A French developer has open-sourced a Chrome extension that scrapes the Interior Ministry’s online naturalisation portal and displays real-time status updates—down to which civil servant is handling the file—directly in the applicant’s browser. Launched on 12 January, the plug-in has already been downloaded more than 8 000 times, mainly by long-term residents waiting for the six- to twelve-month naturalisation process to run its course. (visahq.com)
Until now, applicants had little visibility between the “dossier enregistré” e-mail and the final decree published in the Journal officiel. In a 2025 survey by association Réseau Français d’Immigration (REFI), 67 % of respondents said the lack of transparency was the most stressful part of the procedure. By polling ministry servers every few hours and flagging changes, the plug-in promises to reduce that uncertainty.
![New Chrome plug-in lets applicants track French naturalisation files in real time]()
Those who would rather avoid browser add-ons altogether can delegate the legwork: VisaHQ’s France desk tracks naturalisation files, chases missing documents and keeps applicants or HR sponsors updated through its secure portal—without the need to tinker with code. More information is available at https://www.visahq.com/france/.
For corporate-mobility teams the timing is opportune. France’s talent-passport holders often apply for citizenship after five years to remove EU work-permit formalities. Real-time tracking allows HR to forecast when an assignee will switch from third-country national to EU citizen status—vital for long-term career planning and payroll alignment.
Lawyers caution that the tool does not accelerate the underlying process and carries data-privacy risks: users must enter their dossier number and date of birth, which is stored locally but could, in theory, be exposed if the computer is compromised. The developer says an iOS version is under review but warns that any future ministry CAPTCHA changes could break the extension. (visahq.com)
Until now, applicants had little visibility between the “dossier enregistré” e-mail and the final decree published in the Journal officiel. In a 2025 survey by association Réseau Français d’Immigration (REFI), 67 % of respondents said the lack of transparency was the most stressful part of the procedure. By polling ministry servers every few hours and flagging changes, the plug-in promises to reduce that uncertainty.
Those who would rather avoid browser add-ons altogether can delegate the legwork: VisaHQ’s France desk tracks naturalisation files, chases missing documents and keeps applicants or HR sponsors updated through its secure portal—without the need to tinker with code. More information is available at https://www.visahq.com/france/.
For corporate-mobility teams the timing is opportune. France’s talent-passport holders often apply for citizenship after five years to remove EU work-permit formalities. Real-time tracking allows HR to forecast when an assignee will switch from third-country national to EU citizen status—vital for long-term career planning and payroll alignment.
Lawyers caution that the tool does not accelerate the underlying process and carries data-privacy risks: users must enter their dossier number and date of birth, which is stored locally but could, in theory, be exposed if the computer is compromised. The developer says an iOS version is under review but warns that any future ministry CAPTCHA changes could break the extension. (visahq.com)
