The documents required by the French Embassy for our long stay visas

General Requirements for all long-stay visa applicants:

• Valid Passport: Must be issued within the last 10 years and valid for at least 3 months beyond your planned departure date from France.

• Completed Visa Application Forms: Must be filled out accurately and truthfully.

• Proof of Accommodation: This could be a rental contract, hotel reservation, or a signed letter from a host confirming your stay. This was a real concern for us as we would be on the boat and moving around.

• Proof of Financial Means: Demonstrates you have sufficient funds to support yourself during your stay. This could be bank statements, proof of pension, or a letter of financial support. As we were both providing funds we included a copy of our marriage certificate.

• Health Insurance: Proof of comprehensive health insurance covering your stay in France.

• Letter of Motivation: Explains the reasons for your stay in France and confirms you will not engage in professional activities if applying for a visitor visa. So we had to provide a letter to say we would not engage in any work. We also had to provide a letter to show we had ties to UK and so would be returning to the UK. This was a copy of the title deeds to our house. A copy of our marriage certificate satisfied them that we both planned to return as we both owned the house. Also provided a work contract so show that Patrick would be returning to UK as he had employment in UK.

• Passport Photos: Typically, two or three recent passport-style photos. These needed to be less than 3 months old, so needed to be stamped with a date. Most of the photo booths available offered this option of a date.

• Travel itinerary and flight reservations : We were travelling on our boat, so we needed to provide proof that we owned the boat and she was insured.