How to Get a Work Visa in France (Not)

Lol, this was supposed to be an article about how to get a work visa in France.

I’ve been debating writing this article for a while now, but the storm has largely passed. I’m no longer anxiety-ridden on the couch over how I’ll make next month’s rent, and there is a certain relief that comes with sharing failure, to be honest. And anyway, the debate over whether to share this story is largely ego-related at this point.

As any good expat knows, it pays to bite the bullet and choke down your humble pie so someone else doesn’t have to

At least, I’m pretty sure that’s how that expression goes. In any case, I’ve also learned a lot from this experience. So, odds are there will be some useful nuggets for anyone looking to understand the French work system a little bit better.

Back in the fall, I wrote about how I found a job in France. I remember exactly how I felt when writing it – proud, and excited to start working hard. During the interview, I’d fought hard for a role that I genuinely believed I would be a good fit for. Business development and sales are tough fields, I read, but everything seemed to hinge on learning quickly and putting in the effort. I could do that!

Two months later, my contract got cut.

Although France has incredibly strong worker protection laws, every new, full-time employee must pass a trial period, called a période d’essai. These are usually two months long and can be renewed once if, for example, your performance in the first two months is subpar, but your employer decides to give you a second chance.

Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case for me.

I found myself heading into 2021 jobless, with about three months of savings – and an expiring visa

Having literally never been fired from anything before, it hadn’t even occurred to me to have a back-up plan. Naively, I’d simply filed the paperwork for a change in visa status and sent it off into the void of French bureaucracy. I sent frantic emails to the prefecture that went unanswered (it’s like they’re proud of their 1.9 stars on Google reviews or something), attempted to call, and scrolled endless Facebook discussions trying to understand how being let go during my trial period could affect the processing of my new visa. In the end, nothing happened, and that ended up being my answer: If you don’t pass your trial period as a foreigner, you don’t get another visa.

A little more information on how to get a work visa in France

France has several different types of work contracts, but they don’t all qualify foreigners for the same type of visa.

If you’re vying for a full time position with the accompanying benefits that make people romanticize working in France, the contract you’re looking for is called a contrat de travail à durée indéterminée (CDI), or literally, contract of undetermined duration. This is the most French way possible to say “full time” without conviction. Open-ended contract – classic.

This type of work contract is a non-European’s Golden Ticket because if you can pass the trial period, you’re basically guaranteed a job for life. And, on paper, most French jobs are 35 hours/week, with a minimum of five weeks’ holiday, 16 or 26 weeks of maternity leave depending on how many children you already have, and access to mental health leave, all paid.

The catch is the aforementioned trial period. After you’re offered the job, the employer will draw up paperwork promising to hire you (called a promesse d’embauche). You and they will each sign this and your contract. The contract outlines all of the wonderful perks of working in France that I just mentioned, but it also details your trial period. The trial period is essentially the company’s only safety net – after you pass it, they’re basically stuck with you (will come back to this in a moment).

In the trial period of a CDI, you can be let go or fired for no explanation or minimal infractions

Sound harsh? That’s because once a French company creates a CDI contract with someone, it’s basically impossible to fire them due to French worker protection laws. If a French worker is fired, it’s something like the company needs to continue paying their salary for six months AND that person would also be entitled to unemployment benefits from the government, called chomage. Naturally, this makes firing employees an extremely unattractive option to French companies for financial reasons.

Now, you probably see the blinding flaw in this Bernie Sanders wet dream of a France reality, especially if you’re an American like me. The glaring, obvious question: What then, exactly, motivates a French person to do their job well if the trial period is the only thing technically motivating a good work performance? My thoughts are: As a culture, the French are proud and detail-oriented. These characteristics suggest they are a population of people who have the capacity to do good work, even if they might not enjoy working hard. (Note: “Have the capacity” is the key phrase here…)

The reality of this seeming “ideal” work-life balance on paper is much more complicated IRL. A 2017 article by The Local France showed that about half of French employees rated themselves as having no work stress at all with their employer, but the other half were experiencing high-levels of work-related anxiety and nearly a third showed symptoms of depression.

To be frank, mental health issues seem to be par for the course within a French workplace, often due to the intense animosity that can form when an employee-employer relationship becomes fractious

Remember how I said it was basically impossible for a French company to fire an employee without also losing a lot of money? This means that the only real recourse a company has is to try and force the employee to leave of their own free will. If an employee on a CDI chooses to quit the company, that company is under no obligation to pay them anything. However, this choice really isn’t in the worker’s best interest at all, as it deprives them of both their severance pay and rights to government aid while they hunt for a different job. Of course, issues with management could be mitigated, in theory, by say, good management, but this is not something the French are well-known for.

My personal experiences with French management and the stories I’ve heard from both foreigners from multiple different countries and French people themselves corroborate this stereotype.

Meetings are regularly held with no objective, instructions in international settings where the common language is English are delivered in French, instructions are vague and leadership is ineffective at best. It’s definitely a problem that goes both ways, as I witnessed firsthand the frustration of my manager and boss over the low volume (or in some cases, nonexistent) sales my European corkers made. In fact, the underperformance of my coworkers who were secure in their jobs was cited as one of the reasons I was being let go during our final meetings – they simply couldn’t trust me when I said I would work harder to bring my numbers up from their modest starting point, and claimed that I was a financial risk they were unwilling to continue taking as they were already locked into contracts with other employees who didn’t care about their numbers.

This is a story that hasn’t really ended yet, as I’m currently on the 90-day tourist visa that all Americans get when they enter France or their visa expires. We’re getting down to the wire, but I should have an update soon regarding how I’m managing to stay here a bit longer (spoiler: basically everyone who seriously dates a French person turns to this option eventually).

Read about how I ended up in France: Reflections Of An Au Pair – The Millennial Abroad

If this backup plan falls through? Well, I hear Mexico is open – and I have missed speaking Spanish

I’m just kidding. France will have to forcibly deport me from this country I would have peaced out from ages ago if not for a certain someone.

French boys will drive you crazy, but they could also be the best thing that ever happened to you: The Phenomenon of Dating French Boys – The Millennial Abroad

But in all seriousness, I’d like to end this article with a meditation on whether France is a good place to work in general.

My two cents is that if you want job security and to prioritize life’s little pleasures over professional ambitions, France could well be for you. Personally, I’ve learned I’m a lot more American than I thought.

What do you think? Have you ever had to get a work visa in France? Do you agree with my impression of French companies and work culture? Tell me in the comments!