France Freelancer Visa

France has no visa called a freelancer visa. The route freelancers use is the "entrepreneur/profession libérale" residence card, preceded by a long-stay visa of the same category for the first year (Service-Public). It covers a commercial, craft, industrial or liberal activity carried out mainly in France for more than 3 months.

• Income test: the activity must bring in at least €1,867.02 a month
• Viability check: The file gets an opinion from the foreign workforce platform for the department where the activity is planned.
• First card: 1 year, then a multi-year card of up to 4 years

It's built for a business based in France. The official pages don't say that remote work for foreign clients alone qualifies, so applicants should not assume it does. Other options sit in the France guide.

The applicant must plan a real professional activity in France (Service-Public):

• a commercial, craft, industrial or liberal activity that is the applicant's main activity and is registered in France
• an activity that is economically viable and gives enough to live on: at least €1,867.02 a month, the gross monthly minimum wage (SMIC) since June 1, 2026
• for a regulated profession, the authorization or registration French law requires

The income threshold follows the SMIC, so it moves each time the minimum wage is revalued (Service-Public).

Service-Public splits the document list by activity (Service-Public):

• Liberal profession: proof of URSSAF registration, evidence that the activity can bring in at least €1,867.02 a month and, for a regulated profession, the authorization to practice
• Commercial, craft or industrial activity: a business registration extract (K or Kbis), proof the business is viable, the lease for the premises and the opinion of the foreign workforce platform

All applicants also need a long-stay visa or a valid residence permit. Documents in another language need a French translation.

• Long-stay visa: €99 (France-Visas fee list), plus any visa center service charge
• First residence card: €350 (€50 stamp duty plus €300 tax)
• Renewal: €250 for a temporary card, €350 for a multi-year card
• Late filing: an extra €180 when the application is made after the deadline

Card fees are set by the 2026 finance law and apply since May 1, 2026 (Service-Public).

First entry on a long-stay visa from the French consulate in the country of residence; later cards through the prefecture of residence.

1. From abroad, apply for a long-stay visa in the entrepreneur or liberal profession category at the French consulate (France-Visas).
2. The file goes to the foreign workforce platform for an opinion on the activity.
3. In France, apply for the residence card and its renewals at the prefecture or sub-prefecture of residence (Service-Public).

No official processing time is published.

The first card lasts 1 year (Service-Public).

• Renewal: Renewable from inside France within the 2 months before expiry, as a temporary card (€250) or a multi-year card of up to 4 years (€350).
• Limit: a temporary card can't be renewed more than 3 times in a row for the same reason
• Long-term residence: Yes, under the general rule: after 5 years of continuous legal residence a holder can apply for the 10-year EU long-term resident card, with French at level B1 and stable resources at least equal to the SMIC.

The long-term resident card rules are on Service-Public.

Holding the entrepreneur or liberal profession card doesn't change how France taxes income. Service-Public lists no special tax regime for it.

France treats a person as a tax resident when any one of four tests is met: the household or main home is in France, the person spends at least 183 days there in the year, the main professional activity is in France, or the center of economic interests is there (Service-Public). Meeting one test is enough, so staying under 183 days doesn't guarantee non-residence. A tax treaty between France and another country can set different rules.

Anyone who keeps income or a home in another country should check the treaty and ask both tax authorities before the first French return.