What is the contract of commitment to respect the principles of the Republic?

Verified 25 July 2024 - Directorate for Legal and Administrative Information (Prime Minister)

A contract of commitment to respect the principles of the Republic must be signed by any non-EU foreigner requesting a residence document. This contract must be attached when the application is submitted. Failure to comply with this undertaking or refusal to sign this contract may call into question the issue of the title or lead to its withdrawal.

Warning  

The contract of commitment to respect the principles of the Republic is different from the republican integration contract.

Any foreigner outside the EU applying for a residence document or renewal of a residence document has an obligation to commit, by contract, to respect the principles of the Republic.

There are derogations to this obligation for the following nationals:

  • Algerians: all residence permits
  • Tunisians: where the residence document applied for is in the capacity of an employee, a member of a Frenchman’s family, a pensioner for an accident at work or an occupational disease, a beneficiary of family reunification where the foreigner who is joined is the holder of a residence card
  • Moroccans: employee residence permit.

Please note

For these three categories of foreigners, the signing of the contract is optional, because of the bilateral agreements they enjoy.

All Title Categories the following are covered by this obligation:

  • Temporary residence permit (except those issued on title of temporary protection)
  • Temporary residence permit
  • Multi-annual residence permit
  • Resident Card
  • Long-stay visa as residence permit when the holder applies for his residence card.

The principles to be respected are as follows:

  • Personal freedom
  • Freedom of expression and conscience
  • Equality between women and men
  • Dignity of the human person
  • Motto and symbols of the Republic: “liberty, equality, fraternity” for the motto, tricolor flag and national anthem for the symbols
  • Territorial integrity, defined by national borders
  • Secularism (not using one's beliefs or convictions to circumvent common rules governing relations between public services and individuals).

This contract must be signed on the lodging of the file for 1re application or renewal :

  • At the prefecture, if the request is made in the prefecture, by mail or dematerialized deposit on simplified-steps.fr
  • Or on the websiteANEF, if the request is dematerialized on this site.

A model of a contract of employment is available on the Ministry of Interior website. Its translation into different languages is also available on the website.

You can print the document and sign it to insert it in your application for a residence permit.

Model contract of commitment to respect the principles of the Republic

Ministry of the Interior

Pour en savoir plus

Warning  

The fact of not not to produce the contract of employment or to refuse to sign it in the context of filing a file for application or renewal of a residence permit will lead the prefecture to consider your file as incomplete and to refuse.

The contract is valid for the entire period of validity of your residence document.

Penalties may range from refusal to issue the residence permit or renewal thereof to withdrawal of the residence permit. The procedure and the conditions are not the same according to the category of residence permit.

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Temporary residence permit: temporary residence permit, temporary residence permit

Your application for a residence permit or renewal of a residence permit, may be refused if your behavior indicates that you don't respect one of the principles of the Republic.

Your residence permit may also be withdrawn for the same reasons.

This failure to respect the principles of the Republic is characterized by all the following criteria:

  • Deliberate act
  • Severity of the act (this criterion is considered to be established if the act involves a right or freedom for another person)
  • Disturbance of public order.

Long-term residence permit: multi-annual card, resident card

Your application for a residence permit or renewal of a residence permit, may be refused if your behavior indicates that you don't respect one of the principles of the Republic.

Your residence permit may also be withdrawn for the same reasons.

This failure to respect the principles of the Republic is characterized by all the following criteria:

  • Deliberate act
  • Severity of the act (this criterion is considered to be acted if the act involves a right or freedom for another person)
  • Disturbance of public order.

The decision to refuse your residence permit or to withdraw it may be taken by the Prefect taking into account the following elements:

  • Severity or repetition of your actions
  • Duration of your stay in France.

The opinion of the Committee on the Residence Permit is mandatory.

Please note

If you are refugee, beneficiary of subsidiary protection or stateless person, you must sign the employment contract. However, failure to comply with the provisions of this contract will not be sufficient to refuse you a residence permit or to allow its withdrawal. But these and other factors can be taken into account to establish a lack of integration or a threat to public order.

Who can help me?

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  • Telephone administrative information - Allo Public Service

    For more information on this topic, you can contact Allô Service Public.

    Cost: free service

    The informants who answer you belong to the Ministry of the Interior.

    Attention: the service does not have access to users' personal files and cannot therefore provide information on their status.

    The service is available at the following times:

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    • Mardi : de 08h30 à 12h15
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