France – Immigration & Employment Update
May has been one of the busiest months for immigration and employment law in France recently. Five developments landed in quick succession, each with practical consequences for foreign nationals, employers, and immigration professionals. Here is what happened and what it means.
1. New SMIC – Effective June 1, 2026
The French minimum wage (SMIC) increases by 2.41% on June 1, following an automatic mid-year adjustment triggered when consumer inflation crossed the legal 2% threshold. This is not a political move – it is a mechanical revaluation built into the Labour Code (Article L3231-5).
New amounts:
What this means in practice:
The French minimum wage (SMIC) increases by 2.41% on June 1, following an automatic mid-year adjustment triggered when consumer inflation crossed the legal 2% threshold. This is not a political move – it is a mechanical revaluation built into the Labour Code (Article L3231-5).
New amounts:
Before (Jan 2026) | From June 1, 2026 | Change | |
Hourly gross | €12.02 | €12.31 | +€0.29 |
Monthly gross (35h) | €1,823.03 | €1,867.02 | +€43.99 |
Monthly net | €1,443.11 | €1,477.93 | +€34.82 |
Annual gross | €21,876.40 | €22,404.24 | +€527.84 |
Annual net | €17,317.39 | €17,735.16 | +€417.77 |
What this means in practice:
- For employers: Payroll software must be updated before June payslips are processed. All salary grids must be reviewed – any level falling below the new SMIC is immediately non-compliant. The financial risk is real: an employer paying below the SMIC can face a fine of €1,500 per employee. Apprenticeship and professionalisation contract grids update automatically, but verification is still advisable.
- For the self-employed and foreign nationals on work-based residency: This is a frequently overlooked point. Self-employed foreign nationals – whether on a carte talent, entrepreneur / profession libérale, or similar status – are expected to demonstrate stable, sufficient income to support future titre de séjour renewals and nationality applications. With the SMIC now at €1,867.02 gross/month, this is the de facto reference threshold. Make sure your declared income reflects the updated figure.
- For visiteur visa applicants: The updated SMIC also means an updated financial independence threshold. Prefectures typically require visiteur applicants to demonstrate resources equivalent to the annual SMIC, now set at €22,404.24 annual gross or €17,735.16 annual net. Make sure any supporting financial documents reflect these new figures.
2. New Fees for Titres de Séjour and Nationality Applications – Effective May 1, 2026
The SMIC is not the only amount that has increased. Another significant change came into effect on May 1, 2026. The fees for residence permits and fiscal stamps (timbres fiscaux), which are required for most immigration procedures, have gone up, and in some cases dramatically.
New amounts:
*Reduced rate applies to: students, seasonal workers, job seekers / company creators, family reunification beneficiaries, au pairs.
Nationality and regularisation:
A new tax of €100 has also been introduced for the issuance and renewal of autorisations provisoires de séjour (APS). Exemptions apply to victims of prostitution engaged in social reinsertion programmes, and – for first issuance and first renewal only – to beneficiaries of temporary protection.
What this means in practice: The naturalisation fee increase is particularly striking: from €55 to €255, nearly a fivefold increase. For individuals managing multiple procedures – a renewal, a family member’s first application, and a long-stay visa — the cumulative cost has increased substantially. Immigration budgets for corporate mobility programmes should be revised accordingly, and individual clients should be informed before they reach the payment stage.
The SMIC is not the only amount that has increased. Another significant change came into effect on May 1, 2026. The fees for residence permits and fiscal stamps (timbres fiscaux), which are required for most immigration procedures, have gone up, and in some cases dramatically.
New amounts:
Procedure | Before May 1 | From May 1 | Change |
First issuance (standard) | €225 | €350 | +€125 |
First issuance (reduced rate*) | €75 | €150 | +€75 |
Renewal (standard) | €225 | €250 | +€25 |
Renewal (reduced rate*) | €75 | €100 | +€25 |
Duplicate (standard) | €225 | €350 | +€125 |
Nationality and regularisation:
Procedure | Before May 1 | From May 1 | Change |
Naturalisation / réintégration / acquisition declaration | €55 | €255 | +€200 |
Naturalisation in French Guiana | €27.50 | €127.50 | +€100 |
Regularisation visa (droit de visa de régularisation) | €200 (of which €50 non-refundable) | €300 (of which €100 non-refundable) | +€100 |
Long-stay visa serving as titre de séjour (standard) | €200 | €300 | +€100 |
Long-stay visa (reduced rate) | €50 | €100 | +€50 |
A new tax of €100 has also been introduced for the issuance and renewal of autorisations provisoires de séjour (APS). Exemptions apply to victims of prostitution engaged in social reinsertion programmes, and – for first issuance and first renewal only – to beneficiaries of temporary protection.
What this means in practice: The naturalisation fee increase is particularly striking: from €55 to €255, nearly a fivefold increase. For individuals managing multiple procedures – a renewal, a family member’s first application, and a long-stay visa — the cumulative cost has increased substantially. Immigration budgets for corporate mobility programmes should be revised accordingly, and individual clients should be informed before they reach the payment stage.
3. New Fee for Driver's Licence Exchange – Effective May 12, 2026
This one slipped under the radar for many, but it affects a large number of newly arrived foreign nationals.
From May 12, exchanging a foreign driving licence for a French one is no longer free. A new fiscal stamp of €40 (€20 in French Guiana) is now required, paid online via the ANTS portal. The fee was introduced by the same Article 128 of the loi de finances 2026 that drove the titre de séjour fee increases – it covers the manufacturing and delivery costs of the French licence.
Who is affected:
Practical note: The exchange procedure is handled entirely online via ANTS (ants.gouv.fr). The payment step is integrated into the existing process – no need to visit a préfecture for this formality.
This one slipped under the radar for many, but it affects a large number of newly arrived foreign nationals.
From May 12, exchanging a foreign driving licence for a French one is no longer free. A new fiscal stamp of €40 (€20 in French Guiana) is now required, paid online via the ANTS portal. The fee was introduced by the same Article 128 of the loi de finances 2026 that drove the titre de séjour fee increases – it covers the manufacturing and delivery costs of the French licence.
Who is affected:
- Non-EU nationals relocating to France are generally required to exchange their licence within one year of obtaining their first titre de séjour, subject to bilateral exchange agreements between France and their country of origin. The €40 fee now applies at that stage.
- EU licence holders can normally drive on their European licence indefinitely and are exempt – but the fee does apply to them in four specific situations: points loss, suspension, cancellation following a traffic offence in France, or medical unfitness declared by French authorities.
Practical note: The exchange procedure is handled entirely online via ANTS (ants.gouv.fr). The payment step is integrated into the existing process – no need to visit a préfecture for this formality.
4. Conseil d'État – Binding Decision on the ANEF Platform – May 5, 2026
This is arguably the most structurally significant development of the month.
On May 5, the Conseil d'État – France’s highest administrative court – issued a binding injunction ordering the government to fix the persistent technical failures of ANEF (Administration Numérique pour les Étrangers en France), the online platform through which all titre de séjour applications must be filed.
The case was brought by a coalition of associations including La Cimade, Secours Catholique, and Emmaüs, following years of documented dysfunction: blocked applications, impossible renewals, frozen dossiers, and a platform that effectively denied legal residents access to their statutory rights.
What the court ordered:
The Conseil d’État found that the platform failures “abnormally restrict users’ right of access” and “compromise the exercise of rights recognised by law” – a formulation that carries serious legal weight. The injunction is not advisory. It sets hard deadlines:
Within 6 months (by November 2026):
Within 12 months (by May 2027):
Three key principles the court affirmed:
What this means in practice: If ANEF is blocking your application today, you have a legal basis, grounded in this ruling, to request an alternative submission route or an immediate API from the préfecture. Document every failed attempt with screenshots and email records. This evidence is legally recognised as proof of administrative failure and supports an emergency référé application if needed. The Conseil d’État has finally made real what advocates have been arguing for years.
Read the full text of the decision: https://www.conseil-etat.fr/fr/arianeweb/CE/decision/2026-05-05/502860.
This is arguably the most structurally significant development of the month.
On May 5, the Conseil d'État – France’s highest administrative court – issued a binding injunction ordering the government to fix the persistent technical failures of ANEF (Administration Numérique pour les Étrangers en France), the online platform through which all titre de séjour applications must be filed.
The case was brought by a coalition of associations including La Cimade, Secours Catholique, and Emmaüs, following years of documented dysfunction: blocked applications, impossible renewals, frozen dossiers, and a platform that effectively denied legal residents access to their statutory rights.
What the court ordered:
The Conseil d’État found that the platform failures “abnormally restrict users’ right of access” and “compromise the exercise of rights recognised by law” – a formulation that carries serious legal weight. The injunction is not advisory. It sets hard deadlines:
Within 6 months (by November 2026):
- Systematic and timely issuance of attestations de prolongation d’instruction (API), explicitly confirming the right to work and access to social benefits
- Ability for users to correct and supplement their dossiers (change of address, replacement of documents) at any stage
- Regulatory texts updated to ensure API holders retain full access to social services and housing
Within 12 months (by May 2027):
- Parallel filing of multiple applications under different categories (e.g. a change of status filed simultaneously with a renewal)
- A guaranteed fallback mechanism so that users can always submit their application on time, even in the event of a technical failure
Three key principles the court affirmed:
- Right to an alternative channel: Prefectures can no longer refuse paper or in-person filing when the platform is generating technical errors.
- Protection of employment rights: Temporary bridging documents (API) must automatically confirm work authorisation, so that foreign nationals do not lose income due to administrative delays.
- Procedural flexibility: Users must be able to correct errors in submitted dossiers and file concurrent applications.
What this means in practice: If ANEF is blocking your application today, you have a legal basis, grounded in this ruling, to request an alternative submission route or an immediate API from the préfecture. Document every failed attempt with screenshots and email records. This evidence is legally recognised as proof of administrative failure and supports an emergency référé application if needed. The Conseil d’État has finally made real what advocates have been arguing for years.
Read the full text of the decision: https://www.conseil-etat.fr/fr/arianeweb/CE/decision/2026-05-05/502860.
5. Minister of Justice Darmanin Proposed 3-Year Moratorium on Legal Immigration
On May 24, in an interview with Le Journal du Dimanche, Garde des Sceaux Gérald Darmanin called for a complete three-year moratorium on legal immigration to France. His argument: France has reached the limit of its capacity for “integration and assimilation.”
What he proposed:
What this means in practice:
Let’s be direct about what this is and what it is not.
This is a political declaration, not a legislative proposal. No bill has been tabled. No parliamentary process has been initiated. The proposal as stated would require a constitutional reform – an extraordinarily high bar that would need to clear a divided Assemblée Nationale and Sénat, and likely a referendum. That path faces enormous legal, political, and procedural obstacles.
What it is is the clearest signal yet that immigration will be the central battleground of the 2027 presidential campaign. Darmanin – former Minister of the Interior, now Garde des Sceaux – is a declared or presumed candidate. This statement is as much about political positioning as it is about policy.
The practical consequence for professionals and foreign nationals: nothing has changed legally, today. There is no emergency, no immediate procedure to accelerate, no application to rush. However, there is a real risk that political pressure will translate into tighter administrative practice: faster refusals, stricter scrutiny, more conservative prefectural interpretation of discretionary criteria, well before any formal legislative change. That is worth monitoring.
For anyone currently in a multi-year immigration pathway in France, the message is: document everything, maintain compliance at every step, and do not leave renewals or transitions to the last moment.
On May 24, in an interview with Le Journal du Dimanche, Garde des Sceaux Gérald Darmanin called for a complete three-year moratorium on legal immigration to France. His argument: France has reached the limit of its capacity for “integration and assimilation.”
What he proposed:
- A 3-year freeze on most categories of legal immigration
- Suspension of family reunification rights for workers already holding a titre de séjour
- Introduction of binding sectoral immigration quotas
- A constitutional amendment to allow France to override European law protections
- A popular referendum on immigration levels, framed as a key issue for the 2027 presidential election
What this means in practice:
Let’s be direct about what this is and what it is not.
This is a political declaration, not a legislative proposal. No bill has been tabled. No parliamentary process has been initiated. The proposal as stated would require a constitutional reform – an extraordinarily high bar that would need to clear a divided Assemblée Nationale and Sénat, and likely a referendum. That path faces enormous legal, political, and procedural obstacles.
What it is is the clearest signal yet that immigration will be the central battleground of the 2027 presidential campaign. Darmanin – former Minister of the Interior, now Garde des Sceaux – is a declared or presumed candidate. This statement is as much about political positioning as it is about policy.
The practical consequence for professionals and foreign nationals: nothing has changed legally, today. There is no emergency, no immediate procedure to accelerate, no application to rush. However, there is a real risk that political pressure will translate into tighter administrative practice: faster refusals, stricter scrutiny, more conservative prefectural interpretation of discretionary criteria, well before any formal legislative change. That is worth monitoring.
For anyone currently in a multi-year immigration pathway in France, the message is: document everything, maintain compliance at every step, and do not leave renewals or transitions to the last moment.
💡 Conclusion: What to do now?
A dense month. The legislative calendar ahead looks equally active. Feel free to reach out with questions on any of these developments.
Topic | Action |
SMIC | Update payroll before June; review salary grids; self-employed – check declared income |
Fees | Update client-facing cost estimates; revise corporate mobility budgets |
Driver’s licence | Budget €40 for exchanges; remind relocating employees to plan ahead |
ANEF / Conseil d'État | If blocked on ANEF, cite the May 5 ruling to request an alternative route or API |
Darmanin moratorium | Monitor; there’s no legal change yet, but maintain full compliance and documentation |
A dense month. The legislative calendar ahead looks equally active. Feel free to reach out with questions on any of these developments.
This immigration digest is for informational purposes only. If you have any specific questions regarding relocation or a particular country program, please reach out to us at beyondborders.relocation@gmail.com or book a free consultation with us