French Fiance Visa from Thailand

While France does not have an official fiancé(e) visa, you can acquire a short-stay French Fiance Visa from Thailand if you are engaged to a French national or permanent resident. This visa allows you to travel to France and is valid for 90 days, giving you enough time to marry your partner and begin the process of acquiring permanent residence.

While holding a short-stay visa, you also have access to the following Schengen member countries for the same duration, including:

• Eastern Europe: Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia
• Northern Europe: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Sweden
• Southern Europe: Greece, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain
• Western Europe: Austria, Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Switzerland

After you have gotten married and registered your marriage with the relevant French authorities, you can apply for a long-stay French Settlement Visa (also known as a spouse visa). Once you have lived in France for up to a year with your spouse, you become eligible for a residence permit, which can lead to permanent residency in the country.

Continue reading to learn more about how to apply for a French visa in Thailand as a fiancé(e) of a French citizen or permanent resident, what requirements you need to meet, and how to complete your application.

French Fiance Visa Requirements

To apply for a visa with the intent of getting married in the country, you will first need to qualify for it. While these requirements are similar to that of your standard short-stay visa, there are some additional ones to satisfy if you want to eventually marry your partner:

• You must be engaged to a French national or permanent resident
• You and your partner must be at least 18 years of age
• You and your partner must have met in person
• You must intend to move to France for marriage
• Your partner must be domiciled in France with an address for you to live at
• Your partner needs to have enough funds to financially support you

Some activities are restricted while on a short-stay Schengen Visa and partaking in them can lead to serious penalties ranging from fines to possible deportation. This consists of the following:

• You cannot overstay beyond the expiry date of your current short-stay visa
• You are prohibited from working or securing a French work permit
• You cannot conduct business activities or set up a company
• You cannot study while on the visa

French Visa Required Documents

Applying for a visa as an unmarried partner from Thailand involves submitting similar documents that are required for a standard short-stay French visa. Before you can submit your application, you will need to gather the following French visa required documents:

• Completed and signed Schengen Visa application form
• Valid passport (with no less than 6 months validity remaining and a photocopy of the passport’s biodata page)
• At least 2 passport-sized photographs (in color, size 3.5 cm x 4.5 cm, taken in the last 6 months against a white background)
• Proof of your finances and personal income (i.e. bank statement, pay slips)
• Flight itinerary (confirming that the return flight ticket to Thailand has been booked)
• Proof of medical insurance

While your French partner does not need to sponsor you as part of your application, they should prepare the following documentation if you want to apply for a long-stay French Spouse Visa after completing and registering your marriage:

• Proof of French nationality, shown by one of the following:
• French national ID card
• Certificate of Nationality
• Decree issuing the French nationality
• Registration card as a French citizen residing abroad
• Proof of your French partner’s funds and assets, and ability to financially support you during your stay (i.e. bank statement, income taxes, pay slips)
• Proof of your French partner’s address in the country (i.e. lease agreement, rental receipts, title deeds)
• Letter from your partner with detailed information about the relationship (such as describing the nature of the relationship)

How to Apply for a French Fiance Visa From Thailand

After gathering all the required documents for the application, you can begin the process by completing an online application form for the Schengen Visa. Once your application is submitted, it will be received by TLS France (the French Visa Application Center) located in Thailand and you will be requested to book an appointment to provide your biometrics.

Once this is done, TLS will forward the application to the French Embassy in Thailand for further processing. If your application is approved, the Embassy will issue a notification email with instructions on what to do next. A short-stay French Schengen visa will be affixed to your passport and delivered to TLS France.

You can choose to pick up your passport in person at the visa application center or request a courier service to drop it off at your address in Thailand. You will need to present your return flight ticket (both a copy of it and the original itinerary) and proof of your health insurance before the authorities can issue you your passport.

How to Get Married in France

Once you have a French visa, you can fly from Thailand to France and begin the process of getting married to your partner. However, you will have to fulfill some legal requirements beforehand. Legally binding marriages in France are conducted through civil ceremonies that take place in the same location where you will be staying with your fiancé(e).

To establish one and marry your partner, you and your fiancé(e) will need to reside in France for a minimum of 30 cumulative days. Once you have stayed beyond this amount, you will need to lodge a marriage application (also known as a Marriage Banns) to the nearest town hall at least 10 days before your marriage ceremony.

Each town hall, depending on your location, will have a list of documents that you need to provide for the application. After getting married, you will receive a Family Booklet (also known as a "Livret de Famille") and you can apply for a marriage certificate with the town hall in the same location where your marriage took place.

How Siam Legal Can Help You

To ensure you can start a new married life with your partner in France without delays or complications, partner with Siam Legal for visa consulting and application assistance. Our full-service law firm also serves as a visa consultancy in Thailand, and we’ve been helping clients travel to and settle in foreign countries for over 20 years. Because of our wealth of experience, our foreign visa consultants are equipped with the skills to accelerate and streamline every step of your application process.

To help you in your journey to unite with your partner, we offer the following visa services:

• A complete review of your background to assess your eligibility for the fiance visa.
• A private consultation session with our immigration specialist to address any impending concerns regarding the visa.
• Detailed checklist of all the documents you and your French partner need to provide.
• Reviewing your visa application before the submission stage to identify any last-minute mistakes and missing items.
• Handling the submission of your visa application to the relevant authorities.
• Reaching out to the authorities during the application process to keep you up-to-date on its status or if any amendments are needed.
• If you are requested to attend an interview, we will help you prepare yourself for it before the date.

Contact Siam Legal today and seek the assistance of our foreign visa consultants to ensure that you can plan a comfortable future with your French partner as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Can I Receive a Document Checklist for this Application?

Yes, we can provide you with a checklist highlighting all the important documents that you and your sponsor need to provide for the application. Each of our checklists is tailored for each specific French visa, so you will receive all the instructions solely for the fiance visa.

What are the Current Processing times for a French Visa?

It can take up to 15 business days on average to receive your visa, minus any delays. Other factors also impact the processing time such as missing items, incorrect information, and the amount of applications that the Embassy has been receiving.

If you are a national of any of the following countries listed below, your application may take up to 10 days to be processed:

• Africa: Algeria, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Libya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Somalia, Sudan, Zimbabwe
• Asia: Indonesia, North Korea, Philippines, Vietnam
• Europe: Belarus
• Middle East: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Yemen
• South America: Suriname

How Much Do I Have to Pay to Access Your Fiance Visa Services?

The price for our end-to-end French Fiancé(e) Visa services is 20,500 baht plus value-added tax (VAT). Keep in mind that this price only takes into account our service charge and does not include the payment required for the visa and the application.

My Application Got Rejected, What Should I Do?

If the immigration authorities have rejected your visa application and issued you a notification email regarding it, consult our foreign visa consultants for more assistance on what to do next. We will assess the reasoning behind your application’s refusal and help you seamlessly reapply for it.