Residency rights for people who are ill

Prepare a file with all the medical documents that will enable you to prove your illness and its seriousness.

You can include certificates from competent individuals, such as a doctor from your home country, confirming that you cannot receive treatment there.

You will need to make an appointment with the local French administrative authority responsible for examining applications for residence permits or “titre de séjour”, known as the “préfecture”, stating that you want to apply for a “titre de séjour” due to your state of health. You can find their contact details by visiting this directory and selecting the one for your department.

If you have difficulty getting an appointment with the “préfecture” or to learn more about scheduling an appointment, you will find further information on this page.

At the appointment, the agent at the “préfecture” will give you:

• a form to give to your doctor to fill out
• the address of the doctor from the organisation responsible for immigration and integration known as the French Office for Immigration and Integration or “Office français pour l’immigration et l’intégration (OFII)”.

Once the form has been filled in by your doctor, this document must be sent by post to the “OFII” doctor, along with any useful medical documents.

The doctor usually sends the letter and the form, but sometimes they will ask you to send it.

• If you send the letter yourself, make sure you send it by registered post with recorded delivery or “lettre recommandée avec accusé de réception”: the only way to prove your letter has been received. Keep the receipt as proof of postage.

The “OFII” doctor will then issue a medical report.

• If necessary, they will ask to meet you by sending you a document known as a summons or “convocation”, specifying the place, day and time of the appointment.
• They might also contact you to obtain additional documents.
• It is essential that you send them your first response within 15 days, even if you have not yet gathered all the requested documents together.

Finally, the medical report of the “OFII” doctor will be sent to the “OFII” medical service, which will issue an opinion and send it to the “préfecture” within three months.

The “préfecture” will then be able to respond to your application. It is not obliged to follow the advice of “OFII”.

You will receive a temporary residence card or “carte de séjour temporaire”, stating “vie privée et familiale” or private and family life, valid for one year. It allows you to work.

However, if you have lived in France for less than a year, the “préfecture” might decide to only grant you a provisional residence permit or “autorisation provisoire de séjour”, valid for a maximum of six months.

Your residence card or “carte de séjour” can be renewed if you still meet the conditions.

You will then be able to receive a multi-year residence card or “carte de séjour pluriannuelle”, if you request one. It will be valid for the same period as the medical care planned and for a maximum of four years.

If you have lived in France for at least five years, or three years in certain cases, you can request a “carte de résident” if you meet certain conditions. Learn more