Practical information and daily life of migrant students in France

All audiences

Many initiatives have been introduced to help students from countries in crisis settle in France.

Obtain your residence permit

There are different procedures to obtain a residence permit depending on the visa on which you arrived in France. We recommend that you visit the website of GISTI, the Groupe d’Information et de Soutien des Immigrés (Group Providing Information and Support to Immigrants).

To find out more about how to apply for asylum, you can also visit the website of OFPRA, the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons. There is also a Guide for Asylum Seekers in France, available in around twenty languages.

Refugee status

If OFPRA grants you refugee status, you will receive a residence permit valid for 10 years, which is renewable. You must apply for one at the prefecture.

Financial assistance

CROUS scholarships

Students with refugee status in France and students who are beneficiaries of subsidiary protection have access to scholarships managed by CROUS, regional centres of student social services. To benefit from them, you must :

or to be enrolled in a full-time first degree national diploma in a public or private higher education institution that accepts scholarship holders.
be enrolled in a DU "Passerelle - étudiants en exil" (University Diploma "Passerelle - Students in Exile") at the start of the 2019/2020 academic year.

CROUS scholarships are retroactive. For example, if you are a refugee or beneficiary of subsidiary protection, you may apply for a scholarship 3 months after the start of the academic year. You will be paid the scholarship amount for the three months.

The scholarships are granted on social grounds and offer the following benefits:

Payment of a monthly scholarship
Exemption from university tuition fees
Exemption from paying the CVEC administrative fee (Contribution Vie Etudiante et de Campus, Student and Campus Life Contribution).
You will have to create an account on messervices.etudiant.gouv.fr and register at cvec.etudiant.gouv.fr.
Priority in the allocation of student housing in a CROUS residence.

To find out more, visit the pages dedicated to scholarships on the portal etudiant.gouv.fr.

CROUS points of contact for refugee students in universities have been identified. Their contact details are available online in an interactive directory.

HOPES project scholarships

If you come from Syria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon or Turkey, you qualify for the HOPES project.

The HOPES project is a European initiative funded by the Madad fund, the aim of which is to improve prospects for young Syrian refugees, as well as young people in vulnerable positions in five host countries neighbouring Syria (Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey), and to provide better access to further and higher education opportunities.

Scholarships for Syrian students in exile in France

As part of the specific assistance given to Syrian refugees decided by the President of the Republic, the Ministry of Europe and Foreign Affairs has set up a scholarship program for Syrian students enrolled in French Higher education institutions. It aims to finance their studies in France up to 3 years. Since 2016, more than 200 Syrian students in exile in France have benefited from this program. For more information, visit the Campus France website and its page dedicated to the program.

Entraide Universitaire Française scholarships

The Entraide Universitaire Française (French University Mutual Aid) is an association that helps foreign students who have refugee status. It offers scholarships to give refugees access to higher education and make it easier for them so settle in France. The documents to download to submit a scholarship application can be found online on the website of the Entraide Universitaire Française.

To find out more about available scholarships, please refer to the scholarship programmes offered by Campus France: Campus Scholarships.

Accommodation

Refugee students and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection are entitled to housing in CROUS university residences. This type of student housing is most affordable and best adapted to easily acclimatise to student life in France. Find out all the steps to submit an application for a room on the pages dedicated to university residence housing on the portal etudiant.gouv.fr.

You can also reach out to municipal social action centres (CCAS, centres communaux d’action sociale).

To find emergency temporary accommodation, you can use the "J'accueille" program powered by Singa. It puts refugees looking for accommodation in touch with French citizens who have a spare room in which to host them.

To find alternative housing options, please read our article on the various types of student accommodation or the pages dedicated to housing on the portal étudiant.gouv.fr.

Meals

CROUS university restaurants offer high-quality meals and refreshments suited to student budgets: 3.30 euros for an all-inclusive meal deal. Simply show your student card to take advantage of it. They are often located on campus or near universities.

Contact your local town hall (mairie) to find out about associations that campaign for the protection of foreigners in France. They often offer free meals.

To find out more, read our article on the various ways to eat daily meals in France and the pages dedicated to meals on the portal étudiant.gouv.fr.

To help you find the university housing and restaurants closest to you, please refer to the interactive map of CROUS restaurants and residences.

Health care

There is a healthcare service within universities themselves: SUMPPS, Service universitaire de médecine préventive et de promotion de la santé (University Preventive Medicine and Health Promotion Service). If you need to see a doctor, you can visit a SUMPPS centre. Some consultations are free, including those relating to contraception, screening, vaccinations and mental health counselling. You can also find the contact details of a doctor and make an appointment online on the website doctolib.fr.

It is free but mandatory to register with the French social security system. This should be done after enrolling in a higher education institution on the platform etudiant-etranger.ameli.fr. Students who are refugees or beneficiaries of subsidiary protection must present the residence document issued to them and that acknowledges their status.

Social security refunds up to 70% of your healthcare costs. To cover more of your expenses, you can take out complementary health insurance, called a “mutuelle”.

To find out more, read our article on student health or the pages dedicated to health on the portal etudiant.gouv.fr.

Daily assistance

CROUS points of contact for refugee students in universities. They can provide information on how to enrol, register for social security, find accommodation, and much more.
SINGA is a citizens’ movement, the aim of which is to create ties and encourage interaction between refugees and French citizens. It offers programmes that promote meetings and discussions.

You can also reach out to r-e-s-o-m-e, the Réseau Etudes Supérieures et Orientation des Migrants et des Exilés (Higher Education and Guidance Network for Migrants and Exiled Persons). It is a collective of students, teachers, individuals, associations and informal groups, acting side by side with refugees and migrants to foster access to higher education. They can help you in in various areas: guidance, French lessons, integration programmes, and much more.
contact@resome.org

Refugee’s guide

If you already have refugee or stateless status or are a beneficiary of subsidiary protection, there is a guide for you: the Refugee’s guide, available in 4 languages (English, French, Arabic and Russian).

Complete with testimonies of refugees, it contains information on your rights and will help you through various processes. You can read it on a computer, download it to your smartphone or buy a paper copy. There is even a cartoon version.

Guide for Asylum Seekers in Paris

Available in English and Arabic, this guide is updated every month. You can download it to your phone. It contains all the information required to get started on the necessary procedures as well as addresses that are useful on a daily basis.

Welcome map of Paris

Do you live in Paris? To help you on a daily basis, there is an interactive map, the Welcome Map, which shows a variety of useful places: food distribution points, French lessons, associations, libraries, hospitals and Wi-Fi hotspots.