French civic exam: free 40-question mock test with answers
40 questions, 45 minutes, 32 correct answers to pass. No account, no email.
Independent site, not linked to the French Interior Ministry, the préfectures or the exam centres.
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| Pass mark: 32 of 40 |
| Time left: 45:00 |
Knowledge questions: French Interior Ministry, Licence Ouverte 2.0, translated by us. Options, explanations and scenarios: Radif Partners. The real exam is in French only. Not the official exam.
The civic exam (examen civique) has been compulsory since 1 January 2026 for foreign nationals applying for a first multi-year residence permit, a first resident card or French naturalisation. It is a multiple-choice test of 40 questions, in French, to be answered in 45 minutes: each question has 4 options and one correct answer, and you need 32 correct answers, 80%, to get the certificate. The paper mixes 28 knowledge questions and 12 scenario questions over five themes: the principles and values of the Republic, institutions, rights and duties, history and geography, and daily life in France. Each application has its own level, and the French language level required rises with it: A2 for the multi-year permit, B1 for the resident card, B2 for naturalisation. The mock test above draws 40 questions from our bank of 434, which holds the 366 official question stems with explained answers, using the exact mix of the decree of 10 October 2025. Questions appear in English to help you learn; the real exam is in French only.
Updated · Radif Partners · Method · About this site
Three applications, three levels
Multi-year residence permit
- Civic exam
- Multi-year permit level
- French
- A2
- Stamps
- €350
- When
- First application
Resident card
- Civic exam
- Resident card level
- French
- B1
- Stamps
- €350
- When
- After 3 to 5 years depending on the ground
Naturalisation
- Civic exam
- Naturalisation level
- French
- B2
- Stamps
- €255
- When
- After 5 years of residence, as a rule
What changed on 1 January 2026
Before 2026 there was no civic exam common to every application. The immigration and integration law of 26 January 2024, then the decree of 15 July 2025 and the order of 10 October 2025, created a standard exam, sat in an approved centre and leading to a certificate. The certificate has no expiry date: once passed, it counts for every later application at the same level, and the resident card certificate also counts for a multi-year permit.
The French language level was raised too: A2 for a first multi-year permit, B1 for the resident card, B2 for naturalisation, proven by a diploma or a test less than 2 years old. The French level page lists the accepted diplomas and tests, and the which exam for my permit tool answers in three clicks for your situation.
How to prepare without paying
The French Interior Ministry itself says that preparing can be entirely free. It publishes the list of knowledge questions for the multi-year permit and for the resident card, and guidance sheets with the answers to learn. What it does not publish is the answer options or the scenario questions: that is what you need to practise in real conditions, and what this site adds, with no account, no email and no paid version.
- One theme a day in practice mode, with the answer explained after each question.
- The scenario questions on their own: they make up 12 of the 40 questions.
- Full mock tests, marked at the end, until you clear 32 several times in a row.
The number of questions differs from one theme to another. The small tool below gives, for each theme, how many questions are asked on the day and how they split by notion.
How many questions on this theme?
Questions in the exam
11 / 40
| Motto and symbols | 3 |
| Secularism | 2 |
| Scenarios | 6 |
Before the exam: when you can apply
The exam is only one item in the file. For naturalisation you need, as a rule, 5 years of habitual residence in France, only 2 after a French higher-education degree, and none for a refugee. You can file from age 17. For the resident card the period depends on the ground: 3 years of marriage for the spouse of a French citizen, 5 years of stay for the EU long-term card, with capped absences. The small tool gives the years left; the naturalisation page works out the exact date.
How many years before naturalisation?
Still to wait
2 years
| Period required | 5 years |
| You can file from age | 17 |
| Civic exam | naturalisation level |
The real cost of applying
Two items are set by law: the €255 tax stamp for naturalisation (€127.50 in French Guiana), and €350 for a first multi-year permit or resident card (€50 stamp duty and €300 tax), plus a €300 regularisation visa fee if you entered without a long-stay visa. The civic exam and the French test have no national price. The cost calculator adds everything up with the prices you find.
Every page
Civic exam
- Civic exam mock testForty questions in 45 minutes, drawn with the official mix and marked at the real pass mark of 32.
- Civic exam practice questionsShort practice sets by theme, corrected one question at a time, to learn before the full mock test.
- Multi-year permit questionsThe official list of knowledge questions for the multi-year permit level, each with an answer and an explanation.
- Resident card questionsThe official stems for the resident card level, each with the right answer, an explanation and the sheet to check.
- Naturalisation civic examThe naturalisation-level paper in real conditions, and where its certificate fits in a citizenship application.
- Resident card civic examThe resident card level paper, timed, and a timeline to fit it in before you apply for the card.
- Multi-year permit civic examThe multi-year permit level paper in real conditions, with the rules that apply to this first permit.
- Scenario questionsEveryday cases where you pick the lawful response, each one marked and explained.
- Civic exam sample questionsWhat a civic exam question looks like: one sample per theme, with all four options.
- Civic exam 2026What changed on 1 January 2026: the applications affected, the legal texts, the format and the exceptions.
- Price and bookingNo national price: how to compare centres, where to book and which stamps to budget for on top of the exam.
- Exam resultThe pass mark of 32 out of 40, a certificate with no end date, a 30-day appeal window and the option to resit.
- Exam exemptionsAge, health, renewals, international protection, nationality by declaration: who skips the exam, and within which limits.
The 5 themes
- Principles and values of the RepublicMotto, symbols and secularism: one of the two heaviest themes of the exam, and its traps.
- French institutionsVoting, separation of powers, the préfet, the European Union: six questions where precise vocabulary decides.
- Rights and dutiesFreedoms, obligations, justice and six scenarios: the theme that weighs as much as the principles of the Republic.
- History, geography and cultureDates, places and heritage: the theme where memory counts most, with a method to retain the essentials.
- Living in French societyHousing, healthcare, work, school: four very practical questions, one per notion, not to be thrown away.
Nationality
- Naturalisation stepsThe whole process on a timeline: civic exam, B2 French, filing, interview, decision, decree in the Journal officiel and welcome ceremony.
- NaturalisationThe earliest date you can apply for French citizenship by decree, and a map of the steps up to the decree.
- Naturalisation requirementsAge, residence, permit, income, record, language, civic exam and interview: the checklist to run before you apply.
- Nationality applicationFrom the free online filing to the decree: the steps of a French nationality application, what you pay and the paid sites to avoid.
- Naturalisation costTax stamp, civic exam, French test, translations: the real budget for a citizenship application, with no made-up fees.
- Naturalisation interviewThe assimilation interview at the préfecture: when it comes, what it checks, what to bring and how to prepare.
- Naturalisation processing timeThe legal decision deadline from your receipt, the extension, the decree in the Journal officiel, the welcome ceremony and the civic exam result.
- Nationality through marriageThe declaration for spouses of French citizens: years of marriage, residence, life together, level B2 and no civic exam.
Residence permits
- Resident cardThe 10-year card: when you can apply for each route, the civic exam and level B1, and the stamp fees.
- EU long-term resident cardUnbroken lawful stay and capped time abroad: the date you can apply for the EU long-term resident card in France.
- Which exam for my permit?Multi-year permit, resident card, naturalisation: the civic exam level and the French level that match your application.
French and booklet
- French level requiredA2, B1 or B2: the French level each permit and citizenship route asks for, and the proof that counts.
- TCF IRN testFrance Éducation international’s test for integration, residence and nationality: which level to aim for and when to sit it.
- Citizen’s bookletThe livret du citoyen approved on 3 July 2026: where to read it, what it is for and how to revise with it before the interview.
Who writes this site
Examen Civique Blanc is published by Radif Partners. The knowledge question stems come from the French Interior Ministry's official lists, reused under the Licence Ouverte; the options, explanations and scenarios are ours, written from the ministry guidance sheets and the texts on Légifrance, and each explanation says where to check. Residence and nationality rules are read on service-public.gouv.fr. The Method page explains the draw, the marking and the date calculations.
Sources
The rules, fees and times quoted here were read on these government pages on25 October 2026.
- Légifrance: order of 10 October 2025 on the programme, papers and organisation of the civic exam
- Interior Ministry, formation civique: general information on the civic exam
- Interior Ministry: official list of knowledge questions, multi-year permit level
- Interior Ministry: official list of knowledge questions, resident card level
- Service-public.gouv.fr: multi-year permit and resident card, taking the civic exam (checked 10 February 2026)
- Service-public.gouv.fr: French naturalisation, taking the civic exam (checked 16 July 2026)
- Service-public.gouv.fr: French naturalisation by decree (checked 16 July 2026)
- Service-public.gouv.fr: 10-year resident card (checked 1 July 2026)
- Service-public.gouv.fr: French nationality, proving your level of French (checked 1 January 2026)
- Service-public.gouv.fr: buying the tax stamp for a nationality application (checked 1 May 2026)
Questions applicants ask
What is the French civic exam?
A 40-question multiple-choice test, in French, on the principles of the Republic, institutions, rights and duties, history and daily life in France. It lasts 45 minutes and you pass with 32 correct answers. Since 1 January 2026 its certificate is required for a first multi-year residence permit, a first resident card and naturalisation.
Who has to take the civic exam?
Foreign nationals applying for their first multi-year residence permit or first resident card, and every naturalisation applicant. Renewals, people over 65 applying for a residence permit, the nationality declaration by marriage and some protection permits are outside it. A certified disability or health condition can lead to adjustments or an exemption.
Can I take the French civic exam in English?
No. The decree of 10 October 2025 sets the exam in French only. This English version exists to help expatriates understand the notions and the rules; once you know them, practise on the French version of the mock test, since that is the language of the questions, the options and the scenarios on the day.
How much does the civic exam cost?
There is no national price: each approved test centre sets its own, and prices vary from one centre to another. Compare the prices shown when you book with the two authorised bodies. Preparing can be entirely free: the official lists, the ministry guidance sheets and the mock test on this site need no account and no payment.
What if I fail the civic exam?
Book another session: no waiting period is imposed between sittings, though each sitting is paid. Look at your score by theme, work on the weak notions in practice mode and take more mock tests until you clear 32 with a margin. The result can be challenged with the organiser within 30 days.
Does the civic exam certificate expire?
No. The pass certificate has no time limit: once you pass, you can use it for later applications at the same level. A certificate obtained for the resident card also counts for a multi-year residence permit. Keep the original and a scanned copy, because the préfecture asks for it when you file, along with the proof of your French level.
Where do I sit the civic exam?
On a computer, in a centre approved by one of the two authorised bodies: the Paris Île-de-France Chamber of Commerce, through Le français des affaires, and France Éducation international. There are centres across France and, depending on the body, abroad in French institutes or Alliances françaises. You book directly with the centre you choose, which sets its own dates and price.
Written by Radif Partners
Independent publisher of free French civic exam mock tests, with no account or e-mail, explained question by question
Rules and fees checked on · Editorial policy · Contact
French civic exam and nationality rules 2026, read on Légifrance and service-public.gouv.fr, last checked on