France's Post-Study Job Search Permit: How Long Canadian Graduates Can Stay to Work

What the APS gives you

The autorisation provisoire de sejour (APS) is the permit that lets a Canadian graduate of a French institution stay in France after finishing their studies, specifically to look for a job or start a business connected to their field. It is not a work permit itself. It is a bridge that buys you time to find one, or to launch a business in the area you trained in, before your student status runs out.

Who qualifies

The APS is open to graduates holding at least a master's degree or a "licence professionnelle," a 3-year professional bachelor's track distinct from a general licence. A general bachelor's degree on its own does not qualify you for the standard APS. If your program is a general licence, plan to continue to a master's if a post-study search period in France matters to your plans (Campus France ).

How long it lasts and how to apply

The APS is valid for 12 months from the date it is issued and cannot be renewed. Apply for it online through ANEF before your student residence permit expires, using your diploma or an official document proving you have completed your final exams, along with your passport and proof of address. Apply as soon as you have your results in hand rather than waiting for the paper diploma, since processing takes time and you do not want a gap between your student status ending and your APS starting.

Use the year well. France's job market moves at its own pace, and 12 months passes faster than it sounds once you account for job searching, interviews and paperwork on top of the time it takes companies to process a hire and the sponsorship steps that follow.

What you can do while holding an APS

During the APS period, before you sign an employment contract, you work under the same restriction that applied while you were a student: up to roughly 964 hours a year, close to 20 hours a week on average. You can also use the APS period to register and launch a business, provided it is in the field you trained in. Once you sign a fixed-term (CDD) or permanent (CDI) job contract that fits your training, the work-hour cap tied to your APS no longer applies to that job.

Converting to a work permit

To move from the APS to a "salarie" residence card, you need a job offer directly linked to your training that pays at least 1.5 times the SMIC, France's minimum wage. That works out to roughly 33,606 euros gross a year in 2026, up from about 31,800 euros in 2025, since the SMIC itself rises most years. At that salary level and with a role matched to your diploma, the prefecture cannot reject your change of status on labor-market grounds, which is what makes this route more predictable than a standard work visa application. If your job offer pays below that threshold, the switch is still possible in some cases, but it is no longer automatic, so check with the prefecture or an immigration lawyer before you sign a contract you are relying on for status. You can apply for the change of status at any point during your APS, without waiting for it to expire.

If the year runs out before you have a job

The APS is not renewable, and France does not automatically grant a follow-on status if you reach the 12 month mark without a qualifying job offer. Build your job search timeline around this hard stop from day one, and treat month 9 or 10 as your point to reassess whether you need to widen your search, extend your stay through a different route if one applies to your situation, or plan your return to Canada.

What the APS is not

The APS described here is the general route available to any nationality with a qualifying French master's or licence professionnelle. A separate, narrower set of post-study provisions exists under specific bilateral migration accords that France has signed with a short list of countries. Canada is not one of them, so a Canadian graduate uses the standard APS route above, not a bilateral-accord version.

Practical job search steps

Once your APS is active, register your job search the way any candidate in France would: a French-format CV and cover letter, a LinkedIn profile listing your French degree, and direct outreach to companies in your field, since many French employers expect this style of application rather than the format common in Canada. Ask your university's career service before you graduate, since many keep alumni access to job boards and employer contacts specifically for APS-eligible graduates.

Keep a copy of your APS, your diploma and your passport together throughout the year, since employers and prefectures may ask to see all three when you finalize a job offer or file your change of status.