Destination France, with a scholarship: this guide covers what changes for you as a scholarship holder. You will find the scholarships concerned, studies and admission, visa and residence permit, health insurance, housing, budget and funds and on arrival, and every fact links to its official page.
French government scholarships
This guide is about “French government scholarship holders” (boursiers du gouvernement français), meaning international students who receive a scholarship from the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs. Some of these scholarships are funded directly by the ministry through the France Excellence Eiffel programme (master’s and doctorate) and France Excellence Major (for the best international baccalauréat holders from French schools abroad). The others are awarded by French embassies abroad.
To find out which scholarships apply to you, contact the Campus France office in your country. The Campus Bourses tool, on the Campus France website, also lists scholarships offered to international students.
For the Eiffel scholarship, you do not apply on your own: the French institution submits your application. Contact its international relations office to find out its procedure and deadline. An application sent directly by a student is not accepted.
A scholarship is never guaranteed: holders are selected. Once you have the scholarship, Campus France (the public agency that welcomes international students) manages it and organises your stay. The benefits described in this guide apply to scholarships managed by Campus France.
- Embassy scholarships: ask the Campus France office in your country.
- France Excellence Eiffel: master’s or doctorate, application submitted by the French institution.
- France Excellence Major: for the best international baccalauréat holders from French schools abroad.
Tuition fees and the CVEC as a scholarship holder
The process for getting a place in an institution is the same as for any international student: see our guide “Studying in France on your own”.
What changes is the price. If you hold a French government scholarship, you are exempted (not required to pay) from tuition fees for a national diploma or an engineering degree in a public institution under the Ministry of Higher Education. You simply show your scholarship or funding certificate issued by Campus France. However, programme fees (for example in a private school) are not covered and remain yours to pay.
You are also exempted from the CVEC (student and campus life contribution). Even when exempted, you must get the certificate on the CVEC website before you enrol. If you do not yet have your scholarship certificate at that time, you pay the CVEC first, then ask for a refund.
Your visa as a scholarship holder
You apply for the same visa as other students (the VLS-TS, the student long-stay visa), following the steps in our guide “Studying in France on your own”.
If your scholarship is managed by Campus France, Campus France gives you a “funding certificate” (attestation de prise en charge). You add it to your visa application: it helps the consulate issue the visa.
Visa fees can be free for scholarship holders. For example, the France-Visas page for Morocco lists French government scholarship holders among the applicants who do not pay visa fees, provided they add proof of this status to their application. The rules are set country by country: check the France-Visas page for your country.
For Algerian students, who follow their own rules, service-public.fr says that the scholarship counts towards the means of support you must prove (at least €877.50 per month). The holder provides a certificate from the body that pays the scholarship, stating its amount and length.
Where are you from? Do you need a visa?
The rule depends on the country of your passport. Choose it to see the answer that applies to you.
The rules for each group of countries
| Nationalities | Visa | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
These nationalities:Show the 34 countriesAndorra, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Vatican City | No visa | Nationals of the European Union, the European Economic Area (Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein), Switzerland, Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican do not need a long-stay visa to study in France. |
| These nationalities: Algeria | Visa required | You must obtain a long-stay “student” visa before you leave. If you live in Algeria, your application for a place and your visa go through Campus France’s “Études en France” platform. After arriving, you do not validate a VLS-TS: you apply online for a “student” residence certificate (rules specific to Algerians, see service-public.fr). |
These nationalities:Show the 74 countriesAngola, Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Colombia, Comoros, Congo - Brazzaville, Congo - Kinshasa, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gabon, Georgia, Ghana, Guinea, Haiti, Hong Kong SAR China, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lebanon, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Morocco, Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Qatar, Russia, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Togo, Tunisia, Türkiye, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Vietnam | Visa required | You must obtain a student long-stay visa (VLS-TS) to study for more than 3 months. If you live in your country, you must go through Campus France’s “Études en France” platform: it handles your application for a place, then sends your visa application to the French consulate. For a doctorate, contact the doctoral schools directly, then the consulate. |
All nationalities except:Show the 34 countriesAndorra, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Vatican City | Visa required | To study for more than 3 months, you must apply for a long-stay visa, even if your nationality exempts you from a short-stay visa. If you do not live in an “Études en France” country, you apply for admission (DAP with the French embassy for the first year of a licence, Mon Master for a master’s, or the institution directly), then apply for the visa at the French consulate in your country of residence. Check your situation with the France-Visas visa wizard. |
Health insurance for scholarship holders
Like all international students, you must register free of charge with French social security on etudiant-etranger.ameli.fr, once your enrolment in the institution is complete.
In the meantime, Campus France covers you free of charge with an insurer it chooses, for 2 months at most after you arrive. This cover starts once you have told Campus France by email that you have arrived: do it on your first day, because cover cannot be backdated. It does not cover your family.
As soon as you receive your social security certificate, even a provisional one, send it to Campus France. For Eiffel scholarship holders, a top-up health insurance (mutuelle) is then taken out at no extra cost for you, but not for your family.
Accommodation offered by Campus France
Many scholarship holders find accommodation on their own. If you want help from Campus France, say so in the form provided in your personal space.
In most cases, Campus France offers you a room in a Crous university residence (the public body that runs student residences). Booking fees are yours to pay and rent is still due: Campus France tells you your share, which is taken directly from your allowance. If there is no room at the Crous, Campus France books temporary accommodation in the meantime.
This accommodation is for the scholarship holder alone: this help does not apply if you come with your family or partner. Eiffel scholarship holders are free to turn down the offer and find their own accommodation.
The scholarship holder’s monthly allowance
Your scholarship pays you an allowance every month, from your arrival in France and for the length of the scholarship. The first payment starts once you tell Campus France by email that you have arrived, with a copy of the entry stamp in your passport or of your boarding pass.
For France Excellence scholarships managed by Campus France (files sent from 1 January 2023), Campus France gives €900 per month for a licence or master’s and €1,850 per month for a doctorate, amounts that may change (page updated on 10 April 2026). For the Eiffel scholarship, the allowance is €1,200 per month for a master’s and €2,000 per month for a doctorate, from January 2026.
Programme fees remain yours to pay, as do tuition fees not covered by the exemption. For the rest of your budget (housing, daily life), see our guide “Studying in France on your own”.
- France Excellence scholarships (Campus France): €900 per month for a licence or master’s, €1,850 for a doctorate.
- Eiffel scholarship: €1,200 per month for a master’s, €2,000 for a doctorate (from January 2026).
Your arrival and your obligations as a scholarship holder
If your journey is funded by the ministry or an embassy, Campus France books your plane ticket and emails it to you. In some programmes, you receive a “Pass Campus France” that sums up your welcome: transfers, accommodation, scholarship amount and how your first allowance will be paid.
If your programme includes it, Campus France can also meet you at the airport, take you to the city where you will study and help with your paperwork: validating your residence permit, opening a bank account, top-up health insurance, housing benefit. Validating the visa itself works as for any student (see our guide “Studying in France on your own”).
As soon as you arrive, contact Campus France, send your certificate of enrolment and, within the first 3 months, your social security certificate. You follow your file on “Mon Espace Boursier” (beneficiaires.campusfrance.org). If you do not meet these obligations, you may lose your scholarship holder status and its benefits (exemptions, top-up health insurance, Crous housing).
Your residence permit and your health insurance must remain valid until you leave. For Eiffel scholarship holders, signing an apprenticeship or professional training contract automatically ends the scholarship.
- Tell Campus France you have arrived (copy of the entry stamp or boarding pass).
- Send your certificate of enrolment as soon as you arrive.
- Send your social security certificate within the first 3 months.
The other path
No scholarship? Read the guide to study there on your own.
Study there on your ownOther destinations
The same path, with a scholarship, in the other countries GradMe covers: compare before you choose.