Applying for Social Housing (HLM) in France

This guide is for internationals who have recently moved to France and want to understand how social housing works. After reading it, you will know who can apply, how the income ceilings work, which documents are required and how to submit an application.

• Who can apply and who counts in the household
• Income ceilings in Île-de-France
• When income is assessed differently
• Documents and residence status
• Making the application and waiting times
• FAQ

Who can apply and who counts in the household

A logement social (social home), also called a logement HLM (habitation à loyer modéré, or rent-controlled housing), is allocated on application. According to the official Service Public page on social housing conditions, two conditions apply: an application must be made, and the household’s income must not exceed a maximum amount. That maximum depends mainly on the number of people to be housed and on where the home is located: Île-de-France, the rest of mainland France (province) or the overseas territories (outre-mer).

Anyone can apply, whatever their income and whatever result the official eligibility simulator gives. The income ceiling is checked when a home is allocated.

The page defines the “people to be housed” as:

• the demandeur (applicant);
• a codemandeur (co-applicant): a spouse, a Pacs partner (registered civil partner), a concubin (unmarried partner), or certain relatives who are not dependants (grandparents, parents, children, grandchildren, brothers and sisters only);
• people and children listed on the applicant’s or co-applicant’s tax notice: disabled children of any age, children under 21 (including those in shared custody if declared at each parent’s address), students under 25, and holders of a carte mobilité inclusion invalidité or carte d’invalidité (disability card);
• children for whom a parent has visiting and accommodation rights.

A flatmate is not counted among the people to be housed.

Income ceilings in Île-de-France

The income taken into account is the revenu fiscal de référence (reference tax income) from two years before the application, as shown on the avis d’imposition (tax notice) issued the following year. For an application made in 2026, this means 2024 income, shown on the 2025 tax notice. The figures are the total annual income of everyone to be housed.

Paris and the communes bordering Paris (the page lists them, including Boulogne-Billancourt, Montreuil, Saint-Denis, Vincennes and Neuilly-sur-Seine):

• 1 person: €34,996
• 2 people: €52,303
• 3 people, a single person with 1 dependant, or a young couple: €68,562
• 4 people, or a single person with 2 dependants: €81,858
• 5 people, or a single person with 3 dependants: €97,395
• 6 people, or a single person with 4 dependants: €109,595
• Each additional person: plus €12,212

The rest of Île-de-France:

• 1 person: €34,996
• 2 people: €52,303
• 3 people, a single person with 1 dependant, or a young couple: €62,871
• 4 people, or a single person with 2 dependants: €75,309
• 5 people, or a single person with 3 dependants: €89,150
• 6 people, or a single person with 4 dependants: €100,322
• Each additional person: plus €11,177

The page also says these ceilings can be exceeded in some situations, and it links to a simulator for checking eligibility. Households above the ceilings may be offered another type of social home, the logement PLI (intermediate-rent social housing). The ceilings for province and the overseas territories sit in separate tabs that are not covered in this guide, so check the official page for those regions.

When income is assessed differently

The page describes several cases where the standard two-year-old income figure may be replaced.

A drop in income. If current income has fallen by at least 10% compared with the reference year, the previous year’s income or the income of the last 12 months may be used instead. Documents proving the drop are required. A sworn statement written by the applicant is not accepted.

A change in the couple. If the tax notice covers the applicant and a former partner, only the applicant’s income may be counted in these situations:

• divorce in progress, proven by a non-conciliation order, a copy of the referral to the juge aux affaires familiales (family court judge), a lawyer’s certificate that an out-of-court divorce by mutual consent is under way, or a protection order from the family judge in an emergency;
• completed divorce, proven by the divorce judgment or, for divorce by mutual consent, the approved agreement;
• a dissolved Pacs, proven by a birth certificate showing the dissolution;
• the death of a spouse, proven by the death certificate or the livret de famille (family record book);
• domestic violence, proven by the receipt for a police complaint;
• being married, a beneficiary of international protection and living alone in France.

If a spouse or Pacs partner lives in an Éhpad (care home for dependent older people), the accommodation fees the applicant pays may be deducted from their income.

Documents and residence status

An application cannot be registered without proof of identity. The page sets out the minimum documents according to the applicant’s situation.

For citizens of another EU or EEA country, or of Switzerland, the minimum is a copy of the identity card (both sides) or passport, plus, for anyone under tutelle or curatelle (legal guardianship), a copy of the guardianship ruling.

To strengthen an application, the page recommends also providing:

• identity documents for everyone in the household: identity card, passport or titre de séjour (residence permit) showing lawful residence in France;
• proof of income and resources for everyone in the household, such as payslips and tax notices;
• any document showing the household’s professional or personal situation, such as rent receipts, school certificates, a disability card or evidence of violence suffered.

The material used for this guide does not list the documents required from nationals of countries outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland, and it does not say which residence permits are accepted. The full official page and the guichet enregistreur (registration office) are the reference points. Anyone with a question about their own residence status should contact the prefecture or a migration advice service.

Making the application and waiting times

In Île-de-France, a single application covers every department in the region (75, 77, 78, 91, 92, 93, 94 and 95), even if the applicant is open to several communes. For Paris, an applicant can name one or more arrondissements (districts) or the whole city.

There are two ways to apply:

1. Online, through the official social housing application website, which also handles renewals. Telephone help is available on 0 806 000 113 (charged as a local call from a landline), Monday to Friday, 9am to 7pm. This line cannot give updates on the progress of an application.
2. On paper, by completing form no. 14069 and handing it in at a guichet enregistreur. These offices can also help with the application, and an online search tool lists their contact details.

On waiting times, the page states only that they vary according to where the home is located. It gives no figures, so this guide gives none either. Allocation decisions are made locally.

FAQ

Can I apply if my income is above the ceiling?

Yes. The official page states that anyone can apply for social housing whatever their income and whatever the simulator shows. The ceilings apply when a home is allocated, and households above them may be offered a logement PLI.

Which year’s income is used?

The reference tax income from two years before the application, as shown on the following year’s tax notice. For a 2026 application, that is 2024 income on the 2025 notice. If income has fallen by at least 10%, more recent income may be used, with supporting documents. The page does not explain how income is assessed for someone with no French tax notice; the registration office can answer that.

Do I need a separate application for each department in Île-de-France?

No. One application covers all eight departments of Île-de-France, and for Paris the applicant can choose specific districts or the whole city.

How long is the wait for a social home?

The official page does not give a figure. It says only that the waiting time depends on where the home is located, and allocation is decided locally.

Sources: service-public.fr

Last verified: 5 November 2026 against the pages linked above. Rules and fees change; the responsible authority always has the final word.

This is general information, not legal or immigration advice. For your own situation, ask the prefecture of your département, a recognised migration advice service or a lawyer (avocat).