OFII Nantes: Regroupement familial and dependent visa application experience

Detailed Information

Here is everything that happened during the application process including the delays, additional documentation, tourist/visitor visa rejections, etc.

Step 1: Application submission

• The process started offline on 15/06/2022
• I have filled up the form of regroupement familial and submitted all the documents required to Nantes OFII office via courier.

Step 2: Status update

• Waited for 15 days to get confirmation that they had received my application for regroupement familial.
• Sent an email in the first week of August and received a response “Application received with all the documents, but we are analysing the files of March 2022. As soon as we analyse your file, you will receive a notification of the deposit of file through email” and gave a reference number of my file.

Step 3: Further updates

• Every month, I have sent emails to OFII about the status of my application. Every time, they replied as explained below.
• 13th Sep 2022: Analysing files of April 2022
• 19th Oct 2022: Analysing files of April 2022
• 14th Nov 2022: Analysing files of May 2022
• 28th Nov 2022: Analysing files of Mai 2022 (December is a vacation month. So, no updates)
• 11th Jan 2023: Finally, OFII opened my courier and analysed the documents

Step 4: More documents required

• Demand for additional documents with a deadline of 30 days. Already submitted them twice at the beginning
  • A valid Titre de séjour (i had only a recipessé like APS). My advice: Don’t apply for regroupement familial if you have an APS.
  • french translation of birth certificates by an official translator “traducteur assermenté” in France. Also, a justification of the translator’s qualification.
  • Latest french income tax return, avis d’imposition l’avis d’impôt 2022 sur vos revenus 2021.
  • Proof of accommodation dated less than 3 months (latest utility bill: electricity, gas, landline, or water)
  • CERFA 11436 “demande de regroupement familial”: page 2: additional information about the address (street or area name, a nearby landmark, etc). Also, the phone number and email address of my spouse in India.
  • Déclaration de création de l’activité au centre de formalités des entreprises (CFE)
  • Livre des recettes, registre des achats et attestation de revenus établie par le service des Impôts : Joindre les déclarations mensuelles de chiffres d’affaires / attestations URSSAF pour janvier 2022, février 2022 et la période de juin 2022 à décembre 2022
  • Attestation d’assurance habitation (latest housing insurance)

Step 5: Documents re-submission

• Submitted all the documents except Carte de séjour and got the “Attestation de dépôt” deposit certificate on 23ed February 2023.
• Meanwhile, I had submitted a tourist visa application for my family but it was refused.
• I had an appointment at Angers prefecture on 2nd February 2023 but it was cancelled by them.
• They informed me to take another appointment by email. So, I forwarded that mail to OFII to justify my situation. They accepted all my documents and informed me to send my titre de sejour to proceed with the process of regroupement familial.

Step 6: Application on hold

• They put my process on hold until I received a confirmation from the prefecture about my titre de séjour.
• On 7th May 2023, I received a confirmation of my titre de séjour by email and I forwarded it to OFII.
• From February to May 2023, I was always in contact with OFII and Prefecture to notify them of my situation (+ point ) and they responded to me regularly.
• Meanwhile, Applied for a visitor visa (2nd time) for my family via a tourist agency. But it was refused too.

Step 7: Update from OFII

• OFII sent a mail for a house visit on 22nd June 2023 (positive attitude from them).
• I asked her how much time it would take and what will be the next steps from their side. She responded to me positively, informed me that my file will be checked by Mairie of Angers and she added that the process would take 2 more months.

Step 8: Update from Mairie

• Got a call on 11th July 2023 from Marie to submit some more documents.
• Before I had to deal with prefecture and OFII, but now I have one more organisation added.
• They told me that they will forward the report to OFII within 15 days. And they also added that my file was transferred to them and the prefecture on 23rd February 2023. So I was in contact with Marie, Prefecture and OFII to follow up on my application.

Step 9: Further follow-ups

• Every time I contacted the prefecture and OFII, to get the update on the file, I always got the answer as “votre dossier a été envoyé à la préfecture pour décision” until 25th August 2023.
• Then, I sent a post ‘Lettre recommandée avec accusé de réception’ to the prefecture because the validity of the “Attestation de depot” has expired.

Step 10: Final decision

• I have contacted the prefecture regularly to know the status of my application.
• At last, I got the message from them that they had made a decision and sent a courier via La post and gave me the courier no. on 15th Sept 2023.
• La Poste couldn’t deliver the courier because they were not able to find the destination (part of the destination was empty).
• I had contacted all the branches of la posted with the ref no. Finally, I found my courier with a favourable decision.

Step 11: Dependent Visa application via India

• Immediately, we had to book an appointment at VFS but the appointments weren’t available in Mumbai.
• So we booked it in Delhi on 13th October 2023.
• On 17th October 2023, my wife got a visa for 1 year and my daughter for 3 months.

Step 12: Family in France

• My family reached France on 7th November 2023.
• Within 1 month, we validated the visa of my wife. For my daughter,  I booked an appointment at the prefecture to get DCEM.
• My daughter received a DCEM certificate for 5 years.

Step 13: OFII process

• After 3 months, we received a letter from OFII for a medical visit and personal interview. 
• It took a whole day at OFII Nantes.

Step 14: Language and CIR

• My wife received a French course confirmation from OFII for 200 hours. Also, a 4-day CIR presentation which is important for the renewal of the titre de sejour.
• The language course started from mid May 2024.