Documents needed to rent in France: the rental dossier

To rent a home in France you give the landlord or agency a rental file (dossier de location): one photo ID, one proof of address, proof of your status as a student or employee and proof of income, plus the same for your guarantor. The list is set by law and nothing else may be demanded. This guide covers what is allowed, what is forbidden, what to prepare when you have just arrived from abroad, and how the State’s free DossierFacile service works.

1. What the law allows a landlord to ask

France has an official list of supporting documents (justificatifs) that a landlord may request from a future tenant and from the guarantor. According to the Service-Public page on tenant documents, the landlord is forbidden to demand any others, and the same rule binds an estate agency.

Copies are fine, but the landlord has the right to see the originals. A copy must be written in French or translated into French, with the amounts converted into euros.

2. The four groups of documents

For activity and resources the wording is “one or more”, so nobody is expected to hold every item. If your income was not taxed in France, the list expressly accepts the tax notice, or an equivalent document, from the tax authority of the country concerned.

3. Documents nobody may ask you for

Anything outside the list is off limits. The data-protection authority (CNIL) gives these examples of documents that agencies and private landlords cannot request:

• a bank statement (relevé de compte bancaire);
• the health insurance card (carte Vitale);
• the family record book (livret de famille);
• a marriage contract or a divorce judgment;
• a criminal record extract (extrait de casier judiciaire).

Demanding an unauthorised document exposes the landlord or agency to a fine of up to €3,000, or up to €15,000 for a legal entity such as a company. Asking for money to reserve the home is also forbidden: no sum may be claimed before the lease is signed. Choosing a tenant on grounds such as origin, name or place of residence is prohibited discrimination; victims and witnesses can contact the Défenseur des droits free of charge.

4. What to prepare for your situation

Everyone also needs the ID and one proof of address. An admission letter is not named in the list: you may add it to explain your plans, then replace it with the certificat de scolarité once enrolled. The official pages cited here set no minimum income. The income-to-rent ratios many landlords apply are their own selection habit, not part of the list.

5. The guarantor’s file

A guarantor (caution in legal French, garant in everyday speech) undertakes to pay the landlord what the tenant owes. The landlord may ask the guarantor for the same four groups: one valid photo ID, one proof of address (such as a rent receipt, or a water, gas or electricity bill less than three months old), proof of activity, and proof of resources such as the last three payslips or the latest tax notice. For income not taxed in France, the equivalent document from the foreign tax authority is on the list, so parents abroad can put a file together. If you have nobody to ask, read our guide to renting without a guarantor (Visale and paid guarantors).

6. DossierFacile: the State’s free online file

DossierFacile is a free public service for anyone looking for a home, run by the State’s housing directorate (DGALN). It does not offer homes and does not act as guarantor: it helps you build one clean file and share it safely.

1. Upload your documents. The site asks for the necessary ones and nothing more.
2. Get the file checked. The help centre says agents check the uploaded documents and take up a file in less than 24 hours; the home page mentions a check by an agent on request. Each document receives a watermark (filigrane).
3. Share. You create one link per recipient, with an expiry date, and can suspend or delete it at any time.

For newcomers: you can add your parents as guarantors so that their income counts, and the tax-notice step includes options such as “first tax return not yet filed” and “foreign tax notice”. DossierFacile accepts sworn translations and also translations of the key points done by yourself. Its label certifies a clear, complete and consistent file; the service states that it does not guarantee the authenticity of the documents.

7. Protecting your documents

• Watermark every copy sent outside DossierFacile; the State’s FiligraneFacile tool (filigrane.beta.gouv.fr) adds the text of your choice.
• Do not send documents to strangers met on listing platforms before speaking with them directly.
• Never pay before the viewing and the signing of the lease: the DossierFacile help centre warns that this is often an attempted scam.

ViveFrance lists homes for rent in Paris and the nearby suburbs, and the website and advisers work in Chinese, English, Korean and French. You can book a viewing online and ask the adviser which documents to bring. Browse homes for rent

Frequently asked questions

Do my documents need a sworn translation?

The official page says a copy must be written in French or translated into French, with amounts in euros; it does not say who must translate. DossierFacile accepts both sworn translations and your own.

Can an agency ask for a bank statement or a holding deposit?

No. A bank statement is not on the authorised list, and no money may be claimed before the lease is signed.

I have just arrived and have no French payslips or tax notice. What do I give?

Give what the list allows instead: a contract or an employer’s letter stating the pay and the start date, a scholarship award notice, or your previous country’s tax notice translated into French. Add a guarantor’s file if needed.

Updated 2 October 2026

Sources: Service-Public F1169, Service-Public F31267, CNIL, Justice.fr, DossierFacile, DossierFacile help: overview, DossierFacile help: data security. This guide is for information only and is not legal advice; check the official sites.