French Tech Visa for Founders, France

France is a great home for founders looking to start ambitious companies. If you are a tech entrepreneur, we hope our accelerated visa scheme helps you feel welcome. To be eligible for the French Tech Visa for Founders, you must first have:

• Financial resources or a gross annual salary amounting to the French minimum wage (19,237 € as of January 1, 2022).
• one of these 3 conditions:
• official admission to one of the partner incubators, gas pedals, or other French Tech visa partners, through their own regular selection processes (see list below).
• admission to an incubator or accelerator supported by one of the 13 French Tech Capitals
• obtaining support from an actor in the French Tech ecosystem (research organizations, laboratories, qualified personalities, companies, etc.).

After checking the eligibility criteria, you can directly fill out this online form (in French only) to request a certificate certifying the innovative nature of their company. Keep it carefully, you will need it for the third step.

With this letter, you are now ready to apply for your long-stay visa and residence permit. The procedure depends on whether or not you already live in France (see below). In either case, you will need to provide several documents as part of your application.

A) If you live outside France:

• At the Embassy or Consulate closest to your official residence, apply for a long-stay visa no earlier than 3 months before the date of your arrival in France. This visa, granted at the consulate and attached to your passport, grants you entry. Find the relevant diplomatic or consular authority closest to where you live
• Once in France, you will present your long-stay visa at your local préfecture (French government administrative office) which will then issue your residence permit allowing you to live and work in France for 4 years, renewable. Find the relevant Préfecture (based on where you will live in France).

B) If you already live in France under a different type of residence permit:

• Simply apply at the Préfecture in your place of residence for a change of status. This procedure will convert your previous residence permit into a “Passeport Talent” residence permit, allowing you to live and work in France for 4 years.