Secondary school enrollment of a pupil from the foreigner

Verified 23 February 2023 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

Have you just settled in France and are you wondering about your child's schooling? He must attend middle school or high school until the age of 16. The registration procedure and the rules for schooling are different depending on whether it is a first installation or a return to France. We present you with the information you need to know.

1st installation

If you are settling for the first time in France, your child is first assessed for his or her academic skills. He is then educated, depending on his age and skills, in ordinary or adapted classes.

When you arrive in France, contact the Casnav: titleContent on which your principal residence depends.

Your child will meet a National Education psychologist there. This person analyzes his/her educational background and organizes a pedagogical evaluation.

The results of the evaluation are then transmitted to the Academy's services.

Your child is then assigned to a school. The assignment decision depends on her academic skills. It also depends on the availability of places in a suitable establishment near your home.

You must enroll your child in the college or secondary school designated by the academy. The child must be present in France at the time of registration.

The documents to be provided vary from one rectorate to another. Before registering, check with your host institution for documents.

Who shall I contact

The school introduces you to the French educational system. Your rights and duties, and those of your child, are also presented at the time of reception.

This information takes the form of a bilingual welcome booklet available in the following languages:

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Student already in school

If your child was in school in his or her country of origin, he or she is enrolled in an ordinary class corresponding to his or her level of education.

He can enter a class whose students are not the same age as him. In principle, the age gap cannot exceed 2 years.

If he needs to follow an intensive French course, he can integrate a educational unit for incoming allophone students (UPE2A).

Your child will then benefit from regular classroom instruction and an individualized schedule. His school schedule must be identical to the other pupils enrolled in the same level.

When the grouping of students in a teaching unit is impossible, specific French lessons are put in place.

Student with little or no education

If your child had little or no schooling in his or her country of origin, he or she is welcomed full-time into a teaching unit for incoming allophone students (UPE2A) to learn French.

He must acquire the basic knowledge of the elementary school's cycle of deepening. However, he can take ordinary class courses where the mastery of written French is not essential (music, sports, plastic arts...).

The goal is to get your child into the regular classroom as soon as possible (most often after a year). For this, your child is evaluated regularly, without waiting for the end of the school year.

Older or less well-educated children in their countries of origin are helped and guided in the definition of a suitable training project.

FYI  

the young person over 16 years of age, who is more subject to compulsory education, can be accepted in vocational or general and technological secondary schools and benefit from a individualized professional project.

If your child is between the ages of 12 and 17 and their mother tongue is not French, they can pass the diploma of studies in French (Delf) "school".

The Delf scolaire is an official certification of the Ministry of National Education in French as a foreign language. It is issued by France éducation international. The Delf scolaire is internationally recognized.

Who shall I contact

  • France education international

    By telephone

    +33 (0)1 45 07 60 00

    By mail

    1 Léon-Journault Avenue

    92318 Sevres cedex

    By E-mail

    Using the contact form

Return

If your child has already attended school in France or at a French school abroad, you must follow the following rules to enroll him in school.

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School attended abroad in a French institution

The steps to enroll your child are the same as those for a change of residence.

In particular, you must provide the following documents to the school:

  • Certificate of Cancelation of the Institution Previously Attended
  • Guidance Decision
  • Quarterly bulletins for the past year
  • Mandatory vaccination certificates
  • Fact Sheet (Parents)
  • Proof of domicile

Please note

the hotel may ask for additional documents.

A policy decision taken by a French foreigner institution is applicable in France in public and private establishments under contract.

Example :

Your child has completed his class of 4eme at a French college abroad. He is allowed to go to class of 3eme. During the summer holidays, you move to France and enroll your child in a public college. He will therefore be enrolled in the 3rd class.

School attendance at another institution

To be admitted to a school in France, your child must pass an exam to evaluate his or her academic skills.

It is organized by the desired host. It covers the main subjects common to the class attended and the class in which the student wishes to continue his studies. Its content is fixed by theDasen: titleContent.

If successful, the Dasen issues an assignment decision. As soon as you receive this decision, contact the school of assignment to prepare the registration file. This record may vary from institution to institution.

Correspondence Education (Cned)

The steps to enroll your child are the same as those for a change of residence.

In particular, you must provide the following documents to the school:

  • Certificate of Cancelation of the Institution Previously Attended
  • Guidance Decision
  • Quarterly bulletins for the past year
  • Mandatory vaccination certificates
  • Fact Sheet (Parents)
  • Proof of domicile

Please note

the hotel may ask for additional documents.

Cned's notices of transition to higher education and guidance proposals are valid as they are for any other educational institution.

Example :

Your child has completed his class of 4eme by mail (Cned). He is allowed to go to class of 3eme. During the summer holidays, you move to France and enroll him in a public college. He will therefore be enrolled in the 3rd class.

Instruction followed in the family

To be admitted to a school in France, your child must pass an exam to evaluate his or her academic skills.

It is organized by the desired host. It covers the main subjects common to the class attended and the class in which the student wishes to continue his studies. Its content is fixed by theDasen: titleContent.

If successful, the Dasen issues an assignment decision. As soon as you receive this decision, contact the school of assignment to prepare the registration file. This record may vary from institution to institution.

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