https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from France in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Roughly 45,000 Brits in France will need to renew their post-Brexit residency cards this year, but exactly how to do this varies depending on where you live. Here's the préfecture-by-préfecture breakdown of the process. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251006/prefecture-how-each-area-of-france-will-deal-with-brexit-card-renewals Mon, 06 Oct 2025 14:17:58 +0200 prefecture-how-each-area-of-france-will-deal-with-brexit-card-renewals Roughly 45,000 Brits living in France will this year be facing the task of renewing their post-Brexit carte de séjour - if you are one of those, here's how to go about it. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251001/step-by-step-how-to-renew-the-brexit-carte-de-sejour-in-france Wed, 01 Oct 2025 12:19:40 +0200 step-by-step-how-to-renew-the-brexit-carte-de-sejour-in-france The notoriously glitchy and bug-ridden ANEF website - used by foreigners in France to get or renew residency permits - must be fixed 'within six months', the French Conseil d'Etat has ordered. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260505/french-court-orders-government-fix-anef-website-within-6-months Tue, 05 May 2026 18:01:57 +0200 french-court-orders-government-fix-anef-website-within-6-months The French government has significantly increased the fees for residency permits and French citizenship from May - here's a breakdown of the new fees. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260224/france-hikes-prices-for-french-citizenship-and-residency-permits Tue, 24 Feb 2026 16:34:15 +0100 france-hikes-prices-for-french-citizenship-and-residency-permits From glitchy websites to extra admin burdens on préfectures and ministerial orders, waiting times to get or renew a French residency permit have seen a steep increase over the last two years. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260424/prefectures-cant-keep-up-why-carte-de-sejour-waiting-times-are-getting-longer-in-france Fri, 24 Apr 2026 12:35:50 +0200 prefectures-cant-keep-up-why-carte-de-sejour-waiting-times-are-getting-longer-in-france You've done everything right; sent in the application to renew your French residency permit in good time, supplied all the required documents, waited patiently for the préfecture to deal with your request. And then your card expires while you're still waiting - what should you do? https://www.thelocal.fr/20260416/what-to-do-if-your-carte-de-sejour-expires-while-youre-waiting-for-a-renewal Thu, 16 Apr 2026 16:24:03 +0200 what-to-do-if-your-carte-de-sejour-expires-while-youre-waiting-for-a-renewal France's Interior Minister has unveiled the details of his plan to cut waiting times for carte de séjour renewals - from fingerprints to address changes and reduced document checks, here's what it means for those going through the renewal process. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260415/latest-what-french-interior-ministers-plan-means-for-your-carte-de-sejour-application Wed, 15 Apr 2026 14:15:49 +0200 latest-what-french-interior-ministers-plan-means-for-your-carte-de-sejour-application It's a regular chore for many foreigners in France - renewing the carte de séjour that proves their right to French residency. But long can you expect the renewal to take? https://www.thelocal.fr/20260413/latest-how-long-does-it-take-to-renew-a-carte-de-sejour-in-france Mon, 13 Apr 2026 10:59:51 +0200 latest-how-long-does-it-take-to-renew-a-carte-de-sejour-in-france Bureaucratic backlogs and rule changes on residency rights are having an increasing impact on the lives of foreigners living around Europe. Many say they have been left in legal limbo with their lives effectively on hold. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260411/a-nightmare-lives-of-foreigners-across-europe-hit-by-residency-card-delays Sat, 11 Apr 2026 11:53:39 +0200 a-nightmare-lives-of-foreigners-across-europe-hit-by-residency-card-delays France's interior minister has announced a plan to halve the waiting time for foreigners in getting or renewing the carte de séjour residency permit, describing the current delays as unacceptable. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260407/france-announces-massive-plan-to-tackle-carte-de-sejour-delays Tue, 07 Apr 2026 12:34:59 +0200 france-announces-massive-plan-to-tackle-carte-de-sejour-delays Long waits to obtain or renew a carte de séjour, the vital document which proves legal residency in France, are frustratingly common, as our reader poll shows. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260410/lives-and-livelihoods-are-on-the-line-readers-speak-out-on-carte-de-sejour-delays-in-france Fri, 10 Apr 2026 10:43:16 +0200 lives-and-livelihoods-are-on-the-line-readers-speak-out-on-carte-de-sejour-delays-in-france A new report by the rights organisation Défenseur des Droits has highlighted growing problems for foreigners in France in dealing with administration - with difficulties renewing a carte de séjour cited as the number one issue. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260409/carte-de-sejour-renewal-delays-number-one-problem-for-foreigners-in-france Thu, 09 Apr 2026 16:15:20 +0200 carte-de-sejour-renewal-delays-number-one-problem-for-foreigners-in-france France's Interior Minister has announced a plan to tackle what he describes as 'unacceptable' waiting times as préfectures for residency cards - but how bad is the situation? https://www.thelocal.fr/20260407/tell-us-have-you-experienced-delays-in-getting-or-renewing-a-carte-de-sejour-in-france Tue, 07 Apr 2026 12:57:12 +0200 tell-us-have-you-experienced-delays-in-getting-or-renewing-a-carte-de-sejour-in-france Certain countries across Europe demand foreign citizens pass a language test to qualify for certain residency permits. But how does each country compare and what level of language do they require? https://www.thelocal.fr/20260307/which-countries-in-europe-impose-language-tests-for-residency-permits Sat, 07 Mar 2026 10:36:10 +0100 which-countries-in-europe-impose-language-tests-for-residency-permits The EU hands out thousands of Blue Cards to highly-skilled third country nationals each year, according to the latest figures. But which nationalities receive the most and which EU country gives out the most? https://www.thelocal.fr/20260204/which-nationalities-get-the-most-eu-blue-cards-and-where-do-they-go Wed, 04 Feb 2026 12:56:51 +0100 which-nationalities-get-the-most-eu-blue-cards-and-where-do-they-go People applying for French citizenship as well as certain residency permits now have to take a new civics test, but the cost will vary depending on where you take it. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260122/how-much-will-it-cost-to-take-the-new-french-civics-test Thu, 22 Jan 2026 22:04:17 +0100 how-much-will-it-cost-to-take-the-new-french-civics-test France’s new civics test for citizenship and certain residency permits is "an added stress" applicants do not need, French civil rights groups have warned. https://www.thelocal.fr/20260102/an-added-stress-critics-blast-frances-new-civics-test-for-foreigners Fri, 02 Jan 2026 16:22:35 +0100 an-added-stress-critics-blast-frances-new-civics-test-for-foreigners It’s been five years since the end of the post-Brexit transition period and for many British citizens living in the EU this means 2026 will be the time to upgrade to a permanent residence card. But what happens if you forget or leave it late to apply? https://www.thelocal.fr/20260102/dont-miss-out-why-brits-in-europe-should-upgrade-their-post-brexit-residence-permits Fri, 02 Jan 2026 11:23:16 +0100 dont-miss-out-why-brits-in-europe-should-upgrade-their-post-brexit-residence-permits The French government has unveiled details of its new written civics test, which will be required of people applying for certain types of residency cards and citizenship. Here is an example of what to expect. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251016/quiz-could-you-pass-the-new-french-civics-test Thu, 16 Oct 2025 18:16:39 +0200 quiz-could-you-pass-the-new-french-civics-test The French government has published details of the new civics test that will be required of people applying for certain types of residency cards and French citizenship from 2026 onwards, as well as how and where the tests can be booked. https://www.thelocal.fr/20251016/french-government-unveils-details-of-new-civics-tests-for-foreigners Thu, 16 Oct 2025 14:43:50 +0200 french-government-unveils-details-of-new-civics-tests-for-foreigners