Residency by investment — France
Your gateway to
residency in France,
through real investment
in the French economy.
France IDEA gives international investors and their families a direct, lawful path to French and European residency — built on an existing French legal framework, backed by direct investment into vetted French companies.
€300k
Minimum direct investment into an eligible French company
3–5
Months, indicative, from onboarding to residency card issuance
4 yrs
Renewable residence permit, full family included
5 yrs
Path to permanent residency, and citizenship subject to conditions
Why France
A major European economy, finally
open to structured residency by
investment.
France combines the scale of one of the world’s largest economies with the lifestyle, education and healthcare that international families are looking for — and, until now, had no structured way to access through investment.
Global standing
One of the world's largest economies
Europe’s leading destination for foreign direct investment for several consecutive years, and the #1 European country for industrial foreign investment projects.
Mobility
One of the world's strongest passports
Consistently ranked among the top 5 globally, with visa-free or visa-on-arrival access to approximately 185–194 destinations, plus full access to the EU and Schengen Area.
Healthcare
World-class, universal healthcare
Access to one of the world’s strongest healthcare systems, with universal coverage and a wide network of high-quality public and private hospitals.
Education
Prestigious schools for the whole family
Access to internationally renowned universities and business schools including HEC, ESSEC, Sciences Po and Sorbonne, plus strong infrastructure for international families.
Lifestyle
The world's leading tourism destination
A country offering an exceptional quality of life — culture, gastronomy, climate and connectivity — at the heart of Europe.
Momentum
Backed by France 2030
A €54 billion national investment strategy focused on innovation, healthcare and industrial sovereignty — the same priorities France IDEA’s eligible companies align with.
Paris — Pont Alexandre III
The legal foundation
Built on an existing French law —
not a new or experimental scheme.
France IDEA is structured entirely around a residency route that already exists in French law. This is what gives the program its stability: it is not a political concession that can be withdrawn overnight, but an established legal pathway.
Passeport Talent — Investisseur Économique Direct
Created under Loi n° 2016-274, as part of French reforms designed to increase the country’s attractiveness to international investors, entrepreneurs and talent. France’s strongest legal residency route for investors.
What the law requires
- Minimum €300,000 direct investment
- Investment into a French operating company
- Investment maintained for a minimum of 5 years
- Contribution to the French economy
- Job creation or job preservation
- Source of funds verification
What it grants you
- 4-year renewable residence permit
- Full inclusion of your family
- Right to work and operate businesses in France
- No obligation to reside in France to maintain residency
- No language requirement for residency
- Path to permanent residency and citizenship after 5 years
What it gives you
One investment. A residency
pathway for your whole family.
Beyond the right to live in France, the program is designed around the things that matter most to internationally mobile families: mobility, optionality, and a long-term foothold in Europe.
01
Residency for the whole family
Your spouse and dependent children are included in the same application — one investment secures status for the entire household.
02
Open to all nationalities
The program is open to applicants of any nationality, subject to standard regulatory and compliance checks.
03
Live, work and access Schengen freely
The right to live in France, operate businesses, and travel throughout the Schengen Area — with no language test required to obtain or renew residency.
04
No obligation to relocate
Your 4-year renewable residency card can be maintained without becoming a French tax resident or living in France full-time — flexibility for globally mobile families.
05
Access to healthcare and education
Your family gains access to France’s universal healthcare system and to its leading schools and universities.
06
A clear long-term pathway
After 5 years, eligibility for permanent residency and, subject to applicable conditions, French citizenship.
07
Real economic exposure, not a passive fee
Unlike donation-based schemes, your capital is invested directly into a real, vetted French operating company — with the potential for economic return alongside your residency status.
The investment
Direct exposure to the French
economy — sourced and structured
for you.
France IDEA identifies, vets and structures opportunities into eligible French operating companies on your behalf — businesses with real activity, strategic relevance, and alignment with France’s economic priorities.
What you invest in
- Real, operating French companies — not passive funds
- Businesses requiring restructuring, expansion or relaunch capital
- Opportunities reviewed for economic substance and compliance
- Sectors aligned with national priorities such as France 2030
What's excluded
- Pure passive real estate investment
- Companies that fail strategic or compliance review
- Opportunities without demonstrable economic activity
Target sectors
Luxury & heritage
Healthcare & life sciences
Industrial SMEs
Advanced manufacturing
Technology & innovation
Strategic French brands
Example: ODIOT, a French luxury house founded in 1690 and holder of the EPV (Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant) label — a model of the kind of heritage, industrial-value opportunity France IDEA sources for its clients.
Investment structures
Beyond capital: how your
investment is structured.
Every opportunity sourced by France IDEA is individually negotiated and structured around the company’s real needs and the investor’s objectives. Several recurring models are used, each documented in full within your investment file.
I.
Direct capital participation
Your investment is deployed as a direct capital injection into the eligible French operating company — typically in exchange for an equity participation, giving you a real economic stake in the business and exposure to its growth.
Example — ODIOT. Founded in 1690 and holder of the EPV (Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant) label, ODIOT is one of France’s historic luxury silverware houses. An investment of this type combines heritage and industrial value with strategic positioning in the global luxury ecosystem — the kind of opportunity France IDEA sources, vets and structures for its clients.
II.
Contractual revenue participation
In select opportunities, the investee company enters into a contractual revenue-sharing arrangement directly with the investor. This provides a defined annual return over the holding period — agreed in advance and set out in the investment contract — in addition to any capital appreciation on the underlying participation.
III.
Buy-back commitment
In specific, pre-identified opportunities, the investee company — or its existing shareholders — commits contractually to repurchasing the investor’s participation at the end of the minimum five-year holding period, at terms fixed at entry. Where available, this gives investors a clear, pre-agreed exit pathway running alongside their residency outcome.
Revenue-participation and buy-back terms are specific to certain opportunities, individually negotiated, and disclosed in full within the investment documentation. They are contractual commitments of the investee company, reviewed as part of France IDEA’s due diligence and compliance process — investors are encouraged to review all terms with their own legal and tax counsel.
The process
A structured, compliance-driven
path — from onboarding to
residency card.
Every step is coordinated by France IDEA alongside its network of legal, banking and immigration partners, so you move through the process with full visibility and security at every stage.
01
Investor onboarding
An initial strategic review of your profile and objectives, to confirm eligibility and define the right structure for your application.
Few days
02
Secured escrow
Your funds are transferred into a secured escrow structure, held by one of the most reputable legal firms in Paris under lawyer-regulated CARPA accounts.
—
03
Compliance review
KYC / AML and source-of-funds verification conducted by banking and legal professionals, ensuring your file meets the highest standards before proceeding.
2–4 weeks
04
Visa D application
Your application for the French long-stay Visa D is filed with the relevant French consulate, with full support throughout.
Few weeks
05
Direct economic investment
Following approval, your investment is deployed into the eligible French operating company — only once every condition has been met.
Immediate after visa issuance
06
Residency card issuance
Your 4-year renewable residency card is issued in France, completing the pathway for you and your family.
Following arrival
From application to citizenship — the full timeline
card issued Investment held,
family resident in France Permanent residency
eligibility
Citizenship, subject to conditions
In context
How France IDEA compares to
other European programs.
While other European residency-by-investment programs face rising minimums, growing backlogs, or outright closure, France IDEA offers a lower entry point, a faster process, and a structure built on productive investment rather than real estate.
| Country | Minimum Investment |
Residency Timeline |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portugal | €500,000 | 12–24 months | ||
| Greece | €400,000–€800,000 | 6–12 months | ||
| Latvia | €50,000–€250,000 | 3–6 months | ||
| Spain | €500,000 | Program closed in 2025 | ||
| France IDEA | €300,000 | 1–3 months | ||
Security & oversight
Your capital is protected at every
stage.
France IDEA operates within a fully supervised framework, designed to give investors and authorities the same confidence in the integrity of every transaction.
K
KPMG oversight
Governance, structure and financial controls are reviewed in collaboration with KPMG, ensuring full transparency and regulatory alignment.
E
Secured escrow
Funds are held in secure escrow accounts. No capital is deployed before your residency approval is confirmed.
C
CARPA accounts
Lawyer-regulated CARPA accounts provide maximum traceability, anti-fraud protection and legal oversight throughout.
Every applicant also undergoes a full due diligence protocol — identity verification, source of funds and wealth analysis, sanctions and PEP screening, and AML/CFT checks — protecting the integrity of the program for every investor within it.
Program
For retirees, rentiers & second-home owners
France Passive Income Visa
Based on the French long-stay visitor visa (Visa Long Séjour Visiteur), this route is designed for financially independent applicants — retirees, property owners, and families with stable rental income, dividends or pensions — who wish to spend extended periods in France without taking up local employment.
Eligibility & conditions
- Stable, sufficient passive income or savings — rental yields, dividends, pensions or savings income
- Private health insurance covering the holder for the duration of stay
- Proof of accommodation in France
- A signed commitment not to engage in professional activity in France
What you get
- Long-stay visa, renewable as a multi-year residence card
- Full family inclusion
- Access to French healthcare and education systems
- A foundation toward long-term residency after 5 years
Program
For entrepreneurs & business owners
France Company Creation
Based on the Passeport Talent — Création d’entreprise category (Créateur d’Entreprise), this route lets you establish and operate a real business in France, with residency granted on the strength of your project and your role as its director.
Eligibility & conditions
- A relevant Master's-level diploma, or at least 5 years of comparable professional experience
- A credible, economically viable business project, evidenced by a detailed business plan
- Sufficient capital to fund the project's launch and operations
- A clear, real economic activity to be carried out in France
What you get
- 4-year multi-year residence permit, renewable
- Right to create, hold and operate the company as its director
- Full family inclusion
- Pathway to permanent residency after 5 years
Program
For founders of innovative ventures
France Startup / Innovative Project
Based on the Passeport Talent — Startup Innovante category, often referred to as the French Tech Visa, this route welcomes founders whose project is recognised as innovative by a competent French public body or ecosystem actor.
Eligibility & conditions
- A letter of support or recognition from an approved incubator, accelerator or public investment body
- An innovative, scalable project, generally technology-driven
- Sufficient means of subsistence for the applicant and any accompanying family
What you get
- 4-year multi-year residence permit, renewable
- Full family inclusion
- Access to France's startup ecosystem and EU funding networks
- Pathway to permanent residency after 5 years
Program
For executives, professionals & recognised experts
France Talent Residence Permit
The broader Passeport Talent framework also covers highly qualified employees (Salarié Qualifié, EU Blue Card), company directors and senior executives (Mandataire Social), researchers and internationally recognised experts — a single multi-year permit covering France’s wider talent attraction policy.
Eligibility & conditions
- A qualifying employment contract, corporate mandate, or recognised expert profile
- Relevant diplomas and/or professional experience appropriate to the category
- Remuneration or seniority meeting the applicable thresholds for the category
What you get
- 4-year multi-year residence permit, renewable
- Full family inclusion
- Right to work in France under the relevant category
- Pathway to permanent residency and citizenship after 5 years
Long-term pathway
Across every program
Permanent residence & citizenship pathway
Whichever route you enter through, France IDEA builds a long-term renewal strategy across each 4-year residence cycle — keeping your file aligned with the conditions that open the door to permanent residency, and ultimately citizenship.
After 5 years of residence
- Eligibility for a permanent residence card, subject to continuous lawful residence
- Maintenance of the qualifying activity, investment or status underlying your original permit
Citizenship, subject to conditions
- French tax residency during the qualifying period
- A2-level French language proficiency
- Continuous, lawful residence and integration into French society
Naturalisation under French law (Loi n° 2016-274) is granted at the discretion of the French authorities and is never automatic — France IDEA’s role is to keep your file in the best possible position to be considered.
Begin your application
A direct, lawful path to
residency in France — for
you and your family.
Speak with the France IDEA team to review your eligibility and identify the investment opportunity best suited to your profile.