Last updated on: November 11, 2026 | By: @rprasanth_kumar
This article is about the Certificate de Coutume for PACS application experience shared by Mohona. The article has been published with her permission, along with a few important additional information. If you would like to contribute with articles about your personal experiences, feel free to write to me at Contact me
Update: Effective 23rd January 2026 – Launch of e-SEWA Consular Services
The Embassy of India, Paris has launched the e-SEWA, an Indian Consular Services System for online submission of miscellaneous consular services applications. This initiative supports the Government of India’s Digital India programme.
⚠️ Note: e-SEWA does NOT cover Visa, Passport, or Birth Registration services.
📝 Services Available on e-SEWA include:
- Life Certificate
- Sworn Affidavit / Bachelorhood (Celibacy) Affidavit
- Death Registration Certificate
- Transportation of Ashes to India
- Re-issuance of International Driving Permit
- Police Clearance Certificate (for foreign nationals)
- Certificate de Coutume / Concordance
- Passport-based Birth Certificate
- Attestation & Legalization of documents (personal/commercial)
- Power of Attorney (PoA) / Affidavit attestation
- NRI Certificate
🌐 How to Apply:
- Visit: https://indianconsularservices.mea.gov.in/consularServices/
- Register or log in to the e-SEWA portal.
- Select the required service and complete the online application.
- Upload supporting documents and submit the form.
- Print the application form.
- Visit the Embassy of India, Paris on the appointment date generated by email for submission/collection.
⚠️ Important Guidelines:
- Applications must be submitted only through the e-SEWA portal.
- Personal visit to the Embassy is required for final collection and verification (if applicable).
- Payment by card is accepted at the Embassy counter at the time of submission / collection.
- Applicants must check service-specific document requirements on the portal before applying.
For e-SEWA related queries, you can write to: esewa.paris@mea.gov.in
For updates and further details, please visit the official website of the Embassy of India, Paris.
What is a Certificat de coutume?
A Certificat de coutume certifies the personal law (Hindu, Muslim, Christian, etc.) applicable to an Indian national. It is a document issued by the Indian Embassy In Paris for multiple purposes such as,
- Registration of marriage in France
- Registration of PACS in France
- Notarial proceedings
- Inheritance topics
- Giving Last Name to a newborn baby in France.
For newborns, select ‘Coutume for New Born’ in the application. For general use, select standard Coutume.
Application Summary
This VFS process is not relevant anymore. Now, applications are handled directly by the Indian Embassy & Consulate
The main purpose of the application was to get PACSed with a French partner.
If you plan on getting PACSed, please contact your local mairie. They will give you a list of documents to follow the process. One of the documents requested by them for a foreigner is the Certificat de Coutume. It certifies that the person is single or that the previous union has been dissolved by death or divorce.
If you go to the VFS website, you can select the option certificat de coutume for marriage purposes even if it is not marriage. It will be accepted for PACS too.
So, here is a summary of the process followed by her.
- Application Mode: Offline via appointment.
- Application Location: VFS Global India, Paris
- Application sent: 10/01/2024
- Fees paid: ~ 57.96 €
- Document received by Post: 15/01/2024.
List of Documents from January 2026
Here are the various documents required for a Certificate de Coutume / Coutume Certificate.
- Miscellaneous Service Application Form. Mandatory for ALL e-SEWA Miscellaneous Service submissions. Must be duly filled and signed before visiting the Embassy.
- Self-attested Passport copy of the applicant. First and last page of a valid Indian passport.
- Self-attested Passport copy of future partner
- Titre de sejour copy of the applicant
- Titre de sejour copy of partner. Not required if the partner is of french nationality.
- Photocopies of address proof: electricity, gas or landline telephone bills/internet preferably a bill which has name of you and your partner. House contract is not accepted.
Certificat du coutume from Embassy of India
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Hi Prashant,
I am planning to get PACSed and I wanted to know what are the norms for the photograph required?
I checked the VFS website and it specifically said “photographs available in photo booths in France are not compatible with Indian norms”
I am planning to send the documents via post, so I won’t be able to use the photo booths that are available at the VFS office.
Do you happen to know how I can get the photographs according to the required norms?
Thanks alot of for this article. It was very helpful 🙂
Hello Sayli,
A lot of photomaton machines available across France, have a special option for American and Indian specifications. You can get the photo from these photos machines and it will be accepted by VFS.
Simply google “phtomaton near me” & you will find one easily.
Cheers,
Prasanth
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Hello, sorry to disturb you. I had applied for the coutume certificate at the VFS two weeks back, and i had chose the option that somebody will call me, but yet nobody has. I haven’t gotten a response by the helpline as well. I don’t know what to do.
Hello Khadija,
Please contact the VFS Paris helpline. https://visa.vfsglobal.com/fra/fr/can/contact-us
You can also write to our Embassy via cons.paris@mea.gov.in
Cheers,
Prasanth
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Hi Prashant,
I live in Germany and indian embassy here don’t issue Certificat de coutume or Certificat de célibat . I am planning to get married in France. Am I eligible to apply for them in Indian embassy in France?
Thank you
Hello Gowtham,
Normally, the Indian Embassy in Paris is for people living in France. To avoid any confusions, I checked with our Embassy Consular Officer in Paris.
Generally speaking Embassy provides consular services only to residents (Indian) withing it’s jurisdiction. In that sense your understanding is correct.
However, we also provide these two particular services to Indians who are here on short term visits like on a tourist visa or those Indians living legally in other Schengen countries, on case to case basis.
Cheers,
Prasanth
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Hi Prasanth,
I’m an Indian passport holder currently living in the UK. My fiancé is a French citizen, and we are planning to marry this year. However, I don’t have a valid Schengen visa, and I won’t be able to apply for it for the next four months. Is there any way to get the costume certificate? Thanks.
Hello Akas,
The same question has been asked and answered in the comments section under this article. Please check.
Cheers,
Prasanth
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Hello Prasanth,
I live in Germany and I want to get ‘Certificate de Coutume’ for getting PACsed in Germany. The embassy in France seems unresponsive both by email and call. How can I get this certificate? Kindly advise.
Hello Meenakshi,
If you live in Germany, there is no point in contacting the Indian Embassy in France. Please contact the Indian Embassy or Consulate in Germnay.
Cheers,
Prasanth
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Dear Prasanth,
Thank you for the reply. Indian embassy in Germany doesnt provide such certifcate it seems. Would a ‘certificate of bachelorhood’ from notaarized from my state in India work? Should it also have attestation of both Ministry of External Affairs and also Indian Embassy in Berlin later? Your insights on this would be helpful. Thanks in advance
Hi Prashant is there a way of obtaining the Certificate de coutume in india? As I’m living in india and want to save time while in France to get married it would be very convenient to just obtain all the documents from india and take them to France and give it the Mairie
Hello Ravi,
Certificat de coutume is issue the Indian Embassy or Consulate in France.
An alternative is getting an affidavit in India and apostlling it. But please check with your local Mairie before doing anything outside the standard process.
Cheers,
Prasanth
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Hi Prashant,
I am in france on a valid tourist visa and want to obtain the Certificat de coutume and Affidavit of celibacy from the Indian embassy in Paris for marriage to a french citizen. The e-sewa portal requires address proof and a valide titre de sejour. I want to know what if my valid schengen visa and the address proof of my partner would work for the same.
Thanks!!
Hello Megha,
These services are meant for Indian residents in France. You can try with yoour Tourist visa but there is no gurantee that it will be processed.
Cheers,
Prasanth
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Hi Prashant!
Thank you very much for all the information.
I am French and Ajay is Indian, and we are planning to enter into a PACS in France. We noticed that, on the e-SEWA platform, a French residence permit, récépissé, or valid visa seems to be required to apply for the necessary documents.
Unfortunately, Ajay is currently in an irregular situation in France. Do you know whether there is another way for him to obtain these documents in his situation?
We are a little confused because, according to the French PACS requirements, a foreign partner does not need to prove that they are legally residing in France in order to enter into a PACS. Therefore, the e-SEWA requirement seems a little contradictory in this particular situation.
Do you know if there is an alternative procedure or any way around this requirement?
Thank you very much in advance for your help!
Hello,
Unfortunately, it is not going to be easy for him. The docs required for Indians in France are either issued by the Indian Embassy in Paris or Consulate in Marseille. So, its their decision to whom they can issue thier documents. Their basic requirement is regular immigration status in France with valid documents and so there is nothing contradictory in it.
He can contact the Embassy or Consulate but I doubt he will be issued the relevant documents. They might be more concerned about his current immigration staus than the PACS topic.
In case it is not possible (usually), he can try getting an apostilled affidavit from India. But check with your local Mairie 1st if they will accept such a document as an alternative.
Regards,
Prasanth
List of Documents from January 2026: Here are the various documents required for a Certificate de Coutume / Coutume Certificate.
Miscellaneous Service Application Form https://www.eoiparis.gov.in/content/Miscellaneous-Application-Form.pdf Mandatory for ALL e-SEWA Miscellaneous Service submissions. Must be duly filled and signed before visiting the Embassy.
Self-attested Passport copy of the applicant. First and last page of a valid Indian passport.
Self-attested Passport copy of future partner
Titre de sejour copy of the applicant
Titre de sejour copy of partner. Not required if the partner is of french nationality.
Photocopies of address proof: electricity, gas or landline telephone bills/internet preferably a bill which has name of you and your partner. House contract is not accepted.