France prepares to open to Indian students, teachers

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 20

France on Thursday said it will be among the first countries to open its borders to Indian students and academics.

In order to prepare students for a new life ahead, pre-departure sessions called “Bienvenue en France”, are scheduled online from August 22 to 31.

There are slots for Indian students to travel to France as English Language Assistants for a stint in French schools. An online orientation for the English Language Assistants will be announced soon.

Although France has started receiving applications, the French embassy’s claim that it has opened its borders will depend on actual issuance of visas. At present, decisions on visa issuance remains tied to any future evolution of existing Schengen regulations authorising third country students to enter France.

Starting August 17, seven VFS centres have been receiving select visa applications which will be processed in small batches every week. Mobile biometric data collection and courier services are available to limit in-person contacts at the centres.

Universities in France have also readied themselves to receive international students, either wholly or partly on campus.

“France is returning to normalcy and I am delighted that international students will be among the first to benefit from it. The Embassy is fully mobilised to ensure that students can pursue their studies in France in the smoothest conditions possible, despite the challenges of the pandemic. This step reaffirms France’s priority to academic mobility,” said the Ambassador of France Emmanuel Lenain.

The embassy accepts applications from Indian students travelling to France in autumn 2020 for studies for over three months on long-term visas as well as short-term studies or internships, with accommodation in France. Applications are also open for professors or researchers employed or invited by a French academic institution or research laboratory who are travelling at the end of their studies or for teaching as well as those having a valid long-term visa or a Talent passport.

These persons must possess an International Travel Certificate to Mainland France (Attestation de déplacement international dérogatoire), available on the website of the French Interior Ministry. This certificate is to be presented to the travel company before departure and to border control authorities on arrival in France. This certificate must also be accompanied by an undertaking that the person does not have any Covid symptoms and has not been in contact with an infected person 14 days prior to departure.

Before the outbreak, 10,000 Indian students were in France for higher studies.