What is the CAF?
The CAF (Caisse d'Allocations Familiales) is France's family benefits fund — a branch of the social security system that manages financial assistance for housing, families, and income support. Every département has its own CAF. Managing everything online at caf.fr, the CAF serves over 13 million households in France.
Housing benefits
- APL (Aide Personnalisée au Logement): for tenants in "conventionné" (approved) housing — HLM, CROUS student residences, and some private rentals. Available from first year of legal residence.
- ALS (Allocation de Logement Sociale): for tenants in non-conventionné housing with low income. Similar amounts to APL.
- ALF (Allocation de Logement Familiale): for families with children in non-conventionné housing.
Income support
- RSA (Revenu de Solidarité Active): minimum income for people with little or no resources. Non-EU foreigners must have 5 years of legal residence (with exceptions for refugees).
- Prime d'activité: supplement for employed or self-employed people earning modest incomes. Available after a short qualifying period for legal residents.
Family benefits
- Allocations familiales: monthly payments for families with 2+ children. Available to legal residents from arrival.
- PAJE: package of benefits for children under 6 — birth bonus, monthly base allocation, childcare supplement.
- Complément familial: for families with 3+ children aged 3 to 21.
- ARS (Allocation de rentrée scolaire): annual back-to-school payment for children aged 6-18.
- AEEH: education allowance for disabled children.
Other benefits
- AAH (Allocation Adultes Handicapés): for adults with significant disability (assessed by the MDPH).
- ASF (Allocation de Soutien Familial): for single parents not receiving maintenance payments.
- Aide exceptionnelle: discretionary emergency fund for households in acute financial difficulty.
Eligibility for foreigners: the key rules
Most CAF benefits are available to foreigners with a valid titre de séjour authorising long-term stay. The main exception is RSA (5 years for non-EU nationals). The child's nationality doesn't affect family benefit eligibility — it's the parents' legal residence that matters.
💡 Use the simulator at caf.fr to check all your potential entitlements in one step. Enter your household composition, income, and housing situation — it calculates every benefit you may qualify for.