FranceService Public
Asylum work wait now runs from GUDA registration
For asylum claims filed since 12 June 2026 the six-month wait runs from GUDA registration, not Ofpra referral; on CNDA appeal the work right survives only with a prior permit and a right to remain.
By Taxxa AI OyPublished 11 September 2026
Service Public's guide on asylum-seeker access to work, verified 11 September 2026, restates the work-authorisation rules under the new filing-date regime that applies since 12 June 2026Service Public.
No work authorisation is available during the six months following filing of the asylum claim.Service Public For claims filed before 12 June 2026, the six-month period ran from the date the asylum claim was brought before the Ofpra. For claims filed since 12 June 2026, the six-month period runs from the date the asylum claim was registered with the competent GUDA. While waiting for the Ofpra decision, the asylum-seeker allowance remains available under conditions.
After six months the employer may seek a work authorisation where two conditions hold: the applicant holds an attestation de demande d'asile, and the Ofpra has not decided the claim within six months of filing, counted from the same starting point.Service Public Where a job offer arrives as the attestation nears expiry, the employer may apply for the authorisation alongside the attestation-renewal request; where the offer arrives while the attestation is still valid, the future employer must apply for the authorisation. In every case a hiring promise or employment contract accompanies the request.
The request is examined under the ordinary rules for foreign workers in France, including the employment situation in the occupation and employment area concerned. The administration has two months from receipt to decide; silence means the authorisation is deemed granted. The authorisation cannot outlast the six-month récépissé and is renewable until the Ofpra decides. These points follow articles L554-1 to L554-3: access where the Ofpra has not decided within six months for reasons not attributable to the applicantLegifrance, ordinary foreign-worker rules with a two-month decision period and deemed grant, and validity for the duration of the right to remain.
On appeal to the national asylum court, the work right is kept only where two conditions are both met: a work authorisation was obtained before the protection-office rejection, and the person has the right to remain on national territory while the court examines the appeal.Service Public The authorisation is then renewable until the court decides.
Legal basis: the foreigners and asylum code, articles L554-1 to L554-4; the starting points, conditions and appeal rule are those in the Service Public guide verified 11 September 2026.
For an asylum seeker hired after six months, count the wait from GUDA registration for claims since 12 June 2026; on CNDA appeal, verify a prior permit and a right to remain before renewing.