To encourage the emergence of startups in France, in order to contribute to the economic value of the country, and create jobs, the government has presented a new procedure, the French Tech Visa. The latter is intended to facilitate the installation of international entrepreneurs and investors in the technology sector. The system will be implemented next spring.
The French Tech Visa is based on the new “Talent Passport” residence permit. The latter was set up at the end of 2016 to strengthen the impact of the French Tech public action to attract international Tech talent, but also to facilitate the reception in France of entrepreneurs, employees or investors. The number of visas would not be limited, provided that applicants meet the eligibility criteria.
In a current context where international competition for talent is fierce, providing access to French visas and residence permits for foreign tech talent is a crucial issue. The very survival of the French Tech ecosystem is at stake, especially for the fast-growing French and international startups that are constantly recruiting and creating jobs in France.
What is the ” FRENCH TECH VISA “?
The French Tech Visa, which will be launched in spring 2017, aims to simplify the procedure for obtaining a French residence permit, along with a Talent Passport, for eligible foreign professionals.
It is aimed at international tech talent: founders and employees of foreign and French startups and scale-ups, and foreign investors.
The French Tech Visa will be offered by identified players in the French Tech ecosystem (startup incubators or accelerators, scale-ups or venture capital funds) to foreign professionals they have accompanied or recruited in France.
What is French Tech?
French Tech” includes all actors working in or for French startups in France or in other countries. These are primarily entrepreneurs, but also investors, engineers, designers, developers, large groups, associations, media, public operators, research institutes, etc., who are committed to the growth of startups on the one hand, and their international influence on the other.
The objective of French Tech
The aim of the French Tech initiative is to improve the clarity and coherence of public actions in favour of start-ups. It does not create a new organization or a new public tool, but it is supported by a small team, the Mission French Tech, which works in close collaboration with the departments of the Ministries of Economy and Finance (General Directorate of Companies, General Directorate of the Treasury), Foreign Affairs and with the General Commission for Investment. Its partners, the pillars of the initiative, are the national operators who, under the common banner “French Tech”, coordinate their actions in favour of startups: Caisse des Dépôts, Bpifrance and Business France.
French Tech in pictures
Source: French Tech
