Visa Assistance

France

Visa requirements, fees, validity and documents for travel to France.

1 visa type
Starting from €45
Checked 28 Sept 2026

1. Visa Types

Open a type to see processing time, stay, fees, and documents.

Processing time

Consulate General Mumbai: appointment calendar can be full for several weeks. File at least a month before departure.

Stay period

Up to 90 days in any 180-day period. That cap still applies inside the visa validity. The 90 days start from first entry.

Validity

As issued. Multiple-entry C can run up to five years; stay is still 90/180.

Visa Fees and Charges

Multiple entry

Adult short-stay C. Same fee for single entry. Not refunded if refused or withdrawn. Paid in INR at the chancery rate

€90

Multiple entry

Child 6–12

€45

Multiple entry

Child under 6

€0

VFS service — cannot exceed EUR 45. Amount as the centre quotes in INR

As quoted

Entry	Label	Fee
Multiple entry	Adult short-stay C. Same fee for single entry. Not refunded if refused or withdrawn. Paid in INR at the chancery rate	€90
Multiple entry	Child 6–12	€45
Multiple entry	Child under 6	€0
—	VFS service — cannot exceed EUR 45. Amount as the centre quotes in INR	As quoted

About This Visa

Indian ordinary-passport holders need a Schengen C for a short visit. Usual staff path: start on https://france-visas.gouv.fr (mandatory online form), print the application form and the receipt, then lodge at VFS Global in India. The French Embassy in New Delhi or a Consulate General (Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Puducherry) decides — VFS only takes the file. Do not use visa.vfsglobal.com/ind/en/fra — it does not load. Book the VAC named on France-Visas / the Embassy India pages.

Apply in the country where they legally live. France only if it is the main destination. Mixed business + tourism: France-Visas — pick the purpose that needs the extra papers (business wins). School groups: contact the consulate for a slot; pupils on a school trip are fee-exempt on the FAQ.

Documents Required

France-Visas — short stay

France-Visas application form printed, dated, signed, plus the receipt. Paper PDF forms also sit on France-Visas
Passport they will travel on. Issued within 10 years, valid at least 3 months after leaving Schengen, 2 blank pages
2 ICAO photos. 35–40 mm wide, face 32–36 mm chin to crown (70–80% of the picture), recent and a good likeness on filing day
Insurance min. EUR 30,000, whole Schengen (or the overseas destination if that is the trip), whole stay: medical repatriation, emergency care, emergency hospital. Claims must be recoverable in a Schengen state
Funds: EUR 32.50 per day with a certificate of accommodation; EUR 65 per day with a hotel booking; EUR 120 per day with no hotel proof. Examples: last 3 payslips, last 3 bank statements issued by the bank, and a card or exchange slip / prepaid card with top-up proof
Tourism: hotel or rental in their name covering the stay. Private/family stay with a host: original certificate of accommodation from the host’s town hall (form 10798). Consulate stamps it; they carry the original at the border. Host gets it at the town hall (EUR 30 fiscal stamp)
Originals plus copies. Biometrics unless a previous Schengen visa’s prints are under 59 months and they bring a photocopy of that visa — they still need an ICAO photo

2. Good to Know

Rules and notes that apply to every visa type

How to apply

https://france-visas.gouv.fr — visa assistant, then the online form. Print the application form and receipt. Wrong form: fill a new one; keep the account.
Book VFS as France-Visas names for India (appointment). Bring the confirmation, the same passport number as on the booking, originals and copies, and payment for the visa fee plus VFS service.
In person. Fingerprints and photo at VFS unless VIS already has prints from the last 59 months. Under 12: other France-Visas country pages exempt fingerprints — confirm on the India assistant.
Passport stays with the file for the consulate. Optional VFS extras are allowed on the process page; they are not required.

Who can apply

Indian ordinary-passport holders living in India: France-Visas then VFS if France is the main Schengen destination.
Deciding posts in India: Embassy New Delhi and Consulates General in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kolkata, and Puducherry. France-Visas assigns the post from residence — do not pick another Schengen country for a faster slot.
Indian holders of a French multiple-entry C valid 6 months to 5 years: France-Visas short-stay page lists a visa exemption for certain overseas territories. Check that page for the trip; it is not a skip of Schengen C for metropolitan France.
Long-stay D / studies: different fee (EUR 99) and Campus France / CEF path — not this holiday C.

Embassy

Embassy of France, New Delhi — MEA Protocol list
2/50 E, Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110021
Monday–Friday 09:00–13:00 and 14:00–18:00
+91 11 4319 6100 · Fax +91 11 4319 6119

Consulate General of France, Mumbai (Wockhardt Towers, East Wing, 5th Floor, Bandra-Kurla Complex, 400051) · +91 22 6669 4000 — visa enquiries as that page directs. Consulates also in Bengaluru, Kolkata, and Puducherry. Holiday files go through VFS, not the chancery walk-up.

How to track

VFS as they instruct after lodging. Refusal of a short-stay from 1 January 2023: prior appeal in French to the Deputy Director of Visas (Nantes) before the administrative court — France-Visas process page. Do not email the Embassy for status unless they ask.

Photo and uploads

2 ICAO photos. 35–40 mm wide; face 32–36 mm chin to crown. Recent and a good likeness
Digital photo and fingerprints at VFS unless already in VIS from the last 59 months (bring a copy of that Schengen visa)