WFU IN
Student Visa Information
I. CAMPUS FRANCE: You must register
here first, by completing all of the information and submitting it. You’ll then
send a money order to CampusFrance; when it is
received you will get the confirmation that will allow you to get your visa at
your regional French Consulate. You can
go ahead and make your visa appointment through your regional French Consulate
(see below), but keep in mind that you’ll need to leave enough time to complete
the CampusFrance form and to wait for confirmation of
receipt of your payment (up to 3 weeks) before you can get your visa.
The CampusFrance pages and the process can seem confusing! Some tips follow.
·
Use
Internet Explorer; Mozilla does not always work properly and may result in
inexplicable error messages.
·
Start
by reading this introduction to Campus
·
This
page has an overview of the process:
·
Download
this document; it takes you through the process step-by-step: http://usa.campusfrance.org/IMG/pdf/Mode_d_emploiPROG.ECHANGEetIND.INSCRIPT-V1_ENG.pdf
·
Keep
in mind that CampusFrance is used to initiate the
visa process for two kinds of students: those like you, who have been accepted
to a study abroad program, and independent students who wish to study in France
but do not yet have a school in mind.
The guidelines indicate which information is not required of you.
·
You
must complete the information requested (click on “CampusFrance
form” or “Complete the form” under “My file”): Education, Linguistic Skills,
Goals. Under “Institution,” write in “
·
Once
you’ve completed this information, you must SUBMIT it. (The box “Status
validation” on the “My file” page will say “Completed,” along with the date
that you submitted the information; the mustard-colored vertical box
("Complete the form") will say "Your academic application has
been submitted".
·
Send
the required CampusFrance fee (see the last page of the
downloadable guidelines linked above). CampusFrance requires that you pay the fee (currently $70.
for study abroad students) with a money order.
You can purchase a money order at any U.S. Post Office for a small fee: click here for
more information.
·
Along
with the money order, CampusFrance asks you to send
“a copy of your official acceptance letter (either to your French university or
from your home university).” Be sure to
send a COPY of your CIEF “Attestation d’inscription.”
DON’T send the original; you’ll need it for your visa appointment!
·
Wait
patiently (it may take up to 3 weeks) for the confirmation (on your CampusFrance page) that your money order has been
received. THIS CONFIRMATION COMES THROUGH YOUR CAMPUSFRANCE PAGE MAILBOX (not
in the mail or to your WFU e-mail). You’ll need this confirmation in order to
get your visa! When the payment has been
processed, you’ll get two messages in your CampusFrance
mailbox – one indicates receipt; the other has a pdf
receipt (quittance de paiement), which you should print out and take to your visa
appointment. (At this point, on the “My
file” page, the box “Validation ECF” will indicate “Effectué”
and the “Payment” category will say “submitted,” along with the date that your
payment was processed.)
·
Make
your visa appointment through your
consulate website (see the list below), not through the interactive CampusFrance feature, which has fewer options.
II.
CONSULATES and VISA INFORMATION:
·
First
verify your consulate (based on your home address) at the first site
·
Then
click on your consulate to see the list of items you’ll need to bring to your
appointment.
·
After
submitting the Campus France information, you’ll make a visa appointment
through your French Consulate website.
(You can make your appointment before that information is completed, but
keep in mind that you’ll need to wait for confirmation of receipt of your
payment!) You may need to look around on
your Consulate’s website for the interactive feature that lets you book an
appointment.
INTERACTIVE MAP OF CONSULATES OF
FRANCE IN THE US
Click
on your consulate for the list of information required for the visa. Be sure to scroll down to “LONG STAY STUDENT
VISAS (more than 90 days)”:
MATERIALS
AND INFORMATION FOR YOUR VISA APPOINTMENT:
·
If
your consulate provides the Long Stay Visa
Application Form in French only, follow the links to other consulates and
find the English form that corresponds to your French form. (If this is the case, you should fill out the
French-language form, since your consulate may not accept the English version.)
·
For
the Long Stay Visa Application Form, here
are the coordinates for the educational institution where you’ll be studying: Centre International d'Etudes Françaises, Maison de l’université, BP 87874-21078 Dijon Cedex
– France, cief@u-bourgogne.fr, telephone: 03 80
39 35 60