Residence permits
Which civic exam and French level for your permit?
Pick your permit or application, add your age and situation: the tool shows which civic exam level and which French level to prepare.
Independent site, not linked to the French Interior Ministry, the préfectures or the exam centres.
Civic exam
Multi-year permit level
French level
A2
Required for a first application since 1 January 2026.
Rules from the service-public.gouv.fr pages read on 25 October 2026; the préfecture alone decides on your file.
The French civic exam comes in three levels (mentions), one for each family of applications, and each is paired with a French language level. The multi-year permit level applies to a first multi-year residence permit, with French at A2. The resident card level applies to a first resident card, including the EU long-term resident card, with French at B1. The naturalisation level applies to naturalisation and reinstatement by decree, with French at B2. All three take the same form: 40 questions in 45 minutes, 32 correct answers to pass. The certificate never expires, and the resident card level certificate also covers a multi-year permit. No exam is required for a renewal, for nationality declarations such as the marriage route, for anyone over 65 applying for a residence permit, or for the refugee resident card. The tool above runs these rules on your situation and returns the exam level and French level to prepare. Use it before you book a centre, so that you register for the level your application actually needs.
Which French level for my permit?
Level required
A2
| Civic exam | multi-year permit level |
| Exam pass mark | 32 / 40 |
Answers, dates and costs by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
Matching permits to exam levels
| Permit or application | Civic exam level | French level |
|---|---|---|
| Temporary residence permit | none | not required for it |
| First multi-year residence permit | multi-year permit | A2 |
| First resident card | resident card | B1 |
| EU long-term resident card | resident card | B1 |
| Refugee resident card | none | not required for it |
| Renewal of a permit | none | not required |
| Naturalisation, reinstatement | naturalisation | B2 |
| Nationality through marriage | none | B2 |
Read it row by row, but bear in mind that many people move down several rows over the years: multi-year permit, then resident card, then citizenship. Picking the right level at the right moment saves you from sitting the exam more often than you need to.
One format, different question lists
All three levels share the structure set by the order of 10 October 2025: 28 knowledge questions, 12 scenarios, five themes and a pass mark of 80%. What differs is the pool of knowledge questions. The ministry publishes one official list for the multi-year permit and one for the resident card; our bank holds 190 for the first and 209 for the second. To practise at the right level, open the multi-year permit exam, the resident card exam or the naturalisation exam.
When no exam is required
- Renewals of a permit you already hold.
- Applicants over 65, for residence permits only: there is no age exemption for naturalisation.
- Nationality declarations: marriage, or being the ascendant or sibling of a French citizen.
- The multi-year permit for beneficiaries of subsidiary protection and stateless people, and the refugee resident card.
- Permits issued outside the republican integration contract.
- People exempted for a certified disability or health condition.
Our exemptions page goes through each case. Watch the age rule: it applies when you apply for a residence permit and never extends to naturalisation. Someone over 65 who gets a resident card without the exam will still have to pass the naturalisation level if they later apply to become French.
What the tool asks, and why
Each field maps to a rule. The permit decides the exam level. The first-application question rules out renewals. Your age triggers the exemption over 65 for residence permits. International protection settles the cases of refugees, subsidiary protection and stateless people. The medical question opens the way to adjustments or an exemption. The result shows the exam level, the French level and the reason behind the answer, so you can check it against the official page.
Three tips for choosing
- Aim one step ahead. The resident card level certificate covers the multi-year permit too: if a resident card is likely within a few years, take that level straight away.
- Do not count on reuse for citizenship. Naturalisation needs its own level; a residence permit certificate will not do.
- Prepare language and exam together. The French level is a separate requirement, set out on our French level page.
The service-public.gouv.fr page on the civic exam for residence permits remains the reference if your case is unusual. Expats whose plans are still open, staying a few years or settling for good, usually do best with the resident card level: it covers both residence permits, and the naturalisation level can wait until citizenship is a real project.