Interview passed → Ministry of the Interior review

After you pass the assimilation interview (entretien d'assimilation) at your préfecture, your file is forwarded to the Ministry of the Interior (Ministère de l'Intérieur), specifically the SDANF (Sous-direction de l'accès à la nationalité française).

• Ministry review typically takes 12–24 months, and during peak backlog periods cases can run 24+ months (as of 2026; subject to change).
• The Ministry reviews the préfecture's report, your residence and tax records, integration evidence, and criminal-record checks.
• If they request additional information (complément d'information), respond within the deadline — delays push the case back in the queue.
• Under the Loi du 26 janvier 2024, in force from January 2026, the language requirement was raised from B1 to B2. Whether this applies to your file depends on when your certificate was issued — confirm with the préfecture.

Décret de naturalisation → publication in the Journal Officiel

• If approved, a Décret de naturalisation (naturalisation decree) is issued.
• The official date you become French is the date of publication in the Journal Officiel (JO, the French government gazette) — not the decree date, not the postal notification date.
• A few weeks after publication, you receive an individual extract of the decree (extrait individuel) by post — keep it safe; it is your strongest proof of citizenship.
• There is no mandatory oath ceremony. Some préfectures hold an optional citizenship welcome ceremony (cérémonie d'accueil dans la citoyenneté française) with the Marseillaise and a reading of the Declaration of the Rights of Man.
• You can search for your decree by name on Légifrance or service-public.fr.

ID card and passport

Once you have the decree extract, you can apply for ID and passport at your local mairie (town hall).

• CNI (Carte Nationale d'Identité): free (€25 stamp duty only if replacing a lost/damaged card), issued in roughly 2–3 weeks (as of 2026; subject to change).
• Biometric passport: stamp duty around €86 for a 10-year adult passport, issued in roughly 2–4 weeks.
• Minor passports cost less (around €42 for ages 15+, €17 under 15).
• You must book a rendez-vous at the mairie in advance and pre-fill the application on ANTS (Agence Nationale des Titres Sécurisés) before the visit.

Original-nationality handling

• France explicitly allows dual citizenship — French law does not require you to renounce your original nationality.
• Whether you can actually keep both depends on your country of origin's law.
  • Korea: Adults who voluntarily acquire a foreign nationality automatically lose Korean nationality (Article 15 of the Nationality Act). You are required to file a loss-of-nationality declaration at the Korean consulate.
  • Japan, China, India, etc.: single-nationality rules apply — verify with your consulate.
• The relevant trigger date for your home country's procedures is the JO publication date, not the décret date.

Tax and social security

• Becoming a citizen does not, by itself, change your tax situation. French tax residency is determined by résidence fiscale rules (where you live and work), not by passport.
• Korea–France have a double-taxation treaty (1979) that prevents being taxed twice on the same income.
• Social security: no change to your existing status — your rights and contributions carry over.
• As an EU citizen, EU social security coordination (Regulation (EC) 883/2004) applies automatically — periods worked in any EU country count toward pension, unemployment, and health insurance entitlements.
• If you hold assets abroad, home-country tax filing obligations may continue — consult a tax adviser.

Voting and EU rights

• On the JO publication date, you gain full voting rights and eligibility to stand in legislative, presidential, and local elections.
• You can vote in European Parliament elections immediately.
• As an EU citizen, you also gain the right to vote in local and European elections in any other EU country where you reside.
• Voter-roll registration (inscription sur les listes électorales) is largely automatic, but you must notify the mairie if you move.
• Citizenship-only roles (most civil service positions, defence, certain security jobs) also open up.

Children's citizenship

• Children under 18 living with you can be naturalised together with their parent through the collective effect (effet collectif) — they are listed on the same application and receive citizenship under the same decree.
• The child must be habitually resident in France with the applying parent.
• A child born in France with sufficient residence can acquire French nationality automatically at 18 under droit du sol rules (parents may apply from age 13, the child themselves from 16).
• Whether the child keeps the original nationality depends on home-country law — Korean children must elect a nationality by age 22.

FAQ

Q. How long after approval until JO publication? A. Usually weeks to a few months after the Ministry's decision, but there is no fixed schedule. You can search for your name on Légifrance to check.

Q. Can I keep my original nationality? A. France allows dual citizenship. Whether you can actually keep both depends on your home country — many countries (including Korea) treat voluntary acquisition of a foreign nationality as automatic loss.

Q. Can I apply for the CNI and passport at the same time? A. Yes — both can be requested in the same mairie appointment. Issuance takes roughly 2–3 weeks for the CNI and 2–4 weeks for the passport.

Q. Is the welcome ceremony mandatory? A. No. Citizenship is acquired on the JO publication date. The ceremony is optional and organised at the discretion of each préfecture.

Reference links

• service-public.fr citizenship guide: https://www.service-public.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/N111
• Légifrance (laws and the Journal Officiel): https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/
• ANTS (passport and ID applications): https://ants.gouv.fr/