Living in France on a one-year titre de séjour and wondering whether your next card comes with a French test? Since 1 January 2026, it might. France now asks for a set level of French, and a pass in a new civic exam, before it issues your first multi-year card or your first 10-year card.
The rule doesn't apply to everyone, though, and the exemptions catch a lot of people out in both directions. Here's which level you need, whether your card is covered, and what to show the préfecture.
Which French level does each card need?
Here's the rule as service-public.fr sets it out for applicants under 65.
| Card | French level | Civic exam |
|---|---|---|
| First carte de séjour pluriannuelle (2 to 4 years) | A2 | Yes, "CSP" version |
| First carte de résident (10 years), EU long-term resident card or permanent resident card | B1 | Yes, "CR" version |
| Renewal of a card you already hold | Not required | Not required |
Two details matter. First, these are first-card rules: once you hold a multi-year card or a carte de résident, renewing it doesn't bring back the test. Second, if you're 65 or older, neither the language level nor the civic exam applies to you.
Does the A2 rule apply to your card?
Only if your card comes with the contrat d'intégration républicaine (CIR), the integration contract that new arrivals on many cards sign with OFII. The A2 rule leaves out every card that isn't subject to it. Article L413-5 of the CESEDA, France's immigration code, lists the cards that are exempt from the CIR. They include:
- visiteur, the card for people living in France on their own income, including many retirees;
- étudiant and stagiaire;
- passeport talent, including the EU Blue Card, researcher, and talent family cards;
- salarié détaché ICT, for intra-company transfers, and its family card;
- travailleur temporaire and travailleur saisonnier.
Service-public adds that holders of subsidiary protection and stateless people, and their families, are also outside the A2 rule.
If you're on one of those cards, the A2 rule doesn't apply to you. If you're married to a French citizen, work in France on a salarié card or run a business here, it does: you'll need A2 and the civic exam to move from one-year cards to a multi-year card. Service-public's page on the CIR warns that if you don't meet the contract's conditions, you can't get the multi-year card, and your one-year card can only be renewed three times.
Does the B1 rule apply when you go for a 10-year card?
Probably. The exemptions above cover the A2 rule for the multi-year card, and they don't carry over to the 10-year card. Service-public lists the routes that need B1:
- the carte de résident as the spouse of a French citizen, the parent of a French child, or through family reunification;
- the EU long-term resident card after five years of continuous legal residence with stable resources, a route open to retirees on visitor cards;
- the EU long-term resident card after more than five years on a talent passport or EU Blue Card;
- the permanent resident card.
So a talent passport holder who never needed A2 will still need B1 to settle for ten years. If that's your plan, start early. B1 is where you have to handle conversations you didn't plan, and that only comes with regular speaking practice.
What do A2 and B1 sound like?
The levels are easier to picture with real French. In one of our A2 French lessons, a woman tells a friend about her morning at the préfecture:
« Je suis allée à la préfecture ce matin. […] Je suis arrivée à neuf heures, mais le guichet était fermé. »
"I went to the préfecture this morning. […] I arrived at nine o'clock, but the counter was closed."
That's A2: you can tell someone what happened, in the past tense, about a familiar situation. B1 asks more of you. In our B1 lesson "The immigration office", a clerk recites the rules and the applicant has to react on the spot:
« Les formulaires doivent être remplis à l'encre noire. L'encre bleue n'est pas acceptée. »
« Un nouveau dossier vous sera envoyé dans un délai de six à huit semaines. »
« Six semaines ? Mon visa expire dans trois semaines ! »
"Forms must be filled out in black ink. Blue ink is not accepted." / "A new file will be sent to you within six to eight weeks." / "Six weeks? My visa expires in three weeks!"
Understanding formal French you didn't expect and answering it with your own problem is exactly the kind of exchange B1 is about. If you'd like the full picture of each level, our guide to the CEFR French levels walks through them.
How do you prove your level to the préfecture?
You have three ways to show A2 or B1, and service-public is strict about each.
- A test. Only two tests count: the TCF IRN from France Éducation international and the TEF IRN from the CCI Paris Île-de-France. You must take all four parts (listening, reading, writing and speaking) in person on the same day, and the result is valid for two years.
- A French-language diploma at the level or above: DELF, DALF, DELF Pro, DCL, DFP or a university DUEF.
- A French diploma, such as the brevet, a CAP or a BEP, or a registered professional certification at level 3 or above.
Diplomas issued abroad don't count, even from a French-speaking country. If a disability or chronic illness makes a test impossible, your doctor can fill in a medical certificate asking for adjustments or an exemption.
If you might apply for citizenship later, think about which proof you buy. Citizenship needs B2, and a DELF never expires, while a TCF result lasts two years. Our citizenship language guide covers that next step.
How do you get your French to A2 or B1?
The test checks four skills, but the speaking part is the one you can't cram for: on the TCF it's ten minutes face to face with an examiner, and you answer without preparation. So whatever course you use, make sure you spend time saying French out loud, not just reading it.
That's what we built our app, Copycat Cafe, to do. Each lesson is an everyday French conversation, like the préfecture scenes above: you hear it at normal or slow speed and rebuild each line by ear, say the lines aloud and get a 0–100 pronunciation score on every word, then use the same French with Copy, your AI conversation partner. The French course has 50 lessons at each level from A1 to B2, so you can work through A2 for your multi-year card and keep going to B1 for the 10-year one. Copycat Cafe costs $174 a year ($14.50 a month) or $29 a month in the US, with a 7-day free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee on your first payment.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a French test to renew my carte de séjour?
Not for a renewal of a card you already hold. The A2 and B1 levels apply to your first multi-year card and your first 10-year card. Someone on one-year cards who needs a CIR will need A2 to move to a multi-year card.
Do visitor visa holders need A2 French in France?
No. The visitor card is exempt from the integration contract, so the A2 rule for the multi-year card doesn't apply. B1 still applies if you later apply for the EU long-term resident card after five years.
Is a DELF accepted for a French residence card?
Yes. A DELF at A2 or above counts for the multi-year card, and at B1 or above for the 10-year card. The DELF is valid for life, while TCF and TEF results are valid for two years.
Are people over 65 exempt from the French test for a residence card?
Yes. The A2 and B1 levels and the civic exam apply to applicants under 65. That exemption doesn't apply to citizenship.