With less than two weeks to go before the first applicants sit France’s new civic-knowledge test, the Interior Ministry quietly posted a comprehensive FAQ and registration guide on its ‘Formation-Civique’ portal (20 January 2026). The online resource consolidates rules introduced in the 26 January 2024 immigration-control law and the implementing decree of 10 October 2025 but, crucially, gives foreign residents practical information that had until now been scattered across multiple circulars.
From 1 January 2026 any non-EU national seeking a first multi-year ‘carte de séjour pluriannuelle’ or ten-year ‘carte de résident’ must pass a 40-question multiple-choice test administered by either the Paris Chamber of Commerce (CCIP) or France Éducation International. Candidates have 45 minutes to answer 28 factual questions and 12 scenario-based items covering republican values, institutions, rights and obligations, history and everyday life. A score of 32/40 (80 %) is required to pass; there is no limit on retakes, and the certificate has no expiry date.
The new portal confirms key exemptions—holders of international protection and nationals covered by certain bilateral accords—and explains how language interpreters will be provided. It also publishes the official question banks for both the standard multi-year card and the ten-year resident card, allowing candidates—and the employers who sponsor them—to prepare systematically.
![Interior Ministry publishes operational details of new mandatory civic exam for multi-year residence permits]()
Foreign residents and the HR teams who support them may also find practical support through VisaHQ, whose France-dedicated platform (https://www.visahq.com/france/) offers up-to-date guidance on residence permits, document checklists and application timelines. The service can coordinate appointment scheduling, track renewals and flag impending deadlines, reducing administrative risk as companies navigate the new civic-knowledge requirement.
For global-mobility managers the stakes are high: failure to pass the civic exam can interrupt work authorisation renewals and trigger costly repatriations. Companies should budget extra lead-time when scheduling permit upgrades in 2026 and may wish to fund preparatory courses given the 80 % pass threshold. Immigration advisers also note that prefectures will check that benefits-eligible dependants (spouses, adult children) have individually satisfied the requirement.
By consolidating the rules in one place, the Interior Ministry has removed some uncertainty, but associations representing foreign professionals continue to lobby for English-language test materials. For now, the safest course is early registration, careful study of the published question bank, and contingency planning in case an employee does not achieve the required score on the first attempt.
From 1 January 2026 any non-EU national seeking a first multi-year ‘carte de séjour pluriannuelle’ or ten-year ‘carte de résident’ must pass a 40-question multiple-choice test administered by either the Paris Chamber of Commerce (CCIP) or France Éducation International. Candidates have 45 minutes to answer 28 factual questions and 12 scenario-based items covering republican values, institutions, rights and obligations, history and everyday life. A score of 32/40 (80 %) is required to pass; there is no limit on retakes, and the certificate has no expiry date.
The new portal confirms key exemptions—holders of international protection and nationals covered by certain bilateral accords—and explains how language interpreters will be provided. It also publishes the official question banks for both the standard multi-year card and the ten-year resident card, allowing candidates—and the employers who sponsor them—to prepare systematically.
Foreign residents and the HR teams who support them may also find practical support through VisaHQ, whose France-dedicated platform (https://www.visahq.com/france/) offers up-to-date guidance on residence permits, document checklists and application timelines. The service can coordinate appointment scheduling, track renewals and flag impending deadlines, reducing administrative risk as companies navigate the new civic-knowledge requirement.
For global-mobility managers the stakes are high: failure to pass the civic exam can interrupt work authorisation renewals and trigger costly repatriations. Companies should budget extra lead-time when scheduling permit upgrades in 2026 and may wish to fund preparatory courses given the 80 % pass threshold. Immigration advisers also note that prefectures will check that benefits-eligible dependants (spouses, adult children) have individually satisfied the requirement.
By consolidating the rules in one place, the Interior Ministry has removed some uncertainty, but associations representing foreign professionals continue to lobby for English-language test materials. For now, the safest course is early registration, careful study of the published question bank, and contingency planning in case an employee does not achieve the required score on the first attempt.
