Reception of Asylum Seekers and Refugees in France: Between Rigour and Humanism

Abstract

The French system of reception and integration of foreigners, refugees or migrants, seeks a balance between the protection to be granted to vulnerable persons, in the respect of the tradition of welcome which France claims, and rigor as to the respect of the conditions of entry and stay in France. The system of reception and integration of migrants and refugees is characterised by its complexity involving different categories of public and private actors: it is based on collaboration between the State, local authorities and NGOs. This collaboration, essential to the effectiveness of the device, is recent and fragile.