Domestic Violence
Verified 01 April 2024 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)
The term “spousal violence” refers to all violence (physical, psychological and economic) committed within the couple by the partner of Civil partnerships or common-law relationships. Domestic violence is punishable by law and you must file a complaint if you are a victim. You can also ask for help from associations and public bodies. We guide you through the process.
Please note
- Emergency number: 17
- Women's helpline, information and referral number: 3919 (toll-free)
Domestic violence can be physical or sexual violence, of the psychological violence or the economic violence.
The physical violence is characterized by the use of violent gestures to injure you.
The sexual violence is a sexual act committed without your consentunder threat or blackmail.
Examples of physical and/or sexual violence include:
- Being slapped
- Being punched, strapped with a belt, or otherwise
- Being pulled by the hair or being pushed
- Being sexually touched under duress
- Forced sex
The psychological violence is a behavior or set of acts that are intended to demean or disparage you.
Examples of psychological violence include:
- Demeaning or derogatory remarks, whether in private or public
- Insults
- Threats (e.g. sexual videos)
The economic violence is conduct intended to to deprive you of financial autonomyand to place yourself under the control of your spouse, or your Civil partnership or common-law partner.
Examples of economic violence include:
- Full control of the resources of the couple and their use
- Deprivation of resources of the other member of the couple
- Endangering your wealth (signing a mortgage, taking out consumer credits)
You are a victim of spousal violence if you suffer one or more of the above events from your partner, or from your Civil partnership or common-law partner.
Call emergency services
You can also alert the Samu or the fire brigade if you need urgent medical attention following domestic violence.
Who shall I contact
Samu - 15
For medical emergencies
By telephone
15
Free call from landline and mobile in Metropolitan France and Overseas
Works 24/7
Firefighters - 18
By telephone
Dial 18 in the event of an emergency involving a fire, a motor vehicle accident, a domestic accident, an explosion or release of toxic gases or vapors, a person at risk, drowning or flooding.
From a mobile phone, dial 112.
You can also go to a hospital, doctor or midwife (if you are a woman).
The health professional shall be subject to medical confidentiality.
Make your injuries visible
If you have injuries caused by your Civil partnership or common-law partner, you should have them recognized by a doctor.
If you have the opportunity, you can have your injuries recorded by a forensic unit (UMJ).
The UMJ is a multidisciplinary service made up of doctors, forensic doctors, nurses, psychologists, psychiatrists, nursing assistants, medico-administrative officers, lawyers and representatives of victims' associations.
The UMJ is located in a hospital and you will find the unit near where you are located via the following page:
Who shall I contact
File a complaint
For the perpetrator of the domestic violence you suffered to be prosecuted, and to be convicted for his act, you must complain.
The complaint procedure is different in the Île-de-France Region compared to the rest of the territory.
General case
On the spot
You can go to a police station or a gendarme brigade of your choice.
The police or gendarmerie refer the complaint to the public prosecutor.
If the police or gendarmerie refuse to take your domestic violence complaint, you can alert the competent control authorities.
Submit online to the Inspectorate General of the National Police
Contact the Inspectorate General of the National Gendarmerie online
By mail
You can file a complaint with the public prosecutor.
To do this, you must send an email to the court of law of the place of the offense or of the domicile of the offender.
Who shall I contact
Your mail should include the following:
- Your marital status and full contact information (address and telephone number)
- Detailed account of the facts, date and place of the offense
- Name of the alleged perpetrator if known (otherwise, the complaint will be filed against X)
- Name and address of any witnesses to the offense
- Description and provisional or definitive estimate of the damage
- Your proof documents: medical certificates, work stoppages, miscellaneous invoices, findings...
- Your eventual willingness to become a civil party
You can use the following mail template:
File a complaint with the public prosecutor
You can send your complaint by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt, by simple letter or by letter followed.
You can also file your complaint directly at the courthouse.
In any case, a receipt is given to you as soon as the Public Prosecutor's Office has registered your complaint.
Île-de-France
You can file a complaint on the spot or by mail.
On the spot
You can go to a police station or a gendarmerie brigade, and to certain care facilities and municipal reception places.
Police or gendarmerie
You can go to a police station or a gendarme brigade of your choice.
The police or gendarmerie will forward the complaint to the public prosecutor.
If the police or gendarmerie refuse to take your domestic violence complaint, you can alert the competent control authorities.
Submit online to the Inspectorate General of the National Police
Contact the Inspectorate General of the National Gendarmerie online
The presence of a lawyer is not mandatory for the lodging of a complaint and throughout the procedure until the trial before the correctional court.
Care Facilities and Municipal Hospitality Sites
Since October 4, 2023However, you can file a domestic violence complaint in the emergency departments of public hospitals, public maternity wards and in some municipal reception centers.
The services concerned are located in Paris and in the departments of Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis and Val-de-Marne.
The hospitals, maternity wards and municipal reception centers in question are integrated into schemes for victims of domestic violence.
You can consult the interactive map of these places via the following link:
Who shall I contact
The presence of a lawyer is not mandatory for the lodging of a complaint and throughout the procedure until the trial before the correctional court.
By mail
You can file a complaint with the public prosecutor.
To do this, you must send an email to the court of law of the place of the offense or of the domicile of the offender.
Who shall I contact
Your mail should include the following:
- Your marital status and full contact information (address and telephone number)
- Detailed account of the facts, date and place of the offense
- Name of the alleged perpetrator if known (otherwise, the complaint will be filed against X)
- Name and address of any witnesses to the offense
- Description and provisional or definitive estimate of the damage
- Your proof documents: medical certificates, work stoppages, miscellaneous invoices, findings...
- Your eventual willingness to become a civil party
You can use the following mail template:
File a complaint with the public prosecutor
You can send your complaint by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt, by simple letter or by letter followed.
You can also file your complaint directly at the courthouse.
In any case, a receipt is given to you as soon as the Public Prosecutor's Office has registered your complaint.
If you have filed a domestic violence complaint, your partner or partner of a violent Civil partnership or common-law partner may be placed under judicial review by the judge of liberty and detention.
If you have not filed a complaint and you feel threatened by a violent Civil partnership or common-law partner, you can ask the family court judge to take a protection order or to establish a bracelet for misalignment.
In the most serious cases, the family judge or the public prosecutor may decide to equip you with a serious danger telephone.
FYI
Since 1er january 2024, domestic violence complaints are handled under the guidance of specialized centers for combating domestic violence.
These poles, composed of a judge of the seat and a member of the Parquet Floor, shall have the task of facilitating the flow of information between the various actors concerned.
Judicial review and prohibition of contact
The judicial review is a measure that allows justice to supervise a person who is suspected of having committed an offense during the investigation.
As part of the judicial review, the judge may impose a number of obligations and prohibitions on your spouse or partner who is in breach.
The judge may, for example, impose an obligation on the child to leave the family home, prohibit the child from contacting you, or prohibit the child from contacting you.
If the judge maintains the right of access of your spouse or partner, he or she may provide that the delivery of the children be done in a neutral media space, and/or in the presence of a trusted third party.
Protection Order
L'protection order is a decision by which the judge forbidden to your abusive spouse or partner of you contact or to approach from you, at home, at work or elsewhere.
If you are a victim of domestic violence and have not filed a complaint, you can ask the family judge to issue a protection order.
The protection order may be issued urgently, even if you have not yet filed a criminal complaint.
You can do this even if you do not live in cohabitation with the perpetrator.
The application for a protection order must be made by application to the family court responsible for your domicile.
Application to the Family Court Judge: Issuance of a protection order
You can attach to the application all the evidence of the violence suffered: medical certificates, photo of injuries, testimonies...
Who shall I contact
Query Processing
The Family Court Judge must make an order setting the date for the hearing.
It must make its decision no later than 6 days after the date of the hearing has been fixed.
If you are assisted by a lawyer, you must forward Commissioner of Justice (formerly bailiff and judicial auctioneer) the order fixing the date of the hearing and the application to the alleged perpetrator, within 2 days.
The costs of the Commissioners of Justice shall be borne by the State.
If you are not assisted by a lawyer, the registry must forward the order setting the hearing date to the alleged perpetrator.
The judge may also decide to inform the alleged perpetrator of the violence of the date of the hearing by any means he deems necessary.
Favorable decision
In the event of a favorable decision, your spouse or partner has an obligation to comply with the obligations and prohibitions contained in the protection order.
The decision shall be in force for a period of 6 months and may be renewed.
In case of violation, you must inform the police who notifies the public prosecutor.
Violation of the protection order is punishable by 2 years imprisonment and a fine of €15,000.
If you have protection order, you can benefit from the support of specialized associations to find a home.
These associations can sublet you furnished or unfurnished accommodation that they rent from HLM organizations.
Depending on your situation, you can have facilities for the payment of the deposit and the first months of rent.
You can also request the early release of your salary savings.
Rejection of the application
Where a protection order is refused, the judge may schedule another hearing to rule on the other applications you have made in the context of the family dispute.
Bracelet for preventing misalignment
The bracelet is an electronic surveillance device that allows to geolocate a person to be protected and a real or suspected perpetrator of domestic violence.
The decision to install an anti-rapprochement bracelet defines a protection perimeter that your spouse or partner accused of domestic violence must not cross.
If it enters the prohibited zone, you will be warned (e) and brought to safety by law enforcement.
If the seriousness of the threats to you so requires, the judge may decide to put you on an electronic bracelet.
The scheme may be implemented in criminal proceedings or in civil proceedings.
In criminal matters
The decision to install an anti-rapprochement bracelet can be made before or after the judgment of the person suspected of domestic violence.
Before the judgment, the measure may be taken by the investigating judge or by the judge of liberty and detention, in the context of a judicial review.
After the judgment, the measure can be taken only if the person suspected of domestic violence has been found guilty of the offense.
In this case, the measure is a conviction, and can be carried out as part of a sentence adjustment.
In civil matters
The decision to install an anti-rapprochement bracelet can be made by the family judge, to whom you have asked for a protection order.
The judge will make the decision based on the situation and the agreement of the parties.
If he refuses, the judge may refer the matter to the parquet floor so that the measure may be taken in the context of criminal proceedings.
Serious danger telephone
In the most serious cases of domestic violence, the public prosecutor may decide to equip you with a serious danger telephone.
This is a geolocated phone that allows you, in case of very serious danger, to alert a technical platform that will alert the law enforcement.
The phone can be given to you in the following 2 cases :
- You are in very serious danger because of the risk of assault by your abusive spouse or partner who is the subject of a judicial prohibition to come into contact with you
- You are in very serious danger because of the risk of being assaulted by your abusive spouse or partner who is fleeing or who has not yet been able to be arrested
This phone can be given to you at all stages of the procedure by the prosecutor, with your consent.
The telephone is given for a 6-month renewable term.
Who shall I contact
Protection of the child of the couple
Since March 18, 2024, if your spouse is prosecuted for committing a crime against you, he no longer has the exercise ofparental authority, or of his right of access and accommodation. As a result, they can no longer make decisions about your child's life and are forbidden to see your child.
The exercise of parental authority and the right of access and accommodation shall be suspended until the decision of the Family Court Judge, until the decision of non-suit issued by the investigating judge or until the decision of a criminal court.
If your spouse is doomed for this crime, the criminal jurisdiction duty order the total withdrawal of parental authority over your common child. If it does not do so, it must at least order partial withdrawal or withdrawal of the exercise of parental authority.
If your spouse is convicted of committing an offense offense (example: physical or psychological violence) against you, the correctional court can order the total withdrawal, partial withdrawal or withdrawal of the exercise of parental authority.
You can find information on organizations that can help you on the site:
Who shall I contact
Stop the violence: violence within the couple
You can also contact one of the following organizations directly:
- 3919, specialized violence against women
Who shall I contact
Violence Women Info - 3919
Listen, inform and refer women victims of violence, and witnesses to such violence.
Addresses physical, verbal, or psychological abuse, at home or at work, and abuse of any kind (including sexual harassment, assault, and rape).
Does not deal with emergencies (it is not a police or gendarmerie service).
For other types of violence, 3919 provides a first-level response and directs or transfers to a useful number.
By telephone
39,19 (free call from a landline or mobile phone in metropolitan and DOM)
Open 24/7
Anonymous call
Call not on phone bills
- Associations of the France Victimes network, via the number 116 006 Victims
Who shall I contact
116 006 - Victim Assistance Number
Listen, inform and advise victims of crime and their families.
By telephone
116,006
Free call
Open 7 days a week from 9am to 7pm
The service can also be accessed by calling the +33 (0)1 80 52 33 76 (Normal pricing number).
By email
victimes@france-victimes.fr
- Women's Rights Information Center
Who shall I contact
- The Victim-Journey site, which guides you through each step
Being subjected to domestic violence may justify leaving the family home.
You can request emergency and temporary accommodation, while you organize to relocate.
You can call Social Samu for help if you have had to leave your home as a result of domestic violence.
Who shall I contact
Social Samu - 115
Homelessness Emergency and Reception Number
By telephone
115 (free from landline and mobile in metropolitan France and overseas)
Open from Monday to Sunday and operating 24 hours a day
Yes, you can apply for emergency financial assistance.
Procedure for applying for emergency universal assistance
You can apply for emergency assistance online or on site at the Caf or the Caisse de la Mutualité sociale agricole.
FYI
If you are not an allocator of any of these 2 boxes, you must contact the Caf or the competent Agricultural Social Mutual Fund for your home.
Online
You can make the request via the online service of the Ministry of Solidarity, that of the Caf, or that of the Caisse de la Mutualité sociale agricole:
Request for emergency assistance for victims of intimate partner violence
Request for emergency assistance for victims of domestic violence - Caf
Request for emergency assistance for victims of domestic violence - MSA
On the spot
If you do not wish to apply online on the website of the organization you depend on, you must apply on site.
You can make the request at the time of filing a complaint or reporting, or afterwards.
At the time you file a complaint or at the time you make a report the public prosecutor, the police or the public prosecutor's office may offer you to send an urgent request for assistance to your organization that is liable for family benefits via a simplified form.
If you agree, the request is forwarded to that organization.
On receipt of the application, the body responsible for paying the family benefits must forward it to the President of the Departmental Council with your agreement.
If a request for assistance has not been sent on your behalf to your organization that is liable for family benefits by the police or the public prosecutor's office, you must make the request yourself.
You must attach the following to the application:
- Document justifying the situation of domestic violence (report to the public prosecutor, filing of a complaint or protection order)
- Revenue Credentials
- Commitment to repay the aid, if granted in the form of a loan
- Information on the existence, progress and outcome of criminal proceedings against the spouse, partner of Civil partnerships or common-law partner
- Consent to the transmission of your request for assistance to the President of the competent departmental council
The body responsible for examining the application must take a decision to grant the aid or to reject the application within 3 working days from receipt of the request.
This period shall be extended to 5 working days if you are not a beneficiary of this organization.
The body responsible for examining the application must state in the decision the reasons on which it has based its decision.
The decision must be communicated to you by any means necessary to establish a definite date of receipt.
The decision must contain the remedies available, the time limits within which they must be exercised and the court competent to examine them.
Emergency assistance: repayable loan or non-repayable assistance
As a victim of intimate partner violence, you can receive emergency financial assistance under certain conditions.
Depending on your resources, the emergency assistance can be non-repayable financial assistance or a repayable interest-free loan.
It shall be paid at once by the Caf or the Caisse de la Mutualité sociale agricole.
FYI
The aid may not be granted to you more than once in the same year.
Eligibility for emergency universal assistance
To be eligible for help, you must first provide proof that you have been abused by your partner, your partner or your Civil partnership partner.
You can prove this by one of the following documents:
- Report sent to the Public Prosecutor
- Filing of complaint
- Protection order issued by the family court
Next, you need to provide proof of your resources so that the service can determine whether you qualify for the non-repayable financial assistance or the interest-free repayable loan.
The revenues that are taken into account in reviewing your situation are:
- Income from employment and self-employment
- Unemployment benefits (including short-time work)
- Maternity, paternity or adoption allowances
- Other daily social security benefits
- Guaranteed remuneration received by disabled workers admitted to an establishment or a work-related support service
- Retirement pensions, received in the month preceding the application for assistance or in the penultimate month preceding your application
Non-repayable financial assistance
You can get a non-refundable assistance if your income does not exceed the following amounts:
- €2,098.04 for a single person
- €3,147.06 for a person with a dependent child
- €3,776.47 for one person with 2 dependent children
- €4,615.69 for a person with 3 or more dependent children
Repayable interest-free loan
You can get a repayable interest-free loan if your income exceeds the following amounts:
- €2,098.04 for a single person
- €3,147.06 for a person with a dependent child
- €3,776.47 for one person with 2 dependent children
- €4,615.69 for a person with 3 or more dependent children
Amount of universal aid
The basic amount of the aid shall be €635.70.
This amount is increased according to the number of dependent children.
It is reduced according to the share of your income above the minimum wage.
The following table shows the amount of aid according to these 2 criteria.
Income | Single parent | Parent + 1 child | Parent + 2 children | Parent + 3 children |
Less than €699.35 | €607.75 | €911.63 | €1,093.96 | €1,337.06 |
Between €699.35 and €1,398.70 | €486.20 | €729.30 | €875.17 | €1,069.65 |
Between €1,398.70 and €2,098.04 | €364.65 | €546.98 | €656.38 | €802.24 |
Greater than €2,098.04 | €243.10 | €364.65 | €437.58 | €534.82 |
FYI
the granting of urgent aid also enables you to benefit, for 6 months from the first payment, fees and aids ancillary to the active solidarity income (SSA), such as social and professional support.
Repayment in case of interest-free loans
You must start repaying the emergency loan assistance as of the 24the month following its assignment.
Reimbursement must be made up to 24 monthly installments of the same amount.
You can make a prepayment or a refund at once.
Reimbursement may also be made by deduction from other benefits payable from the Cif or the Caisse de la Mutualité sociale agricole.
Please note
You do not have to repay the loan if you have filed a complaint against the alleged perpetrator and the proceedings are ongoing, or if he has been ordered by the court to repay the loan.
If your financial situation does not allow you to repay the loan, you can to request a total or partial remission of debt with the organization that gave you the assistance.
Who can help me?
Find who can answer your questions in your region
Stop the violence: violence within the couple
Issuance of a protection order
Physical violence
Psychological harassment
Sexual violence
Sexual assaults other than rape
Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Health