VisaResident-card renewals in Martinique do not require the new civic exam
Renewal guide separating the examination exemption, local online submission route, resident documents and the current renewal tax.
Official announcement date: not established (undated guidance)
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Edited and checked by the VisaWand editorial team
Check that this is a renewal of an existing resident card
Foreign nationals in Martinique renewing an existing resident card do not have to take the civic examination introduced for certain first residence applications in January 2026. Service Public's examination notice expressly excludes renewals of multi-year residence cards and resident cards. The distinction matters before paying for a test or delaying a renewal while trying to book one. Someone moving from a temporary permit to their first resident card is in a different category.
Those first-application rules should not be transferred into an ordinary resident-card renewal simply because a general information page describes both. This guide addresses the existing resident-card holder's renewal task; it does not establish that every nationality agreement or every change to a different residence status has identical conditions. Check the title and category recorded on the current card before choosing the online request.
Use the resident-renewal route published for Martinique
Martinique's dedicated resident-card notice directs renewals online through ANEF from 10 July 2024. It lists ten-year resident cards, ten-year Algerian residence certificates, long-term EU resident cards and permanent resident cards. It excludes stateless people and family members of stateless people from that online procedure, so those applicants should obtain the applicable local instructions instead of forcing their case into a category that does not fit.
For the listed online renewals, the notice says there is no need to attend the prefecture to submit the application or send the file by post. It gives the national citizen contact centre, 0806 001 620, and the ANEF contact form for questions. Applicants lacking equipment can book support at a prefectural digital-access point. That is help completing the online procedure, not a replacement decision on eligibility. The local notice is useful for selecting the receiving route even where older downloadable forms still describe paper appointments.
Prepare the renewal documents and check the filing interval
The residence-code document annex's resident-renewal section lists the current resident card, full birth record, nationality evidence such as the relevant passport pages, recent proof of address and photographs or a valid digital photograph-and-signature code for an online request. It also calls for the applicable absence declaration, distinguishing an ordinary resident card from one carrying long-term EU resident status. Use the actual card category when completing that declaration rather than copying a statement for a different status.
Service Public's resident-card guidance describes the online filing interval as four months to two months before the current document expires. It also says renewal can be refused where habitual residence in France is not established, describing both the centre of private and family interests and at least six months of presence during the calendar year. Its page warns that it is being updated following an October decree. Check the instructions displayed for the individual category and ask the prefecture about any discrepancy, especially if a procedural deadline or decision notice differs.
Use the renewal tax and wait for the amount requested
The national tax-change notice distinguishes renewal from first issue and replacement. From 1 May 2026, its ordinary renewal amount is EUR250, compared with EUR225 previously. The ordinary first-issue and duplicate amount is EUR350. Reduced categories have different charges, so those headline amounts are not a universal bill for every protected or exempt person. Select renewal rather than duplicate merely because the new card will replace the expiring one.
The notice says the stamp is purchased after the application is accepted, for issuance of the document. Applicants are told by SMS that the card is available and what tax to pay; the stamp can be bought online or from an authorised seller. Keep the purchase evidence for collection and check any exemption or reduced category against the actual request. The listed tax remains separate from document preparation costs. Filing online alone should not be treated as a newly issued card, an individual processing guarantee or an automatic document for travel.
