International citizens may apply to become French nationals by declaration, which asserts nationality as they are lawfully entitled to it, or by decree, which means applying for nationality, given they satisfy qualification and documentation conditions.
Under the documentation conditions, French nationality is determined by marriage, birth, or ascendancy. Suppose you are an international citizen by being wedded to a French national. In that case, you may make an application to become a French national yourself by declaring if you satisfy specific requirements, which may differ based on the duration you have been married to your French national spouse and the duration you have been living or have lived in the past in France with them. The nationality request procedure will differ slightly depending on whether you are in France or overseas.
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Qualification Requirements For French Citizenship By Marriage
An international citizen wedded to a French national may make an application to become a French national by declaration if:
- Their partner was a French national already on the date of their university, and they have maintained their French nationality since.
- They have been wedded for a minimum period of:
- Four years and lived in France for the least period of three years since their union without interruptions or
- Four years and resided outside France, with the French partner enrolled on the consular registers as a French national living overseas or
- Five years if none of the above residency requirements are satisfied.
- Their union occurred in France. The marriage must be transcribed to the French civil enrollment system if they wed overseas.
- They possess an authentic residence permit if they reside in France at the time of their request unless they are in the European Economic Area (EEA) or a Swiss national.
- They do not have an exemption or a present French territory order ban.
- They continue the community of life with their French partner outside the situation of domestic violence.
- They have enough understanding of the French language, a minimum equivalent to CEFR B1 status.
- They do not have a criminal history in France and have never been to:
- Convicted to a minimum of six months imprisonment without penalties
- Charged with a criminal offense, a crime constituting a violation of the nation’s basic appeals, or an act of terrorism.
Any time of distinctive residence in the nation before the needed four or five-year duration will not be considered towards satisfying your residency condition. The residence duration will be calculated backward from the date of your nationality request.
Document Conditions For French Citizenship By Marriage
To make an application for French nationality by marriage, you are required to present the following documents:
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- Two copies of the concluded Cerfa form, dated and signed by you and your French national partner.
- Two current passport pictures.
- An electronic tax stamp.
- Identity evidence, such as your passport or residence permit.
- Please provide evidence of residence with your complete name and address, such as utility bills or rental consensus for the previous three months, asset deeds, and more.
- Original certificate of marriage.
- Documents ascertaining you and your partner’s past marriages were lawfully terminated, if relevant.
- Certificate of adoption or birth of your kids.
- Proof of your French national partner’s citizenship, which includes the original certificate of birth, a tribunal judgment identifying them as a French citizen, a French citizenship certificate, or any other documents provided by the French administrations verifying their French citizenship.
- Evidence that you resided together after marriage includes a joint tax notice, current utility bills listing you and your partner’s complete names, a current bank statement showing an active joint account, and more.
- Evidence of your lawful and continuous residence in France for at least three years after marriage, such as an authentic residence permit, job agreement, and more. This is optional if you have been wedded for five years or more.
- The registration certificate of your French partner in the register of French citizens residing overseas for the duration of your stay outside France (not needed if you have been wedded for more than five years).
- A certificate or diploma ascertains your understanding of the French language or a certificate verifying that you cannot take a language evaluation because of a medical ailment.
- There is no criminal history certificate for France or any other nation where you lived for more than six months in the past ten years. Candidates with refugee or stateless individual status will not need to present a criminal history certificate for their home nation.
- Your passport or Schengen visa if you are a non-EU citizen and have traveled to any of the EU Member States from outside the Schengen region for less than three months at the time of the preceding five years.
Every document must be presented in original form, and every accompanying proof must be in French. If they are not, you must offer eligible translated copies.
The above list is easy to complete. However, the French administration may require more documents based on your situation, so you may wish to contact an immigration professional for support on the paperwork needed for a successful request.
Application Procedure For French Citizenship By Marriage
The application procedure for getting French nationality by marriage is via the declaration path. Making an application for French nationality through declaration is often simpler than making an application by decree.
Get Ready A Dossier
You must prepare a dossier with all the needed details and documents. Organizing the records in the same order as the official directions is preferable. While getting ready for your dossier, you must check if the official document from your home nation needs to be legalized or demands an apostille.
This is among the most time-consuming and expense-intensive stages in your citizenship application procedure. You are recommended to take lawful advice to take lawful advice since obtaining your documents in order is crucial to the success of your request.
Present Your Application
You will be required to present your concluded and signed application form with the necessary accompanying documents at a French administration center, described as a platform. If your platform provides that facility, you can show your documents in person or forward them through post. If you are not in France, you can contact your local French embassy to present your documents.
Attend An Assimilation Interview
You will be required to attend an assimilation interview with your French partner. This interview will be performed at your provincial platform by prior appointment, and you are required to bring your Identity documents.
The interviewer will accurately check your certificates and ask questions concerning your life in France and why you want to become a French national. The objective is to prove your integration into French society and culture. The interview will be in French, and you will not be permitted an interpreter.
You must prepare for your interview, as the assimilation interview can be tricky and may last up to 90 minutes. Your local police may also contact you at this phase, which may or may not be by appointment.
