Validating your VLS-TS visa
Holders of the extended-stay visa with residency permit (VLS-TS) no longer have to report to the local prefecture to obtain a residency permit. However, they must still have their VLS-TS visa validated.
The validation process
Upon their arrival in France, they must send to OFII by registered mail (with confirmation of receipt):
- the stamped OFII certification form that they received from the official who granted their visa
- a copy of the pages of their passport bearing their identity data and the stamp signifying entry into France or another country of the Schengen Area.
Upon receipt of these documents, the OFII will send, by regular mail to the address provided by the visa holder, a letter acknowledging receipt of the form and summoning the applicant for a medical visit (if such a visit was not carried out in the applicant’s home country) or an orientation session.
Pilot efforts are being made to use e-mail to facilitate exchanges between students and the OFII.
In all cases, a fee of €58 is charged.
The fee is collected through the sale of a tax stamp bearing the initials "OMI." The stamp may be purchased:
• Online from www.timbresofii.fr
• In some tobacco shops
• At offices of the French tax authorities.
Special cases:
1 - Students residing in Paris must bring the above documents to the OFII. During the months of September, October, and November, students may use the OFII office at the Cité Internationale Universitaire de Paris (CIUP). At other times of the year, they must bring the documents to OFII’s Paris headquarters.
2 - Some institutions (including many of France’s universities) have entered into agreements with OFII. Where such an agreement exists, the student must submit the above documents to the institution’s international student office. Students are strongly advised to learn, before arriving in France, whether an agreement exists between their host institution and OFII.
