Police registration forms for foreign guests in France: what the law requires

The whole rule fits into three articles of the French code on the entry and residence of foreign nationals and the right of asylum, articles R. 814-1 to R. 814-3. They cover hotels, campsites, holiday residences and, by name, hosts of furnished holiday rentals and bed and breakfasts. Here is what they require, what they don’t, and how to organise things so nobody is left waiting on the doorstep.

Who fills in a form

Every guest of foreign nationality. “Foreign” here means anyone who doesn’t hold French nationality: a Belgian or a German fills in their form just like an American. Being an EU citizen doesn’t exempt anyone.

From age 15, everyone fills in their own. A younger child is listed on the form of the adult accompanying them. A few everyday cases:

• four 20-year-old Spanish friends: four forms;
• a French-Italian couple: one form, for the Italian partner;
• a Swiss family with two children aged 9 and 16: three forms, one per parent and one for the eldest, the youngest being listed on a parent’s form;
• guests who are all French: no form.

The booking comes from a platform? Nothing changes: the obligation lies with the host, not the platform.

What the form contains, and nothing more

Article R. 814-2 sets out the list of information:

• surname and first names;
• date and place of birth;
• nationality;
• usual home address;
• mobile phone number and email address;
• date of arrival and planned date of departure.

The guest fills it in and signs it on arrival. The law asks for this information, not a copy of a passport. Photocopying ID documents means keeping data the form doesn’t ask for, whereas the General Data Protection Regulation requires you to collect only what is necessary (article 5). The less data you keep, the less you have to protect.

Self check-in: the form is filled in beforehand

Handing over keys in person has often disappeared; the form has stayed. The simplest approach is to have it filled in online, with the pre-check-in, a few days before the stay, then check on the day that the number of forms matches the number of guests. Nothing requires paper: the code even provides for forms to be transmitted electronically.

Take a couple from Lyon arriving at midnight with a Canadian friend, the key box code in their pocket. If nothing has been prepared, nobody is there to have the friend’s form signed. With the pre-check-in, it was filled in three days ago, and you’ve already seen it come through.

A guest who refuses to fill in their form: it happens. Settle the matter before arrival, not at midnight on the doorstep: state in your rental terms that the form is required for every foreign guest, and mention it again in the message before the stay.

Six months, then delete

Forms are kept for six months (article R. 814-3). They are only handed over to the police and gendarmerie, and only when they ask for them. There’s nothing to send every evening, every week or every month. The CNIL, France’s data protection authority, sets out what they’re for: preventing breaches of public order, assisting criminal investigations and searching for people in their own interest.

Beyond six months, nothing justifies keeping them: delete them, paper copies included. During those six months, limit who has access. Your cleaner doesn’t need to know the guests’ dates of birth, nor the owner their home address. The CNIL also points out that guests must be informed of their rights to access and correct this data: one sentence in the form is enough.

Mistakes to avoid

• A single form for the whole group, in the name of the person who booked: every foreign guest aged 15 and over has their own.
• Forms for French guests: the law doesn’t ask for them; it’s surplus data.
• Photos of passports sent by messaging app to the owner or the team: the form is enough, and those photos then stay on phones you don’t control.
• Forms kept for years “just in case”: six months, then delete.
• Forms sent to the gendarmerie unprompted: they ask for them when they need them, not before.

When a property manager handles check-in

The law targets the host. In practice, it’s often the property manager who has the forms filled in, because they send the arrival instructions and talk to the guests. Put it in the contract between you and the owner: who has the forms filled in, where they are kept, who deletes them after six months, and who responds if the gendarmerie asks for them.

Also think about the weeks the owner rents out themselves, without going through you: for those stays, the obligation remains theirs. One sentence in the contract saves them from discovering the rule on the day of an inspection.

Frequently asked questions

Does an EU guest have to fill in the form?

Yes. The form concerns anyone who doesn’t hold French nationality, including citizens of other EU countries.

Do the forms have to be sent to the police?

No. You keep them for six months and hand them over to the police or gendarmerie only if they ask for them.

Can you ask for a copy of the passport?

The law doesn’t require it: the form is enough. Keeping a copy of an ID document means keeping data you don’t need, and becoming responsible for it.

Sources

1. Article R. 814-1 of the code on the entry and residence of foreign nationals and the right of asylum, Légifrance (in French).
2. Article R. 814-2 of the same code, Légifrance (in French).
3. Article R. 814-3 of the same code, Légifrance (in French).
4. Foreign tourists in France: is the “police form” in tourist accommodation legal?, CNIL (in French).
5. General Data Protection Regulation, article 5, CNIL.

Rules reviewed on 23 October 2026 on Légifrance. Articles R. 814-1 to R. 814-3 replaced the former article R. 611-42 on 1 May 2021: a page that still cites that number is probably out of date.

The OmniStay team