# I want to get married and change my CDS status, unsure what order to do things in and how to fix things.



## CaramelMou (Feb 11, 2019)

I’ve been illegal since February 2021. I was on a student carte de séjour and stopped studying. Covid made it nearly impossible for me to find work, so I did some volunteer work on a farm where I met my current SO. I’ve been back and forth emailing the Ardèche prefecture for months (RDV for CDS renewal is taken by email here), sending them all the documents they asked for, only for it to end in nothing. I received a call the other day saying that it’s been too long since my card expired. I would risk needing to go back to the states and apply from zero, and to ask the embassy for further info. It’s been some time that my SO and I would really like to get married but we’re worried that my illegal status would pose a problem and raise eyebrows for a “mariage blanc”. Is it better if I can find a way to get legal again BEFORE we get married, instead of getting married first, and using that as a reason to ask for Vie Privée et familiale? However, should I go back to the states before getting married, I have no idea what status I would choose to go under. Plus who knows how long it would take, let alone the consequences I would face at the airport. Is it possible to fix things without having to leave? If I must leave, how long would reapplying take and what status should I choose? My end goal is just to get back onto the farm and just live my life normally with my SO. We’ve been freaking out and worrying if I’d have to go back to the states for 6 months to reset the 90/180 and come back as a legal tourist, or even worse, a permanent ban. But when you’re really worried your mind will quickly flash to the worst case scenario. I’m wondering if it’s worth asking a lawyer. Thoughts? I feel really lost and frankly, scared too. Thanks so much!


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

You're in a sort of limbo here. If you still had a valid carte de séjour as a student, you could get married and then change your status. The one (big) loophole in your situation is that you can go back home and then re-enter France on a "Schengen visa" (i.e. the tourist 90 day stamp in the passport). Get married in France and then you can apply for a carte de séjour as the spouse of a French national (even if the 90 days as a tourist has expired). You seem to only need to prove that you entered France legally on the short-stay "visa" (and have the stamps in your passport to prove that). 

Details are here: Titres, carte de séjour et documents de circulation pour étranger en France
You have to click on a few of the options and work your way through the site to a certain degree. (By "simplifying" the site they have made it harder for those of us who were familiar with the old organization to find exactly what we're looking for.) But the information you need is here - you're looking for information for the "epoux d'un français" and under the conditions that you entered the country legally on a short stay visa.


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## CaramelMou (Feb 11, 2019)

Good evening Bev, thank you so much for your reply. Is it enough to go back to the states and immediately come back to France? Or would I have to go back to the states and stay 6 months before coming back? What about getting caught/fined at the airport? Best, CaramelMou


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

It has been a long time since I've traveled back to the States while on a carte de séjour - but at that time they never seemed to even look at your passport on the way out of France. That may have changed.

The other approach would be to get married here in France asap (these things take some time - to accumulate the documents and all) and then go confront the préfecture about the carte de séjour. With that approach, there may be some fines to pay, but generally speaking if your SO is French and you've been co-habitating for a significant period of time (and can prove it) it might be do-able. 

Risks no matter which way you choose, but French rules and laws do tend to be somewhat more flexible than you might think - as long as you play things cool. Let's see if anyone else has any thoughts on this situation.


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