# Visa renewal question



## ruskiantonov

Hi All,

I’m trying to immigrate to France from Los Angeles.

I signed up for a French language school for 20hr per week French classes starting in January. I applied for a student visa and was denied.

On the advice of an attorney I reapplied for a Long Stay Visa with the box “private stay / visitor” box checked and below I checked the “6 months to one year” box.

I submitted my application with lease agreement, proof of funds, plane tickets, etc.

Does anyone know if I am able to renew this visa at the prefecture close to the end of my stay? My intentions are to remain in France indefinitely, I have the financial means to do so.

thanks in advance!


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## mem1476

ruskiantonov said:


> Hi All,
> 
> I’m trying to immigrate to France from Los Angeles.
> 
> I signed up for a French language school for 20hr per week French classes starting in January. I applied for a student visa and was denied.
> 
> On the advice of an attorney I reapplied for a Long Stay Visa with the box “private stay / visitor” box checked and below I checked the “6 months to one year” box.
> 
> I submitted my application with lease agreement, proof of funds, plane tickets, etc.
> 
> Does anyone know if I am able to renew this visa at the prefecture close to the end of my stay? My intentions are to remain in France indefinitely, I have the financial means to do so.
> 
> thanks in advance!


Hi there,

I came to France with that same visa a year ago (visitor visa with 6mos-1yr checked) and I was nervous about this too as some people had told me that in order to be renewable you need to check the 1+ year box. I applied for a renewal, and it was just preliminarily granted yesterday (they said it's approved, now it's just a matter of making the physical carte de sejour). So, I think you should be good to go. The key factor, once you receive your initial visa, is to look on the visa sticker in your passport and look at "remarks" section. If it has number R311-3 5 listed below, this apparently means it is eligible for renewal.

Good luck!
M


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## ruskiantonov

mem1476 said:


> Hi there,
> 
> I came to France with that same visa a year ago (visitor visa with 6mos-1yr checked) and I was nervous about this too as some people had told me that in order to be renewable you need to check the 1+ year box. I applied for a renewal, and it was just preliminarily granted yesterday (they said it's approved, now it's just a matter of making the physical carte de sejour). So, I think you should be good to go. The key factor, once you receive your initial visa, is to look on the visa sticker in your passport and look at "remarks" section. If it has number R311-3 5 listed below, this apparently means it is eligible for renewal.
> 
> Good luck!
> M


Thank you M, hope to update the tread with positive news in 2 weeks time


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## Bevdeforges

Just a note here: renewal of any visa is contingent on your being able to show that you still meet the same conditions as when you requested your visa. So, you'll need to show financial resources, health insurance and any other things they may have asked for. There is also the matter of "discretion" granted to the various préfectures that process the renewals. Some are pickier than others about certain requirements. 

Not said to discourage you. Just friend advice so you can prepare yourself for the renewal process.


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## ruskiantonov

ruskiantonov said:


> Thank you M, hope to update the tread with positive news in 2 weeks time





mem1476 said:


> Hi there,
> 
> I came to France with that same visa a year ago (visitor visa with 6mos-1yr checked) and I was nervous about this too as some people had told me that in order to be renewable you need to check the 1+ year box. I applied for a renewal, and it was just preliminarily granted yesterday (they said it's approved, now it's just a matter of making the physical carte de sejour). So, I think you should be good to go. The key factor, once you receive your initial visa, is to look on the visa sticker in your passport and look at "remarks" section. If it has number R311-3 5 listed below, this apparently means it is eligible for renewal.
> 
> Good luck!
> M


yay! I got my visa! Valid from 01/01/22 through 01/01/23

i don’t see any remarks section, but it says class “D”

other notes:

Valid for: FRANCE (sauf CTOM)

LONG SEJ. TEMP.

DISPENSE C.SEJ.

if anyone can let me know what these mean and if I’m qualified for renewal at the end of the visa.

thank you!


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## Bevdeforges

The class D simply means that it's a long stay (i.e. over 90 days) visa. LONG SEJ. TEMP and DISPENSE C.SEJ. means that the visa in your passport (when validated on entry) serves as your titre de séjour (C.SEJ. = carte de séjour, which is the separate card version) which is your residence permit.

It's a one year visa, so it's likely that it's renewable, but that depends on your being able to confirm that all the same conditions apply regarding your financial resources, health care coverage, etc. Since you're on a visitor visa, you won't need to be enrolled in classes for renewal, but you aren't eligible to work in France (which would have the added advantage of getting you enrolled in the health care system). You can enroll in the Sécu after 3 months of residence in France, but there will be some determination of annual fees based on your income unless you're living on a pension as a retiree.


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## GraceS

ruskiantonov said:


> yay! I got my visa! Valid from 01/01/22 through 01/01/23
> 
> i don’t see any remarks section, but it says class “D”
> 
> other notes:
> 
> Valid for: FRANCE (sauf CTOM)
> 
> LONG SEJ. TEMP.
> 
> DISPENSE C.SEJ.
> 
> if anyone can let me know what these mean and if I’m qualified for renewal at the end of the visa.
> 
> thank you!


Congrats on your visa!

I'm from the US, early retired, and have had both a 6-12 month visa and a 1+ year visa. 

One of the best clues about your visa's renewability: the small piece of paper that came with your returned passport. My 6-12 month visa was not renewable. The piece of paper that came with it said: "The visa you have received is a 'Long Sejour Temporaire' visa. This type of visa exempts you from registering with the OFII and from applying for a residence card. This is why your OFII form was not returned to you. You have to leave France by the expiration of your visa."

In contrast, my renewable visa came with a small piece of paper that explained what I needed to do to be "registered as a legal resident in France" to "complete" my "relocation."


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## MIT321

GraceS said:


> Congrats on your visa!
> 
> I'm from the US, early retired, and have had both a 6-12 month visa and a 1+ year visa.
> 
> One of the best clues about your visa's renewability: the small piece of paper that came with your returned passport. My 6-12 month visa was not renewable. The piece of paper that came with it said: "The visa you have received is a 'Long Sejour Temporaire' visa. This type of visa exempts you from registering with the OFII and from applying for a residence card. This is why your OFII form was not returned to you. You have to leave France by the expiration of your visa."
> 
> In contrast, my renewable visa came with a small piece of paper that explained what I needed to do to be "registered as a legal resident in France" to "complete" my "relocation."


 Hi! Did you apply for your 1+ year visa after the first one expired or few months before it expired? Thank you in advance for any response you can provide.
-MIT


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## GraceS

MIT321 said:


> Hi! Did you apply for your 1+ year visa after the first one expired or few months before it expired? Thank you in advance for any response you can provide.
> -MIT


Um, in my case, there was that pesky multi-year international pandemic in between my two visas. 

I applied first for a non-renewable visa to do a six month "reconnaissance mission" and assess whether I wanted to make a longer term move to France. Turned out I did want to move long term--but I was delayed by those darned spike proteins.

As far as applying for a 1+ year renewable visa after your non-renewable one, my understanding is that you MUST return to the US to apply for the 1+ year--though you can make that application before your non-renewable visa expires. 

Well, technically, you could start the online part of the application while anywhere in the world. But you have to do the required interview at one of the US VFS centers, and then, a few weeks later, either pick up the visa in person at the center, or have it mailed to you at a residential US address.


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## Laurence Mondzain

Bevdeforges said:


> The class D simply means that it's a long stay (i.e. over 90 days) visa. LONG SEJ. TEMP and DISPENSE C.SEJ. means that the visa in your passport (when validated on entry) serves as your titre de séjour (C.SEJ. = carte de séjour, which is the separate card version) which is your residence permit.
> 
> It's a one year visa, so it's likely that it's renewable, but that depends on your being able to confirm that all the same conditions apply regarding your financial resources, health care coverage, etc. Since you're on a visitor visa, you won't need to be enrolled in classes for renewal, but you aren't eligible to work in France (which would have the added advantage of getting you enrolled in the health care system). You can enroll in the Sécu after 3 months of residence in France, but there will be some determination of annual fees based on your income unless you're living on a pension as a retiree.


Hello, my long stay visa has the same status - LONG SEJ. TEMP and DISPENSE C.SEJ. I am wondering if you would be able to clarify something for me. Do I need to go through an additional process to validate my visa as a residence permit? 

I have been in France about 8 months, and I do not think I validated my visa when I arrived. I only realized that that is required of some (or all?) visa holders when I started looking into renewing the visa today. If I did fail to do this step, I imagine it would hurt my chances of being able to renew the visa. 

Thank you for your help.


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## Bevdeforges

I've just answered a similar question regarding the VLS-TS - but the government web pages on the subject don't appear to be working. You may want to start here: Long-stay visa France equivalent to a residence permit (VLS-TS) - Welcome to France and see if you can find a link to either report the faulty web page link or to ask what you should do at this point.


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## MIT321

GraceS said:


> Um, in my case, there was that pesky multi-year international pandemic in between my two visas.
> 
> I applied first for a non-renewable visa to do a six month "reconnaissance mission" and assess whether I wanted to make a longer term move to France. Turned out I did want to move long term--but I was delayed by those darned spike proteins.
> 
> As far as applying for a 1+ year renewable visa after your non-renewable one, my understanding is that you MUST return to the US to apply for the 1+ year--though you can make that application before your non-renewable visa expires.
> 
> Well, technically, you could start the online part of the application while anywhere in the world. But you have to do the required interview at one of the US VFS centers, and then, a few weeks later, either pick up the visa in person at the center, or have it mailed to you at a residential US address.



Hi GraceS,
Thank you for your response!


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## Laurence Mondzain

Bevdeforges said:


> The class D simply means that it's a long stay (i.e. over 90 days) visa. LONG SEJ. TEMP and DISPENSE C.SEJ. means that the visa in your passport (when validated on entry) serves as your titre de séjour (C.SEJ. = carte de séjour, which is the separate card version) which is your residence permit.
> 
> It's a one year visa, so it's likely that it's renewable, but that depends on your being able to confirm that all the same conditions apply regarding your financial resources, health care coverage, etc. Since you're on a visitor visa, you won't need to be enrolled in classes for renewal, but you aren't eligible to work in France (which would have the added advantage of getting you enrolled in the health care system). You can enroll in the Sécu after 3 months of residence in France, but there will be some determination of annual fees based on your income unless you're living on a pension as a retiree.





ruskiantonov said:


> yay! I got my visa! Valid from 01/01/22 through 01/01/23
> 
> i don’t see any remarks section, but it says class “D”
> 
> other notes:
> 
> Valid for: FRANCE (sauf CTOM)
> 
> LONG SEJ. TEMP.
> 
> DISPENSE C.SEJ.
> 
> if anyone can let me know what these mean and if I’m qualified for renewal at the end of the visa.
> 
> thank you!


Hi there, I have the same visa text on my visa (Long Sej. Temp. Dispense C.Sej.). I just tried to begin the process of obtaining a Titre de Séjour so I could stay another year in France, but, contrary to what Bevdeforges said, it seems that this is not a Long Stay Visa equivalent to a Residence Permit (VLS TS) and it is NOT valid for renewal. Sorry for the bad news. If you find out any ways to get around this, please do let me know. Thanks and good luck.


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## jrstew

Laurence Mondzain said:


> Hi there, I have the same visa text on my visa (Long Sej. Temp. Dispense C.Sej.). I just tried to begin the process of obtaining a Titre de Séjour so I could stay another year in France, but, contrary to what Bevdeforges said, it seems that this is not a Long Stay Visa equivalent to a Residence Permit (VLS TS) and it is NOT valid for renewal. Sorry for the bad news. If you find out any ways to get around this, please do let me know. Thanks and good luck.


Did you have any joy, I have just been told I cannot renew the R311 3 5 long stay visa, also I am not sure I validated it within the 3 months window, or does just accessing France border control count do you know


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## Bevdeforges

Sorry, I guess I misunderstood the caption on your visa - "Dispense C.Sej" means that you are not required to apply for a carte de séjour - and as you found out, that seems to indicate that the residence permission is not renewable after the expiration date of the visa. The VLS/TS is the long stay visa that serves as your titre de séjour - and where you must register with the OFII shortly after arrival. At that point, your visa becomes your titre de séjour and at the end of your first year, you can then apply for a carte de séjour.

For what it's worth, you are hardly the first to get tripped up by this distinction. But if what you have isn't a VLS/TS then you will have to return to your home country to apply for a new visa (be sure to tick the box saying you plan on staying for 1+ years). It can also depend on the reason you gave for requesting the visa (i.e. student, work, visitor visa).


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