Living in France as a Pakistani student: money, housing, work and daily life
France has 230 English-taught programmes in our catalogue, most at public universities and grandes écoles. Living there is cheaper than its reputation — subsidised student rooms, €3 canteen meals, free health insurance — but the visa money changed on 1 August 2026: the minimum went from €615 to €877.50 a month. Older guides still quote the old figure.
Figures come from Campus France (including its Pakistan office), the student ministry portal étudiant.gouv.fr and Assurance Maladie, checked in September 2026.
What a month costs
France uses the euro. The cost that decides everything is the room: a subsidised CROUS room averages €450 in Paris and €350 elsewhere, a private studio €400–1,200. Outside Paris a careful student lives on €700–900; Paris is €1,100 and up.
| Item | Per month |
|---|---|
| CROUS student room | €150–600 (≈ €450 Paris, ≈ €350 elsewhere) |
| Private studio | €400–1,200 |
| Food (CROUS canteen meal €3.30; €1 for grant holders) | €200–300 |
| Transport — Paris student pass (Imagine R) | ≈ €400 per year ≈ €35 |
| Transport — other cities | ≈ €30 |
| Health insurance (Assurance Maladie) | €0 — free |
| Optional top-up insurance (mutuelle) | €5–50 |
| Phone + internet | €15–30 |
| Total, CROUS room outside Paris | ≈ €700–900 |
| Total, Paris | ≈ €1,100–1,500 |
| Per year | Amount |
|---|---|
| Public university tuition, non-EU (bachelor) | €2,902 |
| Public university tuition, non-EU (master) | €3,950 |
| CVEC student-life contribution | €105 |
| Grandes écoles and private schools | far higher — our catalogue median is ≈ €1,900 per semester; check the programme |
Many public universities waive the non-EU rate and charge the domestic €175–250 — the catalogue shows the fee each programme actually charges. And CAF housing aid (APL) is open to international students with a lease, health registration and a French bank account; it can cut a room's cost by €100–200 a month.
What you must show for the visa — the August 2026 change
| Requirement | Amount |
|---|---|
| Living costs to show, from 1 August 2026 | €877.50 / month (was €615) |
| Typical total for one year | ≈ €10,530 |
| Long-stay student visa (VLS-TS) fee | ≈ €99 |
| Accepted proof | Own savings, a financial guarantor, a scholarship, or other proof the consulate accepts |
The application runs through the Études en France platform at Campus France Pakistan, then the visa at the consulate. Show the new figure; a file built on €615 will be refused.
Finding a room
- CROUS residences: the public student housing — cheapest and eligible for housing aid. International students apply through their institution or the CROUS platform once admitted; demand exceeds supply in Paris and Lyon, so apply the day you are admitted. Rooms are small and furnished.
- Private studio or room: Lokaviz (the CROUS-run listings), Studapart, Leboncoin, and university housing offices. Expect a deposit of one month and, often, a French guarantor — the state's free Visale guarantee replaces one for students under 30; ask for it.
- Outside Paris: Lyon, Lille, Toulouse, Grenoble, Montpellier and Nantes have the same public universities at €300–450 for a room.
How to not get scammed
- No deposit before a viewing — video at minimum. The "landlord abroad" who posts keys is a scam.
- Bank transfer after a signed lease (bail). Never Western Union, never a gift card.
- Insist on a proper lease and rent receipts (quittances) — you need them for housing aid and for the visa validation.
Working while you study — 964 hours a year
A VLS-TS student visa lets you work 964 hours a year — about 20 hours a week — with no separate permit. You may bunch hours in the summer as long as the annual total holds. Internships that are part of your programme do not count.
| Situation | Allowed? |
|---|---|
| Up to 964 h/year on a VLS-TS student visa | Yes — no extra permit |
| Full-time in summer, within the 964 | Yes |
| Curricular internship (stage) | Yes, not counted |
| On a tourist or Schengen C visa | No |
French decides your job options. English-only work exists in Paris tech and hospitality; everywhere else the first job — restaurant, retail, delivery, tutoring — needs conversational French. Every university offers cheap French courses; take one in the first semester.
Your first three months: validate the visa
The VLS-TS visa becomes your residence permit only when you validate it online within 3 months of arrival, paying a fee by card or with an electronic tax stamp. Miss it and your stay is irregular. Everything else can be done in the first two weeks.
| When | Do this | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Enrol at the institution and pay the CVEC (€105) online first — enrolment needs the receipt | Student status |
| Week 1 | Buy a French SIM (Free, Bouygues, SFR, Orange) | Every service confirms by SMS |
| Week 1–2 | Open a bank account (BNP, Société Générale, LCL, or online: Boursorama, Nickel) | Rent, CAF aid, wages |
| Week 2 | Register for free health insurance at etudiant-etranger.ameli.fr | Your social security number and a doctor |
| Week 2 | Apply for CAF housing aid (APL) with lease, ameli number and bank details | €100–200 a month back |
| Within 3 months | Validate the VLS-TS online (administration-etrangers-en-france.interieur.gouv.fr) | Turns the visa into a residence permit; strict deadline |
Weather and what to bring
Paris in January averages 4.5°C (typically 2–8°C) with about 18 wet days; July averages 20°C with highs around 26°C. Mild by Nordic standards, but grey and damp from November to March. Lille is cooler; Toulouse, Montpellier and Nice are warmer and sunnier.
| Month (Paris) | Typical daytime | What you need |
|---|---|---|
| Sep–Oct | 13–20°C | Jacket, closed shoes, umbrella |
| Nov–Mar | 3–9°C | Warm waterproof coat, scarf, gloves, waterproof shoes |
| Apr–May | 12–18°C | Layers |
| Jun–Aug | 20–27°C | Summer clothes from home are fine |
Halal food, prayer, and being Muslim in France
France has the largest Muslim population in Western Europe. Practically, that means halal food and mosques in every city and a large Pakistani community in Paris. Socially, French secularism (laïcité) means religion is kept out of public institutions — no prayer rooms in universities, and religious dress rules in some settings — but private practice is entirely free.
- Mosques in every city — the Grande Mosquée de Paris and hundreds more in the Paris region, plus Lyon, Lille, Marseille, Toulouse, Strasbourg. Do not expect a prayer room on campus; the nearest mosque is rarely far.
- Halal butchers on every high street in the cities; halal sections in big supermarkets; Pakistani and Indian restaurants in Paris (around Gare du Nord and La Chapelle) and Lyon.
- Ramadan: no timetable changes; lecturers are used to it. Community iftars in Paris, Lyon and Lille.
- Alcohol: wine is part of French life. Declining is normal.
Where the Pakistani students are
Paris and its suburbs (Paris-Saclay, Sorbonne, the grandes écoles at Palaiseau and Gif-sur-Yvette) hold the largest Pakistani student community, then Lyon, Lille, Toulouse and Nice–Sophia Antipolis. For the same public university degree, Lyon or Lille costs €400–600 a month less than Paris.
France is cheap to live in and strict about the calendar: the new money figure at the consulate, the CVEC before enrolment, the visa validated within three months. Do those and the country gives you free healthcare, subsidised rooms and a €3 lunch. Use the Programmes page to filter France, and register free to see which of the 230 you qualify for.