France in the United States
Consulate General of France in Chicago
» Visas for France » Short stay visas » Short stay visa for studies

Short stay visa for studies

1. Do you need a short stay visa for studies ? Retour à la table des matières

  • YES, if you are a citizen of the following countries even if you hold a US Permanent Resident Card ("Green Card") :

AfghanistanAlbaniaAlgeria
AngolaArmeniaAzerbaidjan
BahreinBangladeshBelize
BeninBhutanBelarus
BoliviaBosniaBotswana
Burkina FasoBurmaBurundi
CambodiaCameroonCape Verde
Central AfricaChadChina
ColombiaComorosCongo
D.R. Congo (ex-Zaïre)CubaDjibouti
DominicaDominican RepublicEcuador
EgyptEquatorial GuineaEritrea
EthiopiaFijiGabon
GambiaGeorgiaGhana
GrenadaGuineaGuinea Bissau
GuyanaHaitiHong Kong (except S.A.R.)
IndiaIndonesiaIran
IraqIvory CoastJamaica
JordanKazakhstanKenya
KirghizistanKiribatiKuweit
LaosLebanonLesotho
LiberiaLibyaMacao (except S.A.R.)
Macedonia*MadagascarMalawi
MaldivesMaliMarshall Islands
MauritaniaMicronesiaMoldavia
MongoliaMontenegro*Morocco
MozambiqueNamibiaNauru
NepalNigerNigeria
North KoreaOmanPakistan
PalauPalestinePapua
PeruPhilippinesQatar
RefugeesRussiaRwanda
SolomonSamoaSaudi Arabia
SenegalSerbia*Sierra Leone
SomaliaSouth AfricaSri Lanka
St LuciaSt ThomasSt Vincent
SudanSurinamSwaziland
SyriaTadjikistanTaiwan
TanzaniaThailandTogo
TongaTrinidad & TobagoTunisia
TurkeyTurkmenistanTuvalu
UgandaUkraineUnited Arab Emirates
UzbekistanVanuatuVietnam
Yemenformer YugoslaviaZambia
Zimbabwe


*Biometric passports holders of Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia are no longer required to obtain a visa for stays under 90 days.

  • As it is a Schengen visa, it also allows you to visit the 25 other Schengen States as a tourist :

AustriaBelgiumCzech RepublicDenmarkEstonia
FinlandFranceGermanyGreeceHungary
IcelandItalyLatviaLithuania Luxembourg
MaltaThe NetherlandsNorwayPolandPortugal
SlovakiaSloveniaSpainSwedenSwitzerland

2. How to make an appointment ? Retour à la table des matières

For security reasons, all applicants, except children under the age of 6, have to appear personally at the Consulate General of France in Chicago.

The visa section is open to the public on an appointment basis, with no walk-ins allowed.

Make an appointment by clicking here

To use the system, the following configuration is required :
- Firefox 1.0 and higher
- Mozilla 1.7.8 and higher
- Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 and higher
- Adobe Acrobat reader and higher
- allow pop-ups

IF YOU CANNOT PRINT YOUR CONFIRMATION RECEIPT IT IS NOT A PROBLEM. Simply show up on the date and time of your appointment .

No appointment can be made by phone or by e-mailing us. If you are not able to attend, please free a slot by canceling your appointment.

Make sure you bring all the required documents when coming to the Consulate General.

3. Processing time Retour à la table des matières

Processing time depends on your citizenship :

15 days is the average processing time if you are a citizen from :

Afghanistan Algeria Bahrain
Bangladesh Belarus Burma
Burundi Congo DRC Egypt
Indonesia Iran Iraq
Jordan Kazakhstan North Korea
Kuwait Lebanon Libya
Mali Mauritania Morocco
Niger Nigeria Oman
Pakistan Palestinians Philippines
Qatar US Re-entry permit US Refugee travel doc
Rwanda Saudi Arabia Sudan
Surinam Syria Tunisia
Yemen United Arab Emirates Vietnam
Zimbabwe


Applications cannot be processed more than 3 months ahead of time.

4. Requirements Retour à la table des matières

Please provide us with the original + 1 copy of each document. The visa section does not make any copies, you must bring your documents and the required copies.


  1. Original passport or travel document (+ ONE COPY of the identity pages). Your passport must have been issued less than 10 years ago, be valid for at least three months after your return to the US and have at least 2 blank visas pages left.

  2. One application form filled out completely and signed by the applicant (please read carefully the explanations).

  3. One ID picture glued/stapled onto the application form

    Two application forms and two photographs are required for citizens of the following countries : Egypt, Iran, North Korea, Lybia, Pakistan, Sudan, Syria.

  4. A valid U.S. permanent residence card ("green card") or a valid U.S. visa with valid I-94 / valid I-20, or an Advance Parole document.
    We do NOT accept applications from B1/B2 visa holders. They must apply in their country of residence
    For Camerounese citizens willing to enter Germany, please note that you must present a valid Camerounese Identity card.

  5. proof of registration in a university or school in France

  6. Proof of registration in a US school or university

  7. Financial guarantee such as a notarized statement certifying that the applicant will be provided with a monthly allowance of $800.00 for the duration of his/her stay in France, or a proof of personal income along with a letter from school stating that room, board, and tuition are fully prepaid. If you pay for your own expenses, you have to bring your two last bank statements.

  8. Your travel itinerary. Do not purchase tickets until the visa has been approved.

  9. Proof of medical coverage abroad : a letter from your insurance company stating that you are covered abroad or a travel insurance to be purchased from a travel agency (minimum amount of 40,000 US$)

  10. If the applicant is under 18 years old and travelling without his parents:
    • notarized copy of his (her) birth certificate
    • notarized authorization from both parents allowing their child to travel to France or from the parent exercising full custody of the child according to the divorce decree.
    • if you are divorced : certified copy of divorce decree stating that you have full custody of the child(ren).

  11. A self-addressed prepaid EXPRESS MAIL envelope from the US POST OFFICE ONLY - NO FEDEX / UPS / AIRBORNE EXPRESS accepted.

    Please do NOT stick the mailing label on the envelope and fill out as follows :

FROM:
CONSULATE GENERAL OF FRANCE
205N. Michigan Ave, Suite 3700
CHICAGO, IL 60601
TO:
Your full name
Your address

5. Important information Retour à la table des matières

  • The consular administration has full authority to evaluate and request more documents than those submitted by the applicant.

  • Please be aware that submitting the aforementioned documents does not guarantee the approval of the visa.

  • Please note that holders of Schengen visas are still subject to immigration control upon first entry into a Schengen country. The visa itself does not grant the right to enter the Schengen space.

Last update: 05/04/2010

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