Long Stay Visa France from Australia in 2026

There are a number of situations in which you will need to obtain a French Long-Stay visa. The eligibility criteria will vary depending on your purpose of obtaining a Long-Stay visa.

As a general rule, you will need to satisfy the following eligibility criteria:

• Prove that you have the financial means to support yourself during your stay in France
• Have a clean criminal record
• Have an offer of work/study (if applicable)
• If you have received a job offer, your prospective income must be more than the French minimum wage
• Have accommodation in France
• Have French health insurance

Visit the france-visas.gouv.fr site, and check the visa wizard app. The app helps you understand your visa requirements depending on your immigration situation.

Through this app, you can also check what supporting documents you will have to submit along with your visa application, how much fee you will have to pay, and how you will apply from Australia.

To apply for a French Long-Stay visa from Australia, you will have to submit your application through VFS Global. They are the official third-party consular services provider for French visas from Australia.

VFS Global has visa application centres in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, and Adelaide. You will first need to book an appointment with them. You should book this appointment between 3 weeks and 3 months before your planned arrival in France.

As part of your application, your biometric information (photograph and fingerprints) will be collected. However, children under 12 will not be required to provide their fingerprints.

Your application will then be processed in Sydney by the Consulate General of France. You may track its progress on the VFS Global online tracking service. If your application is \successful, you will be granted a French Long-Stay visa to travel to France from Australia.

If your visa says that ‘residence card to be requested within 2 months of arrival’, you will need to apply to your local Prefecture for a residence permit within the said period. If your visa permits professional activity in France, you will not be required to wait for your residence permit before you are authorised to start paid employment.

In some cases, your Long-Stay visa will be the equivalent of a residence permit, meaning that you will not need to obtain two separate documents. VLS-TS visas act as the equivalent of residence permits, such as Student visas and certain types of Talent Passport visas. In this case, you will instead need to validate your VLS-TS within 3 months of arriving in France.

The exact documents required for your stay will depend on the type of Long-Stay visa for which you are applying. However, generally, you will require a combination of the following documents:

• Completed long-stay visa application form
• A cover letter stating your purpose in seeking the visa (e.g., work, study, joining family in France, etc.)
• Two recent passport photos, not older than three months and taken according to the France visa photo guidelines
• Passport issued within the last 10 years and valid for a minimum of three months after your visa expires, and having at least two blank pages
• Copies of older visas
• Travel medical insurance
• Proof of funds to cover your stay in the country
• Proof of accommodation in France
• Proof of the conditions for practising a regulated profession in France, if applicable
• Marriage and birth certificates, or any other documents that prove your relationship with the family member in France, for family reunification route
• Proof of parental or legal guardian’s consent for minors
• Relevant documents for Talent Passport visa applicants, e.g., investment proof or investment plan, business creation plan, qualification documents etc.
• For long-stay visitors, a statement saying you will not seek employment in France
• Acceptance letter from a French educational institution for study applicants
• Au pair placement agreement endorsed by DIRECCTE, if applicable
• Criminal record certificate from relevant Australian authorities
• Visa fee payment receipt

Generally, the cost of a Long-Stay visa application is around €99, although there are certain circumstances in which you may be exempt from paying this fee. You may pay reduced rate of €50 for students whose application was considered by a Center for studies in France.

Once you are in France, you will need to pay a fee of €350 to apply for a residence permit (including tax and stamp duty). For an EU Blue Card, the fee is €324.

There may also be other costs associated with your application. For example, you may need to get your documents translated into French, in which case the exact cost will depend on the translating service which you use.

You may also choose to pay for legal assistance with your application. Many applicants choose to do so in order to make the application process as smooth as possible. Contact Total Law today on +44 (0)333 305 9375 to learn more about how we can help you with this.

The exact processing time for your visa application will vary based on a number of circumstances. Generally, it should be processed within 15-20 days. However, in some cases, it might take up to 2 months for your application to be processed. If you do not receive an answer on your application within 2 months, this will generally mean that your application has been unsuccessful.

In order to minimise the waiting time, make sure to submit all of your documents correctly and to include all necessary information in your application. If you are asked to provide further information, make sure to do so as promptly as possible. Failure to do so will lead to delays in your application and may also lead to your application being rejected.

A VLS-TS is valid for four to 12 months. If you wish to stay longer than 12 months, you must apply for a residence permit.

On the other hand, a long-stay visa mentioning that a “residence card to be applied for within two months of arrival” is valid for two months, within which timeframe you must contact your local prefecture and apply for an appropriate residence card. Residence cards can be issued for one year, or up to 10 years depending on your situation, renewable thereafter.

A temporary long-stay visa (VLS-T) is valid for a maximum of four to six months. You cannot renew the same or apply for a residence card. A minor visa comes with the maximum validity of 11 months.

Likewise, a long-stay visitor visa (e.g., a working holiday visa) is usually valid for a maximum of one year.

There are a number of reasons why your visa application may be unsuccessful. This could be because of missing information, insufficient evidence of your personal circumstances, delays in sending further information which has been requested, or failure to meet the eligibility criteria.

In the event that your visa application is unsuccessful, you can appeal to the consulate to which you applied and ask it to review its decision. You can also appeal to the Board of Appeal Against Decisions Refusing Entry Visas to France (CRRV).

After this, you can then also appeal to an administrative judge. This must be done within 2 months of the refusal (or of the implicit refusal, if you have not received a response to your application within 2 months).

In your appeal, you must detail your reasons for appealing the decision. You must also make sure to write it in French.

Note that you must have legitimate grounds for appealing the decision in order for your appeal to be seriously considered.

It is possible that your Long-Stay visa may be revoked. There are three main reasons why this may happen:

• If you obtained your visa fraudulently, e.g. if you used fake documents or included incorrect information in your application
• If you entered into France in order to engage in activities which were not covered by your visa, e.g. working on a visa which only covers tourism
• If you disturb the public order whilst in France

Your local Prefecture will generally be in charge of deciding whether or not your visa is revoked. In the event that it is indeed revoked, you can submit an appeal to the Prefecture itself or to the French Minister of the Interior.