Practical information

To help you to prepare your stay you will find on this page all the necessary information to simplify your administrative procedures once you have arrived at the University of Perpignan.

The University of Perpignan Via Domitia is present in six cities in three departments of the Occitanie Region.
You will find below the addresses and maps of the different campuses: link

 

Visa and Residence Permit

 

• European students: Students from Europe (28 European Union member states + Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland) are exempt from visa and residence permit requirements. Only a valid identity card or passport is required.

• Non-European students
  • Students from outside the European Union who are enrolling for the first time in a French university must obtain a Long Stay Visa "D", a Valant Titre de Séjour (VLS-TS) if they stay more than 3 months on French territory. The type C tourist visa cannot under any circumstances be converted into a residence permit on French territory. The D visa (with a duration of 3 months for Algerian nationals, and ranging from 4 to 12 months for others) is necessary and compulsory. It allows you to remain in France for the duration of your studies, provided that you have completed the relevant procedures. For more information, contact the French Consulate or Embassy in your country of residence.
  • If you have to stay in France for a second year of higher education, you will have to fill out a residence permit renewal application form.

Procedure on your arrival at the UPVD:

The Prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales and the University of Perpignan Via Domitia signed an agreement which allows students to have a dedicated welcome at the University of Perpignan. The Prefecture is present on campus from September to the end of November, at the "international students' reception desk"; they allow international students to directly submit their application for either their first, or a renewal of, a residence permit and they are available to answer all the questions relating to the stay.

Obtaining or renewing a residence permit :

You have just arrived in France and a D visa for studies in France is stuck in your passport. The visa is called Visa Long Séjour (VLS). You don't have a residence permit yet, only a D visa for studying in France.

• Your D visa is marked Temporary Long Stay Visa: you do not have to do anything upon arrival. This visa is issued by Embassies as part of an exchange program. You are in a regular situation until the visa expires. This visa does not entitle you to work and cannot be renewed when it expires..

• Your D visa is marked Student: the Embassy has issued you a Long Stay Visa equivalent to a Residence Permit (VLS-TS). You will have to regularise it within 3 months of your arrival at the OFII (electronic procedure on the website)  : https://administration-etrangers-en-france.interieur.gouv.fr/particuliers/#/) .

• Your D visa has a duration of 3 months and is marked "Carte à Solliciter" (card to be applied for): You will have to apply for a residence permit from the Prefecture within 2 months of your arrival in France.

• You were a minor when you applied for a visa at the Embassy: your visa is marked "Minor-Educated". You will have to start the procedures to obtain a residence permit 2 months before you turn 18 years old at the prefecture.

How do I apply?
- the list of documents required for the first application and renewal of a residence permit

- the application file to be downloaded and completed
 

You have been accepted to study at the UPVD and you would like to be welcomed and accompanied as soon as you arrive? Take advantage of the free international mentoring programme set up for you from September 2023.
Your mentor, a French or foreign student of the UPVD :

•  will contact you by email before your arrival
•  will meet you at the train station or airport
•  accompany you to your place of accommodation
•  will help you, if you wish, in your administrative procedures

Join the International Mentoring Program ! http://www.parrainage-international.fr/en/become-a-mentoree 
This service is totally free!


Follow us on Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/ParrainageInternationalMontpellier/
Twitter : https://twitter.com/par1ternational
Instagram : @parrainageinternational 
For more information: parrainage@univ-perp.fr

 Coming soon ! Download the Guide for international students

 

• If you are in individual mobility: The CLOUS de Perpignan (Centre Local des Œuvres Universitaires et Scolaires) is a public body which is responsible for the management of university student residences in the City of Perpignan. You can apply for a room in a university residence at the CLOUS de Perpignan, under conditions of resources. To do so, you have to download a file on the CROUS website.
  You can also look for private accommodation on your own.

• "VISALE" deposit system: To rent a property in France, the owners require a person to act as a guarantor for the tenant. The free deposit scheme VISALE is available to international students. You must be between 18 and 30 years old and be enrolled in an institution of higher education. Students from the EU will have to show a valid identity document. Students from outside the EU will have to present a long-stay visa valid as a "Student" residence permit or a valid Talent passport. This deposit can be requested for rentals not exceeding 600 €/month, in both private and public rental properties. Good to know:  The agreement between the landlord and the tenant on the home rental contract must be made only after the validation of the Visale Deposit Scheme

More information
 

• If you are on an exchange program: The University of Perpignan Via Domitia has signed an agreement with the CLOUS of Perpignan in order to reserve a quota of rooms for the use of foreign students hosted within the framework of exchange programs (BCI, Erasmus+, Erasmus Mundus, agreements). However, as the number of rooms is lower than the number of incoming students, not all applications can be accepted. .
  If you wish to obtain a room or a studio in a university residence, you must contact the SRI correspondent  of your exchange programme to find out about availability and the conditions for allocating accommodation. Rooms will be allocated to students after selection. Students will be informed of the decision by email and will have to send back a confirmation form of acceptance of the accommodation.

• Any foreign student (European or international) registered individually at the University of Perpignan, will have to obtain a certificate of payment for the Student and Campus Life Contribution (CVEC) in the amount of 90 €, either by payment or exemption, before registering at the school service (SEVEOH).
• Any foreign student on an exchange program who comes to study at the UPVD must register with the administrative and pedagogical service (SEVEOH). He/She will not be subject to the CVEC (contribution Vie Etudiante et de Campus), and will not have to pay it.

Once registered with the UPVD, he/she will then have to join the general French social security system. Affiliation is compulsory and free of charge. If necessary, the student can then visit the Caisse Primaire d'Assurance Maladie (CPAM) of Perpignan. Health cover is effective from October 1st of the year of enrolment to September 30th of the following year. He/she will be entitled to reimbursement of his health care for the duration of the academic year. An insurance policy covering him/her for civil liability during the academic year is also compulsory. He/She will also be able to subscribe to a complementary mutual insurance policy (not compulsory).

In Perpignan, 2 mutual insurance companies are approved for the UPVD: the Mutuelle des Étudiants (LMDE) and the Mutuelle des Étudiants de Provence (MEP).


More information on the CVEC: Website

 

If you are a student from one of the European Economic Area (EEA) countries:

Member States of the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland: You are covered by your health insurance in your home country and are exempt from having to subscribe to the French social security system. You will have to provide proof of your social and health coverage for the entire academic year when you register (European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), private insurance). If you do not have a civil liability insurance policy, you can take one out with one of the local student mutual insurance companies.
 

Special cases:Students from countries with a signed a bilateral social security agreement with France are exempt from having to subscribe to French social security. Proof of health and civil liability coverage for the entire academic year will need to be presented when they register.

Countries concerned: Algeria, Andorra, Cape Verde, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Gabon, Macedonia, Mali, Morocco, Monaco, Quebec (Canada), Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Tunisia, Turkey.
 
More information :
http://www.cleiss.fr/particuliers/je_viens_etudier_en_france.html
List of bilateral conventions
 

• Students in mobility in the framework of an Erasmus Mundus Master's programme:

Students who come to the UPVD to study abroad within the Master Erasmus Mundus Crossways framework in Cultural Naratives, are not subjected to the CVEC and do not have to pay it. Students from countries outside the European Economic Area that do not have a bilateral agreement with France must register with the French social security system (free of charge). In addition, the program also provides complementary coverage through a private insurance which covers the minimum conditions required by the European Commission (health, accident, travel).

Level of French required

Foreign students wishing to study at the University of Perpignan Via Domitia must have a good knowledge of French before their arrival. A recognized certificate of a minimum level of B2 in French is required for students who are outside of a formal study abroad program (see tab Outside the exchange programme). For exchange students, depending on their field of study, a minimum level of B1 may be accepted, but generally a minimum level of B2 is recommended

The University of Perpignan Via Domitia offers free advanced courses in French for exchange students and staff. International and European students hosted within the framework of exchange programs can benefit from 20h or 40h of linguistic, pedagogical and cultural training in French as a Foreign Language which can validate 2 ECTS or 4 ECTS (maximum per academic year), respectively. The courses are given by the Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, grouped by level. A test is organized at the beginning of each semester to constitute the groups.

These courses are free of charge and are subject to the following rules:

• the courses are part of the program of study may be counted for credit
• students commit to following the courses regularly and take the end-of-semester examination
  
  For all students who come to the UPVD, it is also possible to validate university and national diplomas in French, and to take the tests which will allow for certifications in French language, from level A1 to C2 (defined by the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) to be obtained. For more information on the possibilities available to you and the rates, contact thUPVD's Centre Universitaire d'Etudes Françaises (CUEF).

Improve your French at the UPVD

Exchange students and staff at the UPVD can access additional free self-training courses, whether introductory or refresher courses, in French at the language laboratory of the Platinium service.
Certifications and courses in 9 other languages are also offered.