Visa-ready plans from $721 per adult, billed annually · see your exact price by age.
The rule in writing
“For a long-stay visa (VLS-TS), you must hold private health insurance covering your full stay in France. Travel insurance and short-stay Schengen policies are not accepted.”
Official source: France-Visas (france-visas.gouv.fr) & FrenchEntrée long-stay guide — Last verified:
The rule in writing
“Consulates commonly refuse policies with a deductible (excess) on the core cover. Applicants report rejections over deductible clauses; the certificate should show cover without a disqualifying deductible.”
Official source: Consulate application guidance & documented applicant reports — Last verified:
Will your certificate pass?
What a consulate officer actually looks for on the page.
Passes when it shows
- Private health cover — not travel or Schengen
- Medical + hospitalisation cover valid in France
- Covers your full visa period (up to a year)
- No disqualifying deductible on the core cover
Refused when it’s
- A travel or Schengen “trip” policy
- A deductible / excess on core cover
- Cover that ends before your visa does
Who the visitor visa is for
The visitor (visiteur) visa suits people who will live in France but not work there — retirees, remote-income families, and couples taking a year abroad. You sign a statement that you will not take paid work.
Because you are not joining an employer, you cannot rely on a work scheme for health cover. The consulate wants to see private health insurance in the file.
The deductible trap for families
Many family and travel policies carry an excess — a deductible you pay before the plan does. Consulates commonly refuse visitor-visa files over that clause. See the requirement below.
For a family application, every named member needs cover that reads clean: private, valid in France, for the full stay, with no disqualifying deductible on core medical care.
Retirees: what to check before you apply
- Cover valid in France for the whole visa period, not a trip length
- Inpatient and outpatient care both stated on the certificate
- No disqualifying deductible on core cover
- Age limits met — plans carry upper age caps
We flag age caps before you apply so no one is quoted a plan they cannot hold. Pre-existing conditions are excluded, and we tell you that up front.
Honest limits: Cover is worldwide but excludes treatment in the United States. Pre-existing conditions are excluded, including conditions you did not know about. We disclose this before you request a quote. Consulates keep discretion, and requirements can change. We show the published rule and its source; the final decision is the consulate’s.