The French Office for Immigration and Integration (OFII) and Material Reception Conditions

The French Office for Immigration and Integration (OFII) is a state agency under the Ministry of the Interior responsible for granting access to material reception conditions (accommodation, the asylum seeker allowance [ADA], an administrative address, and support in cases of vulnerability). Regardless of the procedure assigned to you by the prefecture (standard, accelerated, or Dublin), you are entitled to material reception conditions, except in cases stipulated by law.

Warning!: An OFII representative will present you with an "offer of care" (offre de prise en charge) to access accommodation and the asylum seeker allowance (ADA). If you accept this offer, you will be entitled to both accommodation and the ADA; however, if you refuse any part of the offer, you will forfeit your right to all reception conditions.

- Accepting the care offer means that OFII has the authority to direct you to another region (a residence region), without necessarily providing you with permanent accommodation right away.

- You may be assigned to another region, where you must reside throughout the examination of your asylum application.

- You cannot leave this assigned region without prior authorization from OFII.

Note: These accommodation proposals take into account your personal and family circumstances. Do not hesitate to request justification for why you have been directed to a specific region.

01 - Vulnerability Status:

OFII will interview you to assess whether you are an asylum seeker in a "vulnerable situation." A person is considered vulnerable if they have a disability, suffer from an illness, are pregnant, etc. Vulnerable individuals receive priority for suitable accommodation. You may inform OFII of a vulnerable situation at any stage of the procedure.

02 - Accommodation:

OFII must offer you accommodation based on available places in an Asylum Seekers' Reception Centre (CADA). If no places are available in a CADA, OFII will offer an alternative type of accommodation, such as emergency housing for asylum seekers (HUDA, AT-SA), a Reception and Orientation Centre (CAO), or a PRADA (reception and accommodation programme for asylum seekers).

If OFII cannot provide any accommodation offer, it will redirect you to the reception structure/association (SPADA), which will advise you to dial 115 (the social emergency hotline) to seek emergency shelter.

- Reception centres may have different operational rules, but all are bound by specific obligations, particularly regarding administrative, medical, and social assistance.

- In all of these centres, the care process involves a formal procedure that generally grants you a grace period before you are required to leave the premises.

- Before departing a centre, it is recommended to verify with a legal aid association that the facility has properly respected this procedure.

03 - Establishing an Administrative Address (Domiciliation):

- If you are stably housed in an authorized centre, you can use that facility's address for your asylum proceedings.

- If you are not housed in a facility authorized to provide administrative domiciliation, you must return to the reception structure/association, which will issue a certificate of residence and a postal address to receive your mail and correspondence.

*- Warning!: You must collect your mail very regularly (at least once a week) or check the reception structure's online portal frequently.

- If you do not visit the reception facility for an entire month, your administrative address may be closed (unless your absence is formally justified).

04 - Asylum Seeker Allowance (ADA):

OFII issues a payment card enabling you to purchase goods using your monthly allowance. In recent years, this card no longer allows cash withdrawals from automated teller machines (ATMs).

- The standard ADA amount is €6.80 per day for an individual. It is calculated based on household composition: €10.20 for two people, €13.60 for three people (an additional €3.40 per day is added for each additional family member to the base amount).

- An additional monthly supplement of €7.40 per day is paid if OFII has not provided you with accommodation.

- If you declare that you are being housed free of charge—by a friend, relative, or acquaintance—this additional supplement of €7.40 will be deducted.

- Currently, this additional allowance is also cancelled for asylum seekers staying in 115 emergency shelters, even if such accommodation is only temporary.

*- To be entitled to material reception conditions, including the ADA, you must:

- Be at least 18 years old;

- Hold an asylum application certificate (Attestation de Demande d'Asile - right to remain);

- Accept and sign the care offer during your interview with the OFII representative at the prefecture, who will propose accommodation or an assigned region based on availability;

- Submit your formal application dossier to the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (OFPRA) within 21 days from the issuance date of your asylum certificate (except for individuals under the Dublin procedure);

- Declare resources below the Active Solidarity Income (RSA) threshold, currently valued at €564 for a single individual without children;

- Comply with summonses to appear before the relevant authorities (the prefecture, OFII, police station, or gendarmerie in cases of house arrest, etc.) and supply all requested information.

- You will receive the ADA throughout the duration of your asylum procedure, provided you retain the right to remain, or until your transfer is executed if you are subject to the Dublin procedure.

Payments cease in the month following the expiration of your right to remain.

05 - Cases of Refusal, Withdrawal, or Suspension of Material Reception Conditions:

In all situations listed below, OFII decisions must be delivered in writing and formally substantiated.

A - First Case: Refusal of Material Reception Conditions:

From the moment you visit the single desk at the prefecture, OFII can deny these rights under the following circumstances:

- Filing an application for reconsideration (Réexamen) of an asylum claim;

- Late submission of an asylum application—namely, more than 90 days after entering France—without legitimate legal justification.

In practice, OFII applies this principle almost systematically without taking into account "legal justification"; it is therefore strongly advised to keep proof of your calls to the registration platform.

- Refusal of an accommodation proposal in a CADA centre or refusal of regional orientation designated by OFII.

- In these cases of refusal, you must file an administrative appeal before the Director General of OFII prior to petitioning the court. Therefore, an email or formal letter must be sent before lodging any judicial appeal.

- You may subsequently appeal to the administrative court without awaiting a formal response from the Director General of OFII.

B - Second Case: Suspension or Withdrawal of Material Reception Conditions:

Circumstances warranting the suspension or withdrawal of material reception conditions are numerous and allow OFII to terminate reception benefits at any stage of the procedure:

- Abandoning the assigned orientation region or the accommodation provided without legitimate justification.

- Failing to comply with instructions from asylum authorities, such as missing scheduled interviews, failing to report to authorities, or refusing to supply pertinent information required to process the claim.

- Concealing financial resources or income.

- Providing fraudulent information concerning your family status.

- Lodging multiple asylum applications under different identities.

- Violent behavior or serious breach of house rules at an accommodation facility no longer permits the total withdrawal of material reception conditions.

Indeed, in a ruling issued on 12 November 2019, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) held that withdrawing all material reception conditions on this ground constitutes an excessive penalty. Since then, numerous administrative courts have followed the CJEU's interpretation. Following this decision, OFII can no longer issue a full withdrawal decision without conducting an adversarial procedure (procédure contradictoire), enabling you to submit observations and, if applicable, request restoration.

*- A request for restoration submitted to OFII is evaluated against three criteria established by the Council of State:

- Vulnerability status; reception needs; and compliance with obligations toward the asylum authorities.

- In the event of a change in status (such as reclassification from the Dublin procedure to the standard procedure), if a new assessment has not been conducted, you must request the restoration of material rights from OFII, which is legally obligated to re-evaluate the case according to its criteria.

*- Warning!: Upon receiving a formal notice of "intent to terminate material reception conditions," the individual has 15 days to submit observations or an objection via registered mail with acknowledgement of receipt or via email to dispute the decision.

- OFII may occasionally suspend the asylum seeker allowance in error. It is vital to ensure that OFII's decision corresponds strictly to the aforementioned legal grounds and is fully justified. Substantial case law exists across the administrative courts and the Council of State on this matter.