France: 90 days instead of four months to respond to a residence permit application

A decree published in the French Official Journal on October 29, 2026, reduces the maximum period within which the administration must notify its decision on a residence permit application from four months to 90 days. Decree No. 2026-1001 of October 26, 2026, relating to the rights of foreigners authorized to work in France, entered into force on October 30, 2026, according to the Tunisian daily La Presse.

The timeframe runs from the submission of a complete application and may be extended by 30 days for complex files. Beyond this period, the administration's silence constitutes an implicit rejection, except for specific exceptions provided for certain categories of permits. However, this shortening does not mean that a permit will automatically be issued in three months, La Presse emphasizes.

Job loss no longer changes everything

A second, even more concrete change: holders of a temporary residence permit marked "temporary worker" can no longer have it revoked solely because they were involuntarily unemployed for a maximum of three months during the permit's validity period. If they find a new employer within this period, they can remain in France while the new work authorization is examined. This period is extended by three months if they have suffered acts covered by the criminal code, such as human trafficking.

The decree also reduces from twelve to six months the period during which the termination of a contract can justify refusing a first work authorization renewal, except in cases of involuntary job loss or serious misconduct by the employer. For holders of the "talent – European Blue Card" permit, the duration of the permit is adjusted to match the contract duration, and six months are granted to find a new job when the revocation stems from employer misconduct.

Who is affected on the continent

The text partially transposes European Directive 2024/1233 on the single permit. The 90-day deadline is a general procedural rule applicable to third-country nationals, and thus to non-European Africans, writes La Presse.

The newspaper focuses its analysis on the Tunisian case, which illustrates a mechanism common to several countries on the continent: residence and work are governed by a bilateral agreement, the Franco-Tunisian agreement of March 17, 1988, amended in 2000 and 2008. Article 11 stipulates that national legislation continues to apply to matters it does not cover, and a Council of State decision of June 19, 2015, confirmed that the conditions of the labor code remain enforceable against Tunisians.

Application will depend on individual circumstances and the relevant bilateral agreement. La Presse points out that the decree constitutes neither a regularization nor a guarantee of obtaining a permit, and that it does not create a general right to change employers.