Seasonal jobs for foreigners in France: right to work, contracts and housing

This page in other languages : Français

Which seasonal jobs in France are open to foreigners?

France is one of Europe's largest employers of seasonal staff. Farming, grape harvests, hotels and restaurants, ski resorts and holiday entertainment hire tens of thousands of people every year, a significant share of whom are foreign nationals from inside and outside Europe.

Harvest and tourism calendar

• April to June: asparagus, strawberries and cherries in the South-West, the Rhône valley and Provence.
• June to August: apricots, peaches, melons, lavender; hotels and campsites along the coast.
• September to October: grape harvests in Champagne, Burgundy, Bordeaux, Languedoc and Alsace.
• September to November: apples and kiwifruit in the Loire valley, Limousin and the South-West.
• December to April: Alpine and Pyrenean ski resorts, ski lifts and mountain restaurants.

The jobs most open to beginners

Fruit picker, grape picker, packhouse worker, dishwasher, kitchen assistant, housekeeper and general assistant require no qualifications. Customer-facing roles demand enough French to understand orders and safety instructions, while farm teams often work with multilingual supervisors.

The seasonal contract under French law

A seasonal contract is a fixed-term contract linked to tasks that recur every year on roughly the same dates. Unlike other fixed-term contracts, it does not in principle entitle the worker to an end-of-contract bonus, unless a collective agreement provides otherwise.

Who can work without authorisation?

Nationals of the European Union, the European Economic Area and Switzerland work freely in France with an identity card or passport. Employers declare them like any other employee, and they contribute to French social security from the very first day of work.

Some residence permits also allow work without any extra step: resident cards, private and family life, talent, job search or business creation permits. Working holiday visa holders can also take seasonal jobs in France during the validity of their visa.

The seasonal worker card for non-Europeans

A non-European recruited from abroad first receives a three-month visa marked seasonal worker, then a multi-year card valid for up to three years. Seasonal work cannot exceed six months per year, and the worker's habitual residence must remain abroad.

The employer files the work authorisation online before entry to France, advertises the job for three weeks unless it is a shortage occupation, guarantees decent housing and pays a €50 tax per month of activity. Algerian nationals follow a specific regime.

Students and asylum seekers

An international student can work without authorisation up to 964 hours a year, or 60 percent of the legal annual working time. An asylum seeker may apply for a work authorisation when the French refugee office has not ruled within six months.

Pay, housing and social protection

A foreign seasonal worker has the same rights as a French employee. Pay must be at least the SMIC, i.e. €12.31 gross per hour and €1,867.02 per month full time from 1 June 2026, or the minimum set by the applicable collective agreement.

For housing, Action Logement offers seasonal workers the Visale rent guarantee, the Loca-Pass deposit advance and temporary solutions; farm seasonal workers can receive up to €600 a year of support over four months. An online simulator opened in September 2026.

Finding and securing a seasonal job in France

The process depends on nationality, but the order of steps is always the same: check your right to work, find the employer, and only then organise travel. Reversing that order risks a visa refusal or undeclared employment without any protection.

1. Check your status: free movement, a residence permit allowing work, or the need for a seasonal worker card.
2. Target a region and season, taking harvest dates or resort opening dates into account.
3. Search vacancies with the public employment service, EURES and agricultural employer groups.
4. Obtain a written contract stating pay, length, hours and housing conditions.
5. If non-European, let the employer file the work authorisation, then apply for the visa.
6. On arrival, give your documents to the employer and keep every payslip.

Risks and scams to know about

• Paying an intermediary for a farm contract or a work authorisation.
• Working on a tourist visa, undeclared and unprotected in case of accident.
• Accepting substandard housing or a housing deduction not stated in the contract.
• Letting the employer keep your passport or residence permit.
• Exceeding six months of seasonal work per year on the seasonal worker card.
• Skipping the occupational health information visit.

Frequently asked questions from foreign seasonal workers

The following answers concern the situation in France in 2026. Residence rules are set out in the administration's official guidance pages, which remain the reference in case of doubt and should be consulted before taking any step.

Does the seasonal card allow a change of employer?

It only covers the job named in the work authorisation. Each new contract, even with another seasonal employer, requires a new authorisation filed by that new employer before work starts, otherwise the worker would be employed unlawfully.

Can my family come with me?

No. The multi-year seasonal worker card does not allow family reunification. Relatives who wish to travel must obtain their own visa according to their situation, with no right to work derived from the seasonal worker's status.

What if the employer does not respect the contract?

A foreign seasonal worker can contact the labour inspectorate or the employment tribunal like any employee, whatever their nationality. Keeping the contract, payslips, time records and photos of the accommodation makes any later claim much easier.

Do foreign seasonal workers build pension rights?

Yes. Contributions deducted from wages create French pension rights. Depending on bilateral agreements signed with the home country, these periods can later be taken into account when the worker's pension is calculated.