I'm stuck

The Visale guarantee, which is free, can act as your guarantor with a landlord or the Crous. You need your VLS-TS student visa first: until then, staying with someone you know or a temporary booking is enough as proof of accommodation for the visa.

• Campus France — VISALE
• etudiant.gouv.fr — logement en résidence Crous

Validate your VLS-TS on ANEF within 3 months of arriving. The fee is €100, by card online or as an electronic stamp from a tobacconist. After that, you must apply for a new visa to return to France.

If someone is hosting you, they can give you a dated and signed accommodation certificate (attestation d'hébergement), with a copy of their ID and a proof of address in their name. In a hotel, ask the hotel for a certificate. For a residence permit, the proof must be less than 6 months old.

• Service-public — justificatif de domicile

You can, as soon as your VLS-TS visa is validated on ANEF, without a work permit, up to 964 hours a year. Your employer must file a declaration with the prefecture at least 2 working days before hiring you. Don't exceed the limit: your permit could be withdrawn or not renewed. If you work, say so in your Mbeng settings: it can open housing benefit (APL).

Ask the bank for a written refusal letter. With it, apply to the Banque de France: this is the right to a bank account, and it's free. It designates a bank that must open an account for you with basic banking services. If the bank has not answered 15 days after your request, the refusal is considered final.

Since 01/07/2026, APL for non-EU students is limited to needs-based grant holders (CROUS); an Eiffel or French government scholarship is not enough. Exceptions: professional activity, apprenticeship, professionalisation contract, refugees, stateless persons, spouses. If you work in France, say so in your settings: the APL step will appear in your journey.

A professionalisation contract requires 1 year of residence in France. An apprenticeship is possible from arrival if you are enrolled in a programme leading to a master's degree: a master, an engineering or business school whose diploma confers that degree, or an MS / MSc accredited by the Conférence des grandes écoles. What counts is the programme you enrol in, not the diploma you already hold.

Start with Campus France's free information sessions at the Institut français du Cameroun, in Yaoundé or Douala. Choose programmes that follow on from your studies so far: the coherence of your plan is assessed throughout the procedure. Your deadline depends on your level: 15/12/2026 for first-year university (L1) and architecture, 01/02/2027 for other programmes.

• Campus France Cameroun — calendrier 2027-2028

You don't need one: you create your Études en France account yourself, pay the application fee at TLS, and attend the interview in person, where your study plan must be your own. Campus France Cameroon says its only valid sources of information are its website cameroun.campusfrance.org, its Facebook page CampusFranceCamerounOfficiel and its call centre on 686 133 333. Having two or more Études en France accounts is forbidden: don't let anyone create one for you.

Wait for the payment authorisation in your Études en France inbox: from then on you have 72 hours to pay, by appointment at TLS Contact, and no later than 16/02/2027. The application fee is 85,000 FCFA, plus a 16,000 FCFA TLS fee payable online. It is not refunded, even if the visa is refused: keep the receipt for your visa application. Accepted payment methods on site are not specified: ask TLS.

This rule was withdrawn by the French embassy on 03/09/2026. Your financial means are still assessed: plan for funds of at least €877.50 per month.

It's not a blocker. For the visa, just one of these documents is enough: a hotel booking, a lease, a certificate or commitment from a host (institution or individual), or a letter explaining how you plan to find housing. Also remember travel insurance and a flight booking, required when you apply: a booking is enough, don't buy a non-refundable ticket before the visa.

No. For the visa, you prove your funds (at least €877.50 per month) with just one of these four documents, your choice: a scholarship certificate, a deposit in a bank account in France, a permanent and irrevocable transfer certificate (the “blocked account” or AVI), or support from a sponsor with their ID. An AVI can be convenient, but no provider is imposed. Be wary of anyone presenting it as mandatory or promising the visa: compare fees and read the refund terms in case the visa is refused.

• Campus France Cameroun — liste des pièces du visa

No. When you apply for the visa, you are asked for a flight booking, not a paid ticket. Ask an airline or a travel agency for a booking, and check its terms: how long it stays valid and whether there is a fee. Don't buy a non-refundable ticket before you have the visa: the decision is never guaranteed. Never put in your file a booking bought from a site that doesn't really make one: your file must be genuine. And apply at least 1 month before you leave.

• Campus France Cameroun — liste des pièces du visa

Wait for the payment request email: it arrives after you submit your file, and nothing should be paid before. The application fee is 85,000 FCFA, non-refundable, paid at a SUNU BANK (formerly BICIS) branch with an ID and your file number starting with SN, by 19/12/2026 at the latest for connected programmes. If the payment isn't validated after 7 days, go to the Campus France office with your receipt or write from your Études en France account.

That can happen: in Senegal, the interview isn't mandatory and some complete files are not called. If you receive the email authorising you to book, book your appointment within 7 days, at the office you chose.

Only if you have an Arabic baccalaureate (L-AR): you then need a B2 level, with a TCF under 2 years old, the DELF B2 or the DALF, before submitting your file. Other Senegalese applicants don't take a test, unless the institution asks for one.

If you go through Campus France, there is no appointment to book: VFS Global, in Dakar, assigns it by email once your Campus France procedure is complete. Student visa appointments run from 15/05/2027 to 27/08/2027. Neither the embassy nor the consulate will ever ask you for a remote money transfer: be wary of anyone selling you an appointment.

• Ambassade de France au Sénégal — attention aux arnaques