PHD students

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If you have just arrived in France, you must complete certain administrative procedures to reside and study in France for 1 year.  

First application 

• If you have a student visa, you must validate your visa online within 3 months of your arrival in France on the ANEF website. Your visa validation certificate (attestation de validation) is equivalent to a residence permit, allowing you to study in France for one year.
• If you have a student visa with a mention residence permit to be applied for (carte de séjour à solliciter). You must apply for a residence permit online within 2 months of your arrival in France on the official ANEF website. 

How to apply: 

1. Put together your file with the following list of documents.
2. Take an appointment at the SAIEC if you wish to be accompanied in submitting your application.
3. After checking your file, you will be accompanied to submit your application online on ANEF.

Renewal 

If your visa validated on arrival in France or your residence permit is about to expire, you need to submit a renewal application. The application to renew your "student" residence permit must be submitted online via the official "Administration Étrangers en France"(ANEF) website, at least 2 months before your residence permit expires. 

1. Put together your file with the following list of documents.
2. Take an appointment at the SAIEC if you wish to be accompanied in submitting your application
3. After checking your file, you will be accompanied to submit your application online on ANEF.

• If you are no longer registered as a PHD student:

You can apply for the Job Search residency permit "Recherche d'emploi et création d'entreprise" (RECE) or "Autorisation provisoire de séjour" (APS).

You finished your studies and want to extend your stay in France.

To be eligible for the RECE or APS residency permit, you must hold a "professional license" or a diploma at least equivalent to a Master's degree. This residency card enables you to stay in France for a year to find a job or create a business related to your field of study and/or research.

This card authorizes you to carry out any professional activity for the whole duration of it's validity, without having to ask for a work authorization "Autorisation de travail".

PLEASE NOTE: depending on your nationality, you can apply either for a "Autorisation provisoire de séjour" (APS) or a "Recherche d'emploi et création d'entreprise" residency card (RECE): 

APS: only for nationals of these countries : Senegal, Gabon, Benin, Tunisia, Mauritius, Cape Verde, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Lebanon, India.

RECE: for all other nationalities.

Obtaining conditions: 

• Be a foreign student (except Algerian students) holding a student residency card with the mention "Etudiant" or a "Passeport talent chercheur" residency card.
• Have obtained (or will soon obtain) a diploma at least equivalent to a Master's degree or appearing on the list established by decree, in a French higher education establishment.

RECE or APS applications:

1. Create your file with the list of documents.
2. Make an appointment at the SAIEC if you want to be assisted in submitting your application.
3. After checking your file, you will be assisted in submitting your application on the Démarches Simplifiées website.
4. Submission of the file by appointment at the Préfecture before the expiration of your residency permit or within the year following the obtention of your diploma.

At the expiration of the Job Search residency permit:

You can request a change of status to obtain a researcher "Passeport talent" or a  work "Salarié/Travailleur temporaire" residency permit depending on your situation. Please note, you will no longer be able to apply for a student "Etudiant" residency permit.

If you find a job and obtain a work authorization "Autorisation de travail", you can submit your application in the 2 months before the expiration of your residency card on the Démarches Simplifiées website. There is no need to wait for the end of validity of your current residency permit to apply.