What we do · Support
Support with admin procedures
Proof of accommodation, visa validation, CAF, social security, housing: describe your situation and an ImiziLinks local contact in your city replies within 48 hours. Free and confidential.
What support covers
Concrete needs,
handled one by one.
ImiziLinks support steps in at the moments when a signature, a piece of advice or a local contact unblocks a whole file. Our local contacts know the French procedures because they went through them themselves.
- Proof of accommodation for a visa, residence permit or rental file
- Guidance on procedures: prefecture, CAF, social security, bank
- Temporary housing or pointing you to a stopgap solution
- Being put in touch with a local contact settled in your arrival city
- Guidance on studies, recognition of qualifications and university enrolment
- Reviewing a file before you submit it, to avoid missing documents
How it works
Three steps,
nothing more.
No prior registration, no file to put together, no cost.
You describe your need
The form takes two minutes: your arrival city, your dates and a few lines about your situation. You can write in French, English, Kirundi, Kinyarwanda or Swahili.
A local contact takes over
Your request is passed to the local contact for that city, someone settled there for several years who knows the local services.
You get a reply
Within 48 working hours, by email or phone. If we can't help directly, we point you to the right organisation.
Our local contacts
Volunteer contacts
in several cities.
Local contacts are members settled in France for several years who agree to be reachable for newcomers in their area.
Paris · Île-de-France
Paperwork, housing, guidance on studies
Lyon
Paperwork, housing, student network
Bordeaux
Paperwork, guidance on studies
Marseille
Paperwork, housing
Lille
Paperwork, student network
Toulouse
Paperwork, guidance on studies
Nantes
Paperwork
Your city isn't listed?
Write to us, we'll look for a contact for you
Go further
Guides related
to these procedures.
Make a request
Describe your situation,
a local contact replies.
The form takes two minutes. Reply within 48 working hours, by email or phone. Free and confidential.
Frequently asked questions
ImiziLinks support
in questions.
Proof of accommodation, local contacts, arrival procedures: answers to the most common questions.
A proof of accommodation (“attestation d'hébergement”) is written and signed by the person hosting you. It must come with a copy of their ID and a proof of address in their name, less than three months old. If you have no one to write one for you, fill in our support form: a local contact will look at your situation and work out a solution with you.
They are community members who have lived in France for several years and volunteer to be reachable for newcomers in their city. They know the local services — prefecture, CAF, landlords, universities — and point you to the right people. They don't replace a social worker or a lawyer.
In order: validate your long-stay visa online within three months of arriving, open a French bank account, register with social security, declare a GP, then apply for housing benefit with the CAF. Each step often unlocks the next one, which is why the order matters.
We are not a letting agency and don't offer housing. However, local contacts share good local tips, reliable residences, mistakes to avoid in a rental application, and can sometimes point you to temporary accommodation while you look.
Yes. Your request is only passed to the local contact handling it. No personal information is published, sold or shared with a third party.
Yes. Several local contacts speak Kirundi, Kinyarwanda, Swahili or English and can talk with you in your language. Just mention it in your message.
Need a hand?
The form takes two minutes. A local contact replies within 48 hours.
Make a request