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Counting Americans in France: what each number means

A permit is not a person and a flow is not a stock. Each measure below is defined from the publisher's own pages, with what it counts, what it leaves out and a sentence you can copy.

The measures

Definitions are paraphrased from the pages named in each entry, which we opened on 28 October 2026. We add no definition of our own. Where a page does not say something, the entry says it does not.

  1. First residence permit

    Eurostat. migr_resfirst.

    Definition
    A residence permit issued to a person for the first time. Eurostat calls a permit a first permit too when six months or more passed between the end of the old permit and the start of the new one for the same reason. A residence permit is any authorisation valid for at least three months that lets a third-country national stay legally. Where a country grants a long-stay visa or a status in place of a permit, Eurostat counts it as a permit.
    What it counts
    People, not administrative decisions: the metadata says each table refers to the number of persons. Only third-country nationals, meaning non-EU citizens, and the permits issued during one calendar year.
    What it leaves out
    • People under temporary protection, who are counted in another Eurostat collection.
    • The metadata does not say how a person who holds both an EU and a US citizenship is counted, so we do not say.
    When and by whom
    Once a year, by Eurostat, from the figures the national authorities send, mainly interior ministries and immigration agencies. The metadata says the data are generally published within 7 months of the end of the reference year and that most statistics come out by the end of September.

    A sentence you can copy

    Eurostat counts 15,388 first residence permits issued to US citizens in France in 2025 (provisional). These are permits issued in a year, not Americans living in France.

    Source: Eurostat, reference metadata, Residence permits (migr_resval_esms) (Metadata last update 23 January 2025). We read it on .

  2. Valid residence permit on 31 December

    Eurostat. migr_resvalid.

    Definition
    Residence permits in force on 31 December of a year, sorted by the holder's citizenship. Same definition of a residence permit as for first permits: an authorisation valid for at least three months that lets a third-country national stay legally.
    What it counts
    People holding a permit on that date (the metadata says each table refers to persons). It is a stock on one day, not a flow over a year.
    What it leaves out
    • EU citizens and people under temporary protection.
    • It is not a count of who is in France on 31 December. The French Interior Ministry says of its own stock of valid permits that a permit stays valid after its holder leaves, and that a holder can stay on after the end date while waiting for a renewal.
    When and by whom
    Once a year, in the same release as first permits (see the first entry).

    A sentence you can copy

    On 31 December 2025 43,948 US citizens held a valid French residence permit, according to Eurostat. That counts permits in force, not everyone who lives here.

    Source: Eurostat, reference metadata, Residence permits (migr_resval_esms), and Interior Ministry, Les titres de séjour en 2025, box 6 (Metadata last update 23 January 2025). Also read: Interior Ministry (DGEF), Les titres de séjour en 2025, boxes 6 to 8 (Publié le 30/06/2026). We read it on .

  3. Acquisition of citizenship

    Eurostat. migr_acq.

    Definition
    Citizenship is the legal bond between a person and a state, acquired by birth or naturalisation, by declaration, choice, marriage or other means under national law. Eurostat counts the acquisitions that happen during one calendar year and sorts them by the citizenship the person held before.
    What it counts
    A flow: acquisitions between 1 January and 31 December. The Eurostat table lists them by former citizenship, so Americans who became French are the row for the United States. For France the data come from the Interior Ministry's administrative records.
    What it leaves out
    • It does not measure renunciations of US citizenship, which our page on renunciations counts from another source.
    When and by whom
    Annual. The metadata gives March of the following year as the release month, and says Eurostat posts revisions as soon as the countries send them.

    A sentence you can copy

    Eurostat records 769 acquisitions of French citizenship in 2024 by people who held US citizenship before.

    Source: Eurostat, reference metadata, Acquisition and loss of citizenship (migr_acqn_esms) (Metadata last update 16 March 2026). We read it on .

  4. Immigration and emigration

    Eurostat. migr_immi.

    Definition
    Immigration is the action by which a person sets up their usual residence in a country for a period that is or is expected to be at least 12 months, having lived in another country before. Emigration is the opposite: a person who was usually resident stops being so for at least 12 months. Usual residence is where a person normally spends the daily period of rest, whatever the short absences.
    What it counts
    Movements during a calendar year, sorted by age, sex, citizenship and country of previous or next residence. They are flows of people over one year.
    What it leaves out
    • Moves that are not expected to last 12 months.
    • It counts moves and not permits: the two use different definitions, so the figures cannot be compared.
    When and by whom
    Annual. The metadata says Eurostat disseminates migration data by March of the following year.
    Latest figure
    We publish no immigration or emigration figure for Americans. The entry is here because the word is used for permits and arrivals alike.

    A sentence you can copy

    Eurostat defines immigration as a move to a new usual residence that lasts or is expected to last at least 12 months. It is not a count of residence permits.

    Source: Eurostat, reference metadata, Migration (migr_immi_esms) (Metadata last update 20 February 2026). We read it on .

  5. Primo-délivrance (first permit issued)

    French Interior Ministry (DGEF, statistics department). Primo-délivrance de titres de séjour.

    Definition
    The first residence permits issued to third-country nationals in a year. The ministry publishes the figure in three stages: an estimate in January, a provisional figure in June, and the final figure in January of the following year. A permit can be issued in one year and counted in an earlier one, because a permit granted after a temporary document takes the start date of that document, so provisional figures are generally below the final ones.
    What it counts
    Permits issued for the first time to non-EU nationals living in France, in the ministry's own categories of reason (student, family, humanitarian, economic, other). Long-stay visas that work as a residence permit (VLS-TS) are counted once they are validated.
    What it leaves out
    • Renewals, which the ministry counts in another series.
    • Americans in the years they are outside the ten largest nationalities: the ministry's table lists only the top ten of each year.
    • Its categories are not Eurostat's, so a share from one cannot be set against a share from the other.
    When and by whom
    By the Interior Ministry, in January (estimate), June (provisional) and the following January (final). For 2025 the final figure is due in January 2027.

    A sentence you can copy

    The Interior Ministry counts 15,388 first residence permits issued to Americans in 2025, a provisional figure that becomes final in January 2027.

    Source: Interior Ministry (DGEF), Les titres de séjour en 2025, boxes 7 and 8 (Publié le 30/06/2026). We read it on .

  6. Présence étrangère (stock of valid permits)

    French Interior Ministry (DGEF, statistics department). Stock de titres valides et documents provisoires de séjour.

    Definition
    The ministry's measure of the foreign presence is the stock of valid residence permits and temporary documents held by third-country nationals on 31 December. It says plainly that this stock does not equal the presence of foreigners on the territory.
    What it counts
    Permits and temporary documents in force. A long-stay visa that works as a permit is counted once validated, which the ministry says attests to the presence in France.
    What it leaves out
    • A permit stays valid after the holder has left France.
    • A person can stay beyond the end of a permit while waiting for a renewal.
    • The data cover adults, apart from rare exceptions.
    When and by whom
    By the Interior Ministry, in its yearly publication on residence permits. The one of 30 June 2026 gives the stock on 31 December 2025.
    Latest figure
    We publish no ministry stock for Americans. The closest figure on our pages is Eurostat's valid permits on 31 December, first entry above.

    A sentence you can copy

    The Interior Ministry counts 4,470,970 valid residence permits and temporary documents held by non-EU nationals in France on 31 December 2025. A permit can stay valid after its holder has left.

    Source: Interior Ministry (DGEF), Les titres de séjour en 2025, boxes 6 and 8 (Publié le 30/06/2026). We read it on .

    The figure in the sentence is the stock of valid permits and temporary documents held by third-country nationals in France on 31 December 2025, 4,470,970. Figure 16 of the publication, all nationalities, as read on the page.

  7. Immigrant (immigré)

    INSEE. Census, table of immigrants by country of birth.

    Definition
    Under the definition INSEE takes from the Haut Conseil à l'Intégration, an immigrant is a person born a foreigner abroad who lives in France. Someone born French abroad is not counted. The status is permanent: a person who becomes French stays an immigrant. The country of birth and not the nationality at birth sets the geographical origin.
    What it counts
    People living in France who were born abroad as foreigners, whatever nationality they hold now. A person born American in the United States who later became French stays an immigrant.
    What it leaves out
    • Americans born in France, and people born French abroad.
    • An immigrant is not necessarily a foreigner, and a foreigner is not necessarily an immigrant. INSEE says the two populations overlap only in part.
    When and by whom
    By INSEE. The detailed table by country of birth that we use is the 2019 edition, published in July 2022, so its latest year is old.

    A sentence you can copy

    INSEE counts 38,000 immigrants born in the United States in its 2019 table, which it published in 2022. Immigrants who became French are in the count.

    Source: INSEE, definition of Immigré (Dernière mise à jour : 19/04/2023). We read it on .

  8. Foreigner (étranger)

    INSEE. Census, nationality.

    Definition
    A person who lives in France and does not hold French nationality, because they hold another one only or none at all. A person who holds French nationality and another one is counted in France as French. A foreigner can be born in France, mostly minors, and can become French, whereas an immigrant stays an immigrant.
    What it counts
    People by their current nationality as declared on the census form. Until the 2024 census questionnaire, the form could not identify people with two nationalities: a person had to say whether they were foreign or French. A new form from 2025 can, and INSEE says its new variables will be broadcast in full from the 2028 census.
    What it leaves out
    • Americans who are also French, who count as French.
    • The census count is a sample for large towns, so each count carries a margin of error (next entry).
    When and by whom
    By INSEE, for a census year, in a detailed file. The file we use is census 2023, with nationality 840 for the United States.

    A sentence you can copy

    The 2023 census counts 33,707 people of US nationality in France. A person who is also French counts as French, so dual nationals are not in that number.

    Source: INSEE, definition of Étranger, and the census nationalities sheet (Dernière mise à jour : 07/12/2020). Also read: INSEE, Recensement de la population, Nationalités - Immigration (Version de juin 2026). We read it on .

  9. Census count and its margin of error

    INSEE. Recensement de la population.

    Definition
    Census collection is spread over five years. Towns under 10,000 inhabitants are surveyed in full. In towns of 10,000 or more, households are surveyed on a sample of about 40 percent of dwellings over five years. A result built on a sample carries a margin of error, which INSEE gives as a coefficient of variation that falls as the count rises.
    What it counts
    People living in each commune on the census reference date, from the survey rounds of a five-year cycle. A small count in a large town is the least precise.
    What it leaves out
    • A small count in a large town is the least precise: INSEE's note puts the margin of error above 8.0 percent for a count under 250 in towns of 10,000 inhabitants or more.
    • Nationality is the one given on the census form, so a person who is also French is not counted as American (see the entry on foreigners).
    When and by whom
    By INSEE, as a detail file for a census vintage. The file we use carries the 2023 vintage.

    A sentence you can copy

    In census data for towns of 10,000 inhabitants or more, a count under 250 people has a margin of error above 8 percent, according to INSEE.

    Source: INSEE, Recensement de la population, La précision des résultats du recensement (Septembre 2023). We read it on .

  10. Social Security beneficiary living in France

    US Social Security Administration. Annual Statistical Supplement, Table 5.J11.

    Definition
    A person counted in the France row of the table "Beneficiaries in foreign countries", by type of benefit (retired worker, disabled worker, spouse, widow or parent of a deceased worker, child). The table is built from the Master Beneficiary Record, 100 percent data, and U.S. Postal Service geographic data.
    What it counts
    Beneficiaries by place of residence in December of a year, for countries with 500 or more beneficiaries. It counts people paid a US benefit who live abroad.
    What it leaves out
    • The table gives no citizenship, so it does not say how many beneficiaries are American citizens.
    • Americans in France who do not receive a Social Security benefit.
    • The table says totals do not necessarily equal the sum of rounded components.
    When and by whom
    By the SSA, in its Annual Statistical Supplement. The 2026 edition reports December 2025.

    A sentence you can copy

    In December 2025 the Social Security Administration counted 18,702 beneficiaries in France. The table is by country of residence and says nothing about citizenship.

    Source: SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement 2026, Table 5.J11 (December 2025 edition). We read it on .

  11. Foreign non-resident buyer (acquéreur étranger non-résident)

    Notaires du Grand Paris (ADSN-BIEN data). Press release on the Île-de-France market.

    Definition
    A buyer of foreign nationality who lives outside France. The notaries group them with French buyers who live abroad under "buyers who reside outside France". The release counts purchases of existing homes in the Île-de-France in 2025.
    What it counts
    Purchases of existing homes in the Île-de-France and in Paris, sorted by the buyer's nationality. The Americans in this count live outside France.
    What it leaves out
    • Americans who live in France and buy a home: they are not non-residents.
    • New homes, and purchases outside the Île-de-France.
    • The unit is the purchase, so it is not a count of buyers or of Americans.
    When and by whom
    By the Notaires du Grand Paris. The release we read is dated 25 June 2026 and covers 2025.

    A sentence you can copy

    Notaires du Grand Paris recorded 260 purchases of existing homes in the Île-de-France in 2025 by American buyers who live outside France.

    Source: Notaires du Grand Paris, press release of 25 June 2026 (25 juin 2026). We read it on .

  12. Asking rent (loyer d'annonce)

    Ministry in charge of housing, indicators produced by ANIL. Carte des loyers, millésime 2025.

    Definition
    An indicator predicted by an econometric model from rents in advertisements posted on the leboncoin and SeLoger Group platforms between 2019 and 2025. It is given in euros per square metre, charges included, for an unfurnished reference home put up for rent in the third quarter of 2025. The guide says it is not a median or a mean rent.
    What it counts
    What homes of a given size are advertised at, estimated for a standard apartment (52 m2 for all types) or house (92 m2), at commune level where a commune has more than 100 observations and for a group of communes otherwise.
    What it leaves out
    • Rents actually signed, which a local rent observatory surveys.
    • Furnished homes.
    • Homes never advertised on these platforms, and Mayotte.
    When and by whom
    By the ministry each year. The edition we read is the 2025 vintage, dated December 2025.

    A sentence you can copy

    The ministry's rent map gives predicted advertised rents, charges included, for a standard unfurnished home. They are not median or mean rents and not rents signed.

    Source: Ministère de la Transition écologique, Guide d'utilisation de la carte des loyers (Décembre 2025). Also read: ANIL, Les indicateurs de loyers dans le parc locatif privé, note méthodologique (Mise à jour par l'ANIL en décembre 2025). We read it on .

Two mix-ups to avoid

Permits issued are not permits applied for

A published count of first permits is a count of permits the authorities issued, not applications. An article that says Americans applied for that many permits is wrong about what the figure measures. The Interior Ministry publishes issued permits (primo-délivrances), and so does Eurostat.

See First residence permit and Primo-délivrance (first permit issued).

One year can carry two growth rates

The ministry publishes the first permits of a year three times: an estimate in January, a provisional figure in June and the final one the next January. The growth over the year before differs at each stage, so two outlets can print two rates for the same year and both be right about their stage. Ask which publication a figure comes from and its date, and note that provisional figures are generally below the final ones.

See Primo-délivrance (first permit issued).

Every data page

Each page below says what its own counts include and leave out in its own sections.

How to cite this page

EasyFranceNow, "Counting Americans in France: what each number means", https://easyfrancenow.com/data/definitions, read 28 October 2026.

The definitions belong to the publishers named in each entry. Cite them directly where you can, and use the entry's link. If a definition on this page is wrong or has changed, write to contact@easyfrancenow.com and name the entry. The press page says how we handle corrections.