​ There are 3 situations in which an application for a residence permit may still be made.

1. You were unable to apply before the deadline (4 October 2021) but were legally resident in France at the end of the transition period, 31 December 2020.
2. ​You have reached the age of 18 and now need to apply for your first permit.
3. You are a close family member arriving to join a WA beneficiary and you are also within scope of the WA (see here).

All applications must be made to your local préfecture. Different préfectures have different procedures, so it's best to check their website.

Unable to apply before the deadline

• If you were resident in France on 31 December 2020 and you have not yet applied for a residence permit, you lose your right to reside here from 1 January 2022 and you become an 'undocumented migrant'. You may still be able to apply for a WA residence permit if (and only if) you have reasonable grounds for not applying within the deadline.
  
  
• There are no clearly written guidelines for what constitutes reasonable grounds but the French authorities have made it clear that they would be looking for cases where a person was clearly unable to apply, rather than just did not apply: so health problems, force majeur etc. The WA states that authorities must take into account 'all the circumstances and reasons' and that your application must be treated in 'a proportionate manner'.
  
  
• If this applies to you, you need to contact your préfecture urgently to make a late application, and provide as much evidence as you can to show why you were unable to apply within the allotted time period. Note that ignorance of the need to apply is unlikely to be accepted as a reasonable ground unless it is accompanied by another reason.
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• If your application is rejected and you want to remain in France, you would need to apply as a third country national under France's national immigration rules (droit commun), in the same way as someone arriving for the first time. This may, depending on your préfecture, require you to return to the UK to apply for a visa.

You have reached the age of 18

• When you reach the age of 18 you're required to hold a WA residence permit, so you should apply two or three months before your 18th birthday.
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• If you are 16 or 17 and you need a permit for work or training purposes, you may also apply for a WA residence permit.

You are a close family member joining a WA beneficiary

• See this guide for details of exactly which close family members fall within the scope of the WA.
  
  
• If you are coming to France from the UK, you do not need to apply for a visa but you must apply for your WA residence permit within 3 months of your arrival.
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• If you are arriving from a country from which a visa is required to enter France, you must apply for this and then apply for your WA permit within 3 months of your arrival.