Long-term student visa by taking classes at the Alliance Francaise?

[elmohassel]

I am working toward obtaining the long-term 1 year student visa that allows me to work part-time. I contacted the Alliance Francaise in Toulouse last month and asked them about what classes I would need to take in order to qualify. The representative told me that I would need to take 3 sessions of evening classes which meet 2 evenings per week. Each session runs 3 months. So basically it would be 9 months worth of evening classes. I was ready to sign up for this last week. I contacted them again to confirm this and to sign up, and the same person told me that I would need to take 3 months of intensive classes with them in order to receive a one year student visa. She said that the evening classes would not qualify me. I'm confused and worried that they might not know what I need to sign up for. Has anyone had any success obtaining the 1 year student visa by taking classes at the Alliance Francaise? What classes did you take?

Thank you!
Scott

[Bevdeforges]

Take a look at the French consulate's page on long-stay student visas: The long stay student visa - Consulat Général de France à Houston

Note particularly requirement #6

"Attestation" from CAMPUSFRANCE

STEP 1 : register and obtain an "attestation" from "CAMPUSFRANCE", USA > A service of the French Embassy to promote study in France to students and institutions in the United States, prior to applying for a visa at the Consulate.
STEP 2 - Once you complied with CAMPUSFRANCE requirements, please make an appointment.

WARNING: Be aware that it takes at least 3 weeks to receive the attestation. Please note that the attestation usually comes in the form of an email send to your CampusFrance account mailbox and starts with "your enrollment is now complete". DO NOT come to the Consulate to apply for your student visa if you do not have the attestation.

You should check with Campus France to see if enrolling in the Alliance Française classes will suffice for applying for a long-stay student visa.
Cheers,
Bev

[elmohassel]

Originally Posted by Bevdeforges

Take a look at the French consulate's page on long-stay student visas: The long stay student visa - Consulat Général de France à Houston

Note particularly requirement #6



You should check with Campus France to see if enrolling in the Alliance Française classes will suffice for applying for a long-stay student visa.
Cheers,
Bev

Thanks, Bev. Yes, I have looked over that page thoroughly. Here's what I'm confused about though. Do I need to sign up for the courses and pay the Alliance Francaise first before getting the attestation from Campus France? It seems like that would make sense. I e-mailed Campus France a week or so ago and asked them some questions, but I didn't receive a response. Guess I'll try again.

[jo3c00l]

I'm very interested in how this works out for you. I have emailed the Alliance Francais in Toulouse as well with the exact same question and they also told me 3 sessions of evening courses would qualify me for a long stay visa too. I even emailed them back to clarify that I could work part time on the visa I would get and they said yes. This was a few months ago but I'm about ready to sign up now and now you've got me wondering if I can actually get the visa through them.

I've been looking into lots of other schools too trying to figure out the best option. One school told me I need to study 20/hours a week for a total of six months to qualify for the visa. It seems I can't find anything that has the exact rules and requirements to the visa and I feel like every school I email just tells me whatever they feel like to sell me on classes.

Keep us updated on what you find out because it seems we are in the exact same situation here...

[jo3c00l]

I just got an email back from them after asking again to confirm about the evening courses. Their response was that yes three consecutive sets of their evening courses will allow you to get a long stay student visa. Maybe someone who responded to you was just confused, who knows I guess...

[elmohassel]

Originally Posted by jo3c00l

I just got an email back from them after asking again to confirm about the evening courses. Their response was that yes three consecutive sets of their evening courses will allow you to get a long stay student visa. Maybe someone who responded to you was just confused, who knows I guess...

I've gotten conflicting messages from them. The last response that I received said that the 3 sessions of evening classes should do the job. This process is so filled with uncertainty. And ultimately I guess we're not going to know until we have our appt with the consulate. Have you gone through Campus France yet? I've read through their website a few times and it appears that we don't get the "attestation" from them until we've signed up for our courses through a school. Is that your read on it? I've e-mailed them twice for some clarification but no response.

[Bevdeforges]

The issue seems to be that it's not the Alliance Française that enforces the immigration rules. And, to be fair, the rules have been changing pretty frequently in the last couple of years.

Ultimately, if the consulate says you need the attestation from Campus France, then they are the ones who decide what is enough in terms of classes. If you don't need the attestation certificate, then it's up to the local Consulate how intensive a course you need to be enrolled in and for how long.

They can, and sometimes do, turn down visa requests if they have reason to doubt anything on the visa application. The Consulate is not bound by anything Alliance Française has told you, as Alliance Française is not part of the government (although they do receive generous subsidies through the government Francophonie offices).

Your best bet is to make sure you have all your paperwork and financial arrangements in a row. Particularly about having your living expenses for the time you'll be spending in France covered before you arrive. Both of you have been talking about working half-time, but if you're relying on that to pay your living expenses, you may find the Consulate finds a reason to turn down your visa request. If you're going for a student visa, you're expected to devote most of your time to your studies. If you work, it's supposed to be for "spending money."
Cheers,
Bev

[jo3c00l]

Originally Posted by elmohassel

I've gotten conflicting messages from them. The last response that I received said that the 3 sessions of evening classes should do the job. This process is so filled with uncertainty. And ultimately I guess we're not going to know until we have our appt with the consulate. Have you gone through Campus France yet? I've read through their website a few times and it appears that we don't get the "attestation" from them until we've signed up for our courses through a school. Is that your read on it? I've e-mailed them twice for some clarification but no response.

No haven't done anything with Campus France yet, that part seems extra confusing to me. Since I'm applying at the Consulate in Seoul I have to go through Campus France in Korea which is all in Korean. Not going to be an easy process I think.

I'm waiting til payday on the 25th to decide and pay for classes but everything about it is so confusing. I've emailed the Alliance Francaise in other cities about it too. In Paris they told me I can't get one for evening courses, and in Nice they told me I can get a 12 month visa for taking only 1 month of intensive courses. I don't know how this is possible but I was very clear in my email.

It seems like nobody really knows, basically you just find somewhere willing to give you the preinscription letter for 12 months and cross your fingers the consulate issues the visa.

[elmohassel]

Originally Posted by Bevdeforges

The issue seems to be that it's not the Alliance Française that enforces the immigration rules. And, to be fair, the rules have been changing pretty frequently in the last couple of years.

Ultimately, if the consulate says you need the attestation from Campus France, then they are the ones who decide what is enough in terms of classes. If you don't need the attestation certificate, then it's up to the local Consulate how intensive a course you need to be enrolled in and for how long.

They can, and sometimes do, turn down visa requests if they have reason to doubt anything on the visa application. The Consulate is not bound by anything Alliance Française has told you, as Alliance Française is not part of the government (although they do receive generous subsidies through the government Francophonie offices).

Your best bet is to make sure you have all your paperwork and financial arrangements in a row. Particularly about having your living expenses for the time you'll be spending in France covered before you arrive. Both of you have been talking about working half-time, but if you're relying on that to pay your living expenses, you may find the Consulate finds a reason to turn down your visa request. If you're going for a student visa, you're expected to devote most of your time to your studies. If you work, it's supposed to be for "spending money."
Cheers,
Bev

I hear you, Bev. I know that the Alliance doesn't make the rules in terms of who gets granted a student visa and who doesn't, but I'm hoping they can tell me if anyone in the past has had success getting the visa with a particular schedule of classes. I shouldn't have a problem with the financial requirements. I'm selling my business of 15 years and I will have the cushion that I need to make this work. I know that the odd teaching gigs aren't going to support me by themselves. I'm at a transition point in my life and now is the time to make something like this happen - if it's ever going to happen. As always, thanks for the helpful info. -Scott

[elmohassel]

Originally Posted by jo3c00l

No haven't done anything with Campus France yet, that part seems extra confusing to me. Since I'm applying at the Consulate in Seoul I have to go through Campus France in Korea which is all in Korean. Not going to be an easy process I think.

I'm waiting til payday on the 25th to decide and pay for classes but everything about it is so confusing. I've emailed the Alliance Francaise in other cities about it too. In Paris they told me I can't get one for evening courses, and in Nice they told me I can get a 12 month visa for taking only 1 month of intensive courses. I don't know how this is possible but I was very clear in my email.

It seems like nobody really knows, basically you just find somewhere willing to give you the preinscription letter for 12 months and cross your fingers the consulate issues the visa.

Yup I think you're right. There are no guarantees in this process, and it's tres difficult to just unravel the steps in the process. I've read over the Campus France website and the consulate website multiple times, and I'm still confused. Kind of hoping that if I sign up for classes at the Alliance, they'll be able to shine a light on the process. Good luck, man. Keep me informed if you have any breakthroughs, and I'll do the same. -Scott