Relocation platform Jobbatical and multiple immigration law firms have updated their France guidance to confirm that holders of the long-stay Visitor Visa (VLS-TS « visiteur ») can no longer perform any remote work—even for foreign employers—following a joint Interior-Finance circular issued in April and enforced nationwide since June.
The clarification, published on 20 December, notes that several préfectures have already refused visitor-visa renewals where applicants admitted to telework, triggering appeals and, in some cases, abrupt departures. Employers are therefore urged to move affected staff to alternative categories such as ‘Profession Libérale’, ‘Talent Passport – Employees on Assignment’, or the EU Blue Card.
![Remote Work Explicitly Banned on French Visitor Visas: HR Told to Shift Staff to Talent Tracks]()
For companies and individuals now needing to pivot to a different immigration pathway, VisaHQ can assist with end-to-end advisory and filing support. Its France team—reachable via https://www.visahq.com/france/—monitors prefectural practice in real time and can quickly determine whether a Profession Libérale, Talent Passport or EU Blue Card route is most appropriate, supplying tailored checklists and submission services to keep assignments on track.
Practically, the policy shift removes a popular workaround used by companies to place non-EU spouses, gap-year interns and digital nomads in France without full labour-market tests. Corporate mobility teams must now budget extra time and legal fees—typically €1,200-€2,000—for a change-of-status filing and adjust payroll compliance to French standards if staff begin local contracts.
Failure to regularise status could expose companies to fines of up to €18,750 per unauthorised worker under CESEDA employer-sanction rules revised earlier this year. HR departments should audit current visitor-visa holders, issue cease-remote-work notices where required, and plan alternative immigration routes before the first renewal cycle in early 2026.
The clarification, published on 20 December, notes that several préfectures have already refused visitor-visa renewals where applicants admitted to telework, triggering appeals and, in some cases, abrupt departures. Employers are therefore urged to move affected staff to alternative categories such as ‘Profession Libérale’, ‘Talent Passport – Employees on Assignment’, or the EU Blue Card.
For companies and individuals now needing to pivot to a different immigration pathway, VisaHQ can assist with end-to-end advisory and filing support. Its France team—reachable via https://www.visahq.com/france/—monitors prefectural practice in real time and can quickly determine whether a Profession Libérale, Talent Passport or EU Blue Card route is most appropriate, supplying tailored checklists and submission services to keep assignments on track.
Practically, the policy shift removes a popular workaround used by companies to place non-EU spouses, gap-year interns and digital nomads in France without full labour-market tests. Corporate mobility teams must now budget extra time and legal fees—typically €1,200-€2,000—for a change-of-status filing and adjust payroll compliance to French standards if staff begin local contracts.
Failure to regularise status could expose companies to fines of up to €18,750 per unauthorised worker under CESEDA employer-sanction rules revised earlier this year. HR departments should audit current visitor-visa holders, issue cease-remote-work notices where required, and plan alternative immigration routes before the first renewal cycle in early 2026.
