer. You must validate your visa within 3 months of arriving in France at the very latest.
To do so, visit the following website: https://administration-etrangers-en-france.interieur.gouv.fr
What do you need to validate your VLS-TS visa?
You will need:
- a valid email address,
- infromation on your visa,
- your date of arrival in France,
- your home address in France,
- a bank card to pay online the fee for issuing the residence permit.
What if you do not have a bank card?
Don't worry! You can buy an electronic stamp (timbre électronique) at a kiosk, at a dedicated terminal, and pay in cash.
Online validation steps
- Log in on the website https://administration-etrangers-en-france.interieur.gouv.fr;
- Enter the information on your visa: visa number, date of beginning and end of validity, date of issue, reason for stay;
- Enter the additional information: family circumstances, telephone number, email address;
- Indicate your date of arrival in France and your address in France;
- Pay the stay tax of 50 euros:
Done! Your visa is validated.
You will receive two emails.
- A first email with your login details. You will need it to access your account. It will contain the confirmation of the validation of your VLS-TS visa.
- A second email confirming the information you entered online. You can download the email of confirmation of the validation of your VLS-TS visa.
Why is it important to validate your VLS-TS visa?
You must validate your VLS-TS visa within 3 months of arriving in France. This entitles you to:
- Lawfully remain in France for your visa's entire validity period.
- Leave France, beyond the 3 months following your arrival, without asking for a visa to come back.
Good to know
For the first 3 months after you arrive in France, you may freely leave France and come back, even without having validated your VLS-TS visa.
After these 3 months, if you have not validated your VLS-TS visa, you will need to apply for a new visa to return to France.
