How to Get a Salaried Worker Residence Permit in France: Our Personal Experiences

As Americans living in France, we need residence permits to maintain our lawful presence in the country. Since moving here for the first time in 2019, we’ve had quite a few different residency statuses. Most recently, after obtaining our master’s degrees from the Université de Reims Champagne-Ardenne, Maria and I launched into intensive job searches made possible by our one-year recherche d’emploi ou création d’entreprise residence permits (RECE). Once we both secured full-time employment in France, we were able to apply for our titres de séjour salarié (salaried worker residence permits), and now that we have both officially completed that process, we’re excited to share all the details with you. Keep reading for more information about the salaried worker residence permit, French work permits, our appointments at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau, and a comprehensive timeline of our changement de statut (residency status change) experience.

Note: Please keep in mind that verified French governmental sources are the best place to get information about your residency in France. This article recounts our personal experience obtaining salaried worker residence cards, and any advice should be considered unofficial.

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Table of Contents

➤ What is a changement de statut?

➤ What is a titre de séjour salarié?

➤ How to Get a French Work Permit

➤ How to Get a Salaried Worker Residence Card

➤ How to Pick Up Your Salaried Worker Residence Card

➤ Our Complete Residency Status Change Timeline

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What is a changement de statut?

A changement de statut involves moving from one residency status, like the RECE, to another, like the salaried worker, without leaving France. Given that the RECE is a one-year, non-renewable status for recent graduates in France, RECE holders must find a way to qualify for another status before its expiration if they wish to stay in France. Maria and I were aiming for the salaried worker status, meaning we needed to find jobs that checked all the right boxes. We set out to find full-time work related to our master’s degrees that paid salaries of at least 1.5 times the SMIC (minimum wage), and we did just that!

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What is a titre de séjour salarié?

Foreigners having signed a qualifying work contract and obtained an autorisation de travail (work permit) can apply for a salaried worker residence permit, allowing them to legally reside in France thanks to their job. Salaried worker is a renewable status, meaning that with a qualifying work contract and a valid autorisation de travail, you can continuously maintain the status. If you apply for this status from your home country, you will receive a visa salarié (salaried worker visa), while if you apply for this status via a changement de statut in France, you will receive a carte de séjour salarié (salaried worker residence card).

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How to Get a French Work Permit

After we signed our work contracts, the RECE allowed us to begin working immediately without applying upfront for an autorisation de travail. However, because we knew that we eventually wanted to complete a changement de statut, we worked with our employers to begin the process of obtaining an autorisation de travail soon after being hired.

In many cases, when an employer applies for an autorisation de travail for a foreigner, it is imperative that the employer prove that they have completed an unfruitful preliminary search for candidates already present on the job market. In short, the employer often needs to demonstrate that the job listing has been posted for three weeks and no suitable candidates with the right to work have been found. However, as we were RECE holders who found jobs in line with our studies with salaries of at least 1.5 times the SMIC, our employers were exempt from this condition.

The employer is generally responsible for requesting an autorisation de travail for their employees. As such, the HR employee who managed Maria’s hiring process also submitted the necessary paperwork for her autorisation de travail. However, it is also possible for companies to designate someone else to request an autorisation de travail for an employee via a mandat pour effectuer les formalités de demande d’autorisation de travail (mandate to apply for a work permit). Thanks to this option, I was able to apply for my own autorisation de travail, which means I can share all of the details of the process with you. Using the Étrangers en France online platform, I submitted the following information and documents and was ultimately granted an autorisation de travail.

General Information to be Completed in the Application Form

About the Employer

• Employer type (choose one):
  • une entreprise, une entreprise de travail temporaire ou une association (a company, a temporary employment agency or an organization)
  • un employeur particulier (an individual employer)
• N° Siret (French company SIRET code)
• Employer contact: Nom, Prénom, Fonction, Téléphone mobile ou fixe, Adresse email (Last name, First name, Job, Phone number, Email address)

About the Future Employee

• Residency information (choose one):
  • Résidant hors de France (hors saisonnier) [Residing outside of France (excluding seasonal workers)]
  • Résidant en France (Residing in France)
  • Sur un emploi saisonnier (en introduction ou avec un titre de séjour) [For seasonal employment (with or without a residence permit)]
  • Demandeur d’asile depuis plus de 6 mois (Asylum seeker for more than 6 months)
  • Etudiant en cours d’étude (autorisation provisoire de travail) [Student (temporary work permit)]
• Identity information:
  • Nom de naissance, Nom d’usage, Prénom(s), Sexe, Date de naissance, Pays de naissance, Lieu de naissance, Nationalité (Last name at birth, Current last name, First name(s), Gender, Date of birth, Country of birth, Place of birth, Nationality)
  • N° du passeport ou de la carte d’identité, Pays de délivrance (Passeport or ID number, Country of issue)
  • Titre de séjour détenu, date de début de validité, Date de fin de validité (Residence permit currently held, start date of validity, end date of validity)
  • N° étranger (Foreigner ID number)
  • Adresse du futur salarié (Address)
  • Contact du future salarié (Numéro de téléphone mobile, Adresse email) [Contact information (Mobile phone number, Email address)]

About the Job

• Convention ou accord collectif applicable (Applicable convention or collective agreement)
• Emploi ou fonction occupée (Code ROME, Intitulé, Qualification/Niveau/Coefficient CCN) [Job or position held (ROME code, Title, Qualification/Level/CCN Coefficient)]
• L’emploi est-il soumis à une autorisation d’exercise ? (Oui/Non) [Is the job subject to a special authorization? (Yes/No)]
• Type de contrat proposé (Proposed contract type) [choose one]:
  • Contrat à Durée Indéterminée (CDI) [Permanent contract]
  • Contrat à Durée Déterminée (CDD) [Temporary contract]
  • Contrat de Travail Temporaire (CTT) [Temporary contract established by a temporary employment agency]
• Date de debut prévisionnelle (Estimated start date)
• Type d’emploi (Job type) [choose one]:
  • Temps complet (Full-time job)
  • Temps partiel (Part-time job)
• Détachement (Temporary Assignment) [choose one]:
  • Détachement hors mobilité intragroupe [Temporary assignment (not an internal transfer)]
  • Détachement mobilité intragroupe [Temporary assignment (internal transfer)]
  • Ne concerne pas un détachement (Not a temporary assignment)
• Rémunération proposée (salaire brut en euros y compris avantages en nature) [Proposed salary (gross salary in euros including benefits in kind)]

Documents to be Attached to the Application Form

Titre de séjour en cours de validité (Valid residence permit)

• I uploaded a scan of the front and back of my RECE card.

Mandat (à renseigner si l’employeur se fait représenter) [Mandate (if employer has appointed a representative)]

• I uploaded a scan of the mandat, filled out and signed by my employer.

Offre d’emploi déposée auprès du service public de l’emploi (Job offer posted on the public employment service)

• This condition did not apply, so I did not upload any documents.

Document attestant de la clôture de l’offre et l’absence de candidat (Document confirming the closure of the offer and the absence of candidates)

• This condition did not apply, so I did not upload any documents. I was later asked to provide this document as a complément de dossier (additional document request), so I provided a letter explaining why I was not required to submit this document instead.

Attestation de déclaration préalable de détachement (Certificate of advance notification of temporary assignment)

• This situation did not apply, so I did not upload any documents.

Diplôme (si le salarié est un étudiant en fin d’étude) [Diploma (if the employee is a student)]

• This situation did not apply, so I did not upload any documents. I was later asked to provide this document as a complément de dossier, so I provided my master’s degree diploma then.

Curriculum vitæ (si le salarié est un étudiant en fin d’étude) [CV (if the employee is a student)]

• This situation did not apply, so I did not upload any documents. I was later asked to provide this document as a complément de dossier, so I provided my French CV then.

It took 22 days for me to receive my autorisation de travail after submitting my application, and 15 for Maria after her employer submitted her application. With these documents in hand, we had everything we needed to start the changement de statut process from RECE holders to salaried workers.

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How to Get a Salaried Worker Residence Card

The next step in completing our changement de statut was requesting appointments at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau to submit our official applications for cartes de séjour salarié. Using the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau’s online platform, we asked for in-person appointments at the end of March 2023. We were required to submit the following documents.

Visa de long séjour ou titre de séjour en cours de validité (Valid long-stay visa or valid residence card)

• We uploaded scans of the front and back of our RECE cards.

Justificatif de domicile datant de moins de six mois (Proof of address dated within six months)

• We uploaded our latest quittances de loyer (rent receipts).

We heard back from the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau over four months later with appointments for the end of August 2023. At this time, we received confirmations de rendez-vous (appointment confirmations) that contained instructions about how to organize our paper applications and a warning that appointments are automatically cancelled if you are more than five minutes late. We assembled the following documents to bring to our in-person appointments.

Formulaire de demande de titre de séjour (Residence permit application form)

• We found this document on the Préfet de l’Essone’s website. We printed one copy each, filled out our basic contact information and details about ourselves, and brought them to our appointments.

Confirmation de rendez-vous (Appointment confirmation)

• This document allows us to get through the front gate of the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau. We printed one copy each and brought them to our appointments.

Visa de long séjour ou titre de séjour en cours de validité (Valid long-stay visa or valid residence card)

• We printed scans of the front and back of our RECE cards and brought the physical cards to our appointments.

Passeport (pages concernant l’état civil, les dates de validité, les cachets d’entrée et les visas) [Passport (pages containing personal information, validity dates, stamps, and visas)]

• We brought our physical passports as well as photocopies of the relevant pages of our passports to our appointments.

Justificatif de domicile datant de moins de six mois (Proof of address dated within six months)

• We printed out our latest quittances de loyer and brought them to our appointments.

3 photographies d’identité récentes (Three recent ID photos)

• We used photos previously taken at a photo booth and brought them to our appointments. Only two of the three requested photos were taken by the agent.

Autorisation de travail correspondant au poste occupé ou autorisation de travail dématérialisée (Work permit for the position held or electronic work permit)

• We printed our autorisations de travail and brought them to our appointments.

Contrat de travail (Work contract)

• This document was not mentioned on any official list, but was requested at our appointments. We suggest you bring a printed copy of your work contract.

Trois dernières fiches de paie (Last three pay stubs)

• These documents were not mentioned on any official list, but were requested at our appointments. We suggest you bring printed copies of your three most recent pay stubs.

Though we had two separate appointments, we had nearly-identical experiences at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau. Upon arrival, we showed our confirmations de rendez-vous to the security guards at the front gate. After verifying our appointments, the security guards let us through and directed us to the correct waiting room inside the building. We waited inside until we heard our names and the window number we needed to report to announced over the microphone system.

At the window, the agent first asked for our passports and current residence cards. After verifying these documents, the agent asked for the rest of the paperwork that made up our applications. Finally, the agent asked us for our work contracts and three most recent pay stubs. As these documents were not mentioned on any official list, we did not have printed copies. The agent asked us to email them to the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau from our phones, which we did. We suggest you prepare and print these documents in advance.

Following verification of all of the paperwork, the agent created our récépissés (extension documents pending application review) and informed us that we would receive text messages when our residence cards were ready for pickup. The agent specified that we would need to renew our récépissés one month before expiry in the case that our residence cards were not ready for pickup at that time.

During Maria’s appointment, the agent recognized her as my spouse from processing my application earlier in the day. The agent told Maria that she could have come with me at my appointment time to submit the applications simultaneously if she wished, but that reserving two separate appointment slots would still be necessary. This is something that we will keep in mind for future appointments at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau.

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How to Pick Up Your Salaried Worker Residence Card

The last phase of our changement de statut process was picking up our new residence cards. Once again, Maria and I had two separate appointments, but our experiences were similar. I received the confirmation text message at the end of September 2023 and made a pickup appointment for twelve days later. Despite submitting our applications on the same day, Maria did not receive her confirmation text message until the end of November 2023. She made a pickup appointment for a week later. We assembled the following documents to bring to our in-person appointments.

Confirmation de rendez-vous (Appointment confirmation)

• This document allows us to get through the front gate of the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau. We printed one copy each and brought them to our appointments.

Passeport en cours de validité (Valid passport)

• We both brought our passports to our appointments.

Récépissé (Extension document)

• We both brought the récépissés we received at our initial appointments.

Titre de séjour (si renouvellement) [Residence permit (if renewing)]

• We both brought our expired RECE cards to our appointments.

Timbre fiscal (Tax stamp)

• We each bought a 225 € timbre fiscal électronique (electronic tax stamp) and printed them to bring to our appointments. We bought our timbres fiscaux online, but they can also be purchased in a bureau de tabac (tobacco store).

Upon arrival, we showed our confirmations de rendez-vous to the security guards at the front gate. After verifying our appointments, the security guards let us through and directed us to the correct waiting room inside the building. We waited inside until we heard our names and the window number we needed to report to announced over the microphone system.

At the window, the agent asked us for the paperwork necessary to pick up our residence cards. Following verification of all of the paperwork, the agent took our fingerprints with a digital scanner, asked us to confirm that we had received our residence cards with a signature, and handed us our new residence cards.

While I was at my appointment, I took the opportunity to ask the agent whether everything was okay with Maria’s application, given that she hadn’t yet received her confirmation text message. We’ve learned through our many interactions with French governmental bodies that asking (sometimes repeatedly) about an application can often nudge the process along. I gave the agent Maria’s numéro étranger (foreigner ID number) and the agent told me that her application was en cours (pending). Her appointment to pick up her residence card would not be for another 46 days.

From requesting an appointment at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau to having our shiny new cartes de séjour salarié in our hands, I waited 6 months and 1 week and Maria waited 8 months.

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Our Complete Residency Status Change Timeline

• November 21st, 2022: Jalen begins working his full-time job in France. He holds a valid récépissé after applying for the RECE card.
• December 13th, 2022: Jalen asks his employer to request an autorisation de travail for him. They ask him if he would be willing to submit the request himself with a mandat, and he agrees.
• December 16th, 2022: Jalen’s employer sends him the signed mandat, allowing him to request his own autorisation de travail.
• December 21st, 2022: We have our appointments at the Sous-Préfecture de Reims and pick up our RECE cards.
• December 22nd, 2022: Jalen submits a request for his autorisation de travail.
• January 10th, 2023: Jalen calls the centre de contact citoyen (CCC) for an update on his autorisation de travail application. The agent tells him that they received his application and to keep an eye out for any follow-up requests via email.
• January 13th, 2023: Jalen receives a follow-up request for a curriculum vitæ, diplôme, and document attestant de la clôture de l’offre et l’absence de candidat. He uploads the first two documents and a letter explaining why he was not required to submit the third document to the Étrangers en France online platform.
• January 13th, 2023: Jalen receives a follow-up request to change his birthplace format from “city, state” to “state.” He adjusts the format on the Étrangers en France online platform.
• January 13th, 2023: Jalen is granted an autorisation de travail.
• January 24th, 2023: Maria explains to her employer that requesting an autorisation de travail for her will eventually be necessary for her changement de statut.
• February 20th, 2023: Maria’s employer submits a request for her autorisation de travail.
• March 1st, 2023: Maria begins working her full-time job in France. She holds a valid RECE card.
• March 7th, 2023: Maria is granted an autorisation de travail.
• March 18th, 2023: We gain a permanent address in Palaiseau, meaning we no longer report to the Sous-Préfecture de Reims, but the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau.
• March 27th, 2023: We request appointments to apply for the carte de séjour salarié at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau via their online platform.
• May 16th, 2023: Having received no response in 50 days about our appointment requests, Jalen goes to the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau to inquire about our appointments. He learns that appointments are given based on residence permit expiry, meaning that we shouldn’t expect to hear back from the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau until mid-August for residence permits expiring in September.
• June 14th, 2023: We indicate the dates that we will be unavailable for appointments in August via the messaging system on the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau’s online platform.
• August 12th, 2023: The Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau contacts us via email and assigns us appointments for August 28th, 2023.
• August 28th, 2023: We have our appointments at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau and are granted récépissés. They are valid for six months from our appointment date and maintain our right to work.
• September 12th, 2023: Jalen’s RECE expires. His récépissé remains valid.
• September 21st, 2023: Jalen receives a text message stating that his residence card is ready for pickup at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau and makes a pickup appointment for October 3rd, 2023.
• September 22nd, 2023: Jalen buys a 225 € timbre fiscal électronique.
• September 29th, 2023: Maria’s RECE expires. Her récépissé remains valid.
• October 3rd, 2023: Jalen has his appointment at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau and picks up his carte de séjour salarié. It is valid for one year, beginning the day after his RECE expired. He asks about Maria’s application during his appointment and is informed that it is en cours.
• October 17th, 2023: Maria contacts the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau via email requesting an update on her application.
• October 23rd, 2023: Maria makes an appointment via the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau’s online platform with the aim of speaking to an agent about her application.
• October 31st, 2023: Maria buys a 225 € timbre fiscal électronique.
• November 3rd, 2023: Maria has her appointment at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau and is informed that her application is en cours.
• November 7th, 2023: The Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau responds to Maria via email after three weeks. They inform her that her residence permit is in the process of being printed and that she should expect to receive a text message stating that her residence card is ready for pickup in a few weeks.
• November 17th, 2023: Maria receives a text message stating that her residence card is ready for pickup at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau and makes a pickup appointment for November 24th, 2023.
• November 24th, 2023: Maria has her appointment at the Sous-Préfecture de Palaiseau and picks up her carte de séjour salarié. It is valid for one year, beginning 38 days after her RECE expired.

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Successfully obtaining our cartes de séjour salarié means that we’ve reached another milestone on our journey. We’re master’s-educated, gainfully-employed Americans in France with a residency status that gives us more stability than we’ve ever had since we moved to France in 2019. While we can’t say getting to this point was easy, we hope the insight we’ve shared will help you on your own path to creating a rewarding life in France. If you have additional questions, make sure to leave us a comment or send us a message.

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