Although frequent, refusals to issue French visas are rarely contested. Indeed, in most cases, the applicants prefer to make a new visa application several months after the notification of the refusal, even if it means facing the refusal again.
However, there is a procedure for contesting the issuance of French visas, the terms of which have been recently modified by the decree of June 29, 2022 applicable from January 1, 2023.
Under the provisions of this decree, visa refusals can be challenged within 30 days of notification of the refusal decision. In the event of absence of reply of the consular services, the 30-day period starts as from the expiry of the two-month period following the submission of the visa request.
In the event of refusal of a long-stay visa, the appeal is sent to the appeals committee (« commission des recours contre les décisions de refus de visas d'entrée en France »). In the event of refusal of short-stay visas, the appeal must be addressed to the deputy director of visas (« sous-directeur des visas »).
The administrative authorities have two months to render their decision. After the expiry of this period, the decision can be challenged before the administrative court.
It is important to note that appeals against visa refusal decisions must be written in French and that the appeal examination procedure is not inquisitorial. For these reasons, it is preferable to turn to a lawyer who can accompany during the appeal procedure.