Once you are in France
You have arrived in France, Bonjour et bienvenue!
Register with the local immigration office once you’re in France
You have arrived in France, Bonjour et bienvenue!
IF YOU ARE IN FRANCE FOR 6 MONTHS AND MORE : Make sure to register with the local immigration office OFII (Office Français de l’Immigration et de l’Intégration)to validate your student visa within a few days after your arrival.
You will need to submit to the OFII the immigration form that was provided to you at the Embassy as well as a copy of your passport containing your visa stamp (the instructions are provided on the document) and your passport holders identity. The OFII form has to be processed within the first three months of your arrival in France.
If you intend to travel outside the Schengen area after three months have passed since your arrival in France, you must first get official approval from the OFII (in the form of an additional stamp affixed to your passport). Otherwise you may not re-enter France or the Schengen area after travelling beyond the Schengen borders (for example, this could happen if you spend a weekend in London, as the UK is part of the EU, but not part of Schengen).
Upon receipt of these documents, the local office of the OFII will send you a letter acknowledging receipt of the form and possibly asking you to report for a medical examination if such an examination was not performed in your country of origin or upon entering France.
Special cases
- Students residing in Paris must bring the above documents to the OFII. During the months of September, October, and November, students may use the OFII office at the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris (CIUP). At other times of the year, they must bring the documents to OFII’s Paris headquarters.
- Some institutions (including many of France’s universities) have entered into agreements with OFII via the guichets uniques. Where such an agreement exists, the student must submit the above documents to the institution’s international student office. Students are strongly advised to learn, before arriving in France, whether an agreement exists between their host institution and OFII.
In all cases, a tax of €58 must be paid by purchasing a tax stamp marked "OMI" or "ANAEM."
The stamp may be purchased
- Online at www.timbresofii.fr
- In certain shops that sell tobacco products (Tabacs)
- At tax offices.
