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Collecting your residence permit: timing, SMS, documents

Updated on 1 October 20266 min read

Your application has been approved on the ANEF: one last step remains, and this one is physical. The card is manufactured, then you have to pick it up at the préfecture or sous-préfecture. Here is what official sources say about this collection step, and what depends on your préfecture.

From the favourable decision to the card: where you stand

When the préfet grants or renews a permit in the ANEF, you receive an attestation de décision favorable (certificate of favourable decision). According to the Ministry of the Interior, it is issued when "the process of putting the permit into manufacture has started" and it "secures the user while waiting for the manufacture and handover of their residence permit".

In practice, this certificate:

  • allows you to work if the permit granted allows it;
  • allows you to cross the borders of the Schengen area;
  • for a renewal, is only valid together with the long-stay visa or the permit you previously held.

How long after approval

The national sources we consulted do not give a timeframe for manufacture and handover. Préfectures give their own benchmarks:

  • In Haute-Garonne, for an application filed online, "the usual manufacturing time is about 30 days from the certificate of favourable decision", and it can be longer if the start date of your new card's validity is far off.
  • In Hauts-de-Seine (sous-préfecture of Boulogne-Billancourt), you are asked not to book a handover appointment before your current permit expires, except for a first application, a duplicate, or a change of address or civil status.

For a renewal, a longer wait therefore does not necessarily mean there is a problem.

How you are notified

According to service-public.fr, when the application is approved, the applicant is informed by SMS that the permit is available and of the amount of tax to pay. Some préfectures also notify by post (Haute-Garonne) or by email (Loire-Atlantique).

The card is then handed over by the préfecture or sous-préfecture of your home address, depending on where you filed your application. Most préfectures require an appointment, booked on the préfecture's website. Some summon you directly: in Loire-Atlantique, if you have already been given a date, you must come at the date and time stated.

The Ministry has presented the ANEF as limiting visits to the préfecture: a single visit for the handover, or two at most if your fingerprints have not already been taken.

Documents to bring

The préfectures of Haute-Garonne and Loire-Atlantique ask for the same documents at the counter:

  • your passport or another proof of identity (travel document, consular card, driving licence, etc.);
  • your récépissé (receipt for your residence permit application); the sous-préfecture of Boulogne-Billancourt also accepts the instruction-extension certificate;
  • your previous residence permit, except for a first application or a duplicate;
  • a tax stamp for the amount stated in the SMS or letter.

The tax stamp

Service-public.fr states that the stamp "is to be bought when the residence permit application is accepted, for the issuance of the document". Since 1 May 2026, the amounts for a temporary residence card, a multi-year card or a resident card are as follows:

SituationStandard rateReduced rate
First issuance€350€150
Renewal€250€100
Duplicate€350€150

The reduced rate applies to certain grounds, for example students, seasonal workers or family reunification. Some cards are exempt, such as the 10-year residence certificate for Algerian nationals. Rely on the amount in your SMS: in Haute-Garonne, an SMS stating "000 €" means no tax is due.

Practical rules published by préfectures:

  • the stamp is bought on timbres.impots.gouv.fr or at an equipped tobacconist: the préfecture does not sell stamps;
  • if the exact amount is not offered, you can combine two stamps;
  • the card is only handed over once the taxes are paid in full, with no payment in instalments;
  • an unused or wrong stamp can be refunded on request.

If you cannot come

Collection is personal. In Haute-Garonne as in Loire-Atlantique, only the permit holder can collect the card, except in cases of guardianship or hospitalisation: you then need to provide the hospital admission document, identity documents and a power of attorney. The card cannot be sent by post.

If something prevents you from coming, move your appointment rather than missing it. In Loire-Atlantique, it can be rescheduled on RDV-Préfecture up to three days before the planned date. Elsewhere, follow the procedure given by your préfecture.

How long the card waits for you

The national sources we consulted do not give a single duration, and préfectures do not all say the same thing:

  • Loire-Atlantique: "Your permit is kept at the préfecture for its entire period of validity and will then be destroyed."
  • Haute-Garonne: you are advised to collect the card within 30 days of receiving the SMS; after that, collection remains possible, but the préfecture does not guarantee the card will be available immediately.

Among the official sources consulted on 1 October 2026, we found none that sets a general rule: check the "remise de titre" (permit handover) page of your préfecture.

And if you never collect it

According to the préfecture of Loire-Atlantique, a card that is never collected is eventually destroyed at the end of its validity. According to the Ministry, the certificate of favourable decision is there to secure you "while waiting for the manufacture and handover" of the permit, not to replace the card permanently. We found no official text describing what happens next for a card destroyed because it was not collected: if you cannot come, write to your préfecture through the channel indicated on its website rather than letting the deadline pass.

Where Perfecture helps, and where it does not

In some departments, handover appointments are booked on an online préfecture calendar, where slots can be scarce. Perfecture monitors published slots and alerts you by SMS, email, notification and Telegram as soon as one appears. You can follow slot availability by department on our live map.

Perfecture is not a government service: it does not book appointments for you, does not trigger the préfecture's SMS, and does not speed up the review or the manufacture of your card.

Further reading

What still needs case-by-case verification

  • The time between the favourable decision and the SMS, which depends on the préfecture and on the start date of your card's validity.
  • How long an uncollected card is kept: your préfecture's "remise de titre" page is the reference.
  • The exact stamp amount: the one in your SMS or letter prevails.

Perfecture is an independent service, not affiliated with the préfectures or the French administration.

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