You are a secondary or postsecondary student enrolled in a vocational school, a college, or a university in Quebec and are coming to France for a mandatory internship as part of your studies.
When you register with any of France's social welfare agencies, you will be required to submit a birth certificate that includes your parents' information along with a passport or national ID.
The Memorandum of Agreement of December 19, 1998, between France and Quebec applies to all secondary or postsecondary students, regardless of nationality, who are members of Quebec's social security system.
Quebec treats internships completed in France for which the student is not paid wages as unpaid, even if the internship entitles them to a scholarship or allowance.
Applicable legal instruments:
Before you come to France, you will need to apply to the Quebec Health Insurance Plan (RAMQ) for an SE 401-Q-104 form “certificate of membership in their home country's social security system for students participating in unpaid internships as part of their studies.” This form will need to be filled out by the school in which you are enrolled in Quebec (box 3) and by RAMQ (box 4).
When you get to France, you will need to show your SE 401-Q-104 form to register with the French health insurance fund (“Caisse Primaire d'Assurance Maladie”/ CPAM) that is local to your temporary address in France. There is at least one CPAM in each French “département” (see www.ameli.fr). We recommend that you go through your CPAM's department of International Relations (“service Relations Internationales”). Once you have registered, your local CPAM will reimburse you for your health care expenses (doctor's appointments, pharmaceuticals, hospital stays, labs, etc.) at France's official social security rates (see Health insurance in France).
If you receive care in France, you and any dependents who have come over with you will need to apply to your CPAM for reimbursement of your expenses.
Applicable legal instruments:
You will also have industrial accident/ occupational illness coverage through Quebec's social security system.
In the event of an industrial accident, you will need to apply for coverage through your local French health insurance fund (“Caisse Primaire d'Assurance Maladie”/ CPAM) where you are residing in France. Your CPAM will then send your application over to the CNESST, which is the Quebec government's mandatory insurance plan for victims of work-related accidents or diseases, for confirmation of recognition of the industrial accident and of the resulting entitlements. This confirmation will be certified by an SE 401 Q 108 form “certificate of entitlement to industrial accident and occupational illness insurance benefits.”
If you are prescribed medical leave or your medical leave is extended, you will need to send your notice of medical leave over to Quebec's Occupational Health and Safety Board (“CNESST”).
You will be paid any industrial accident/ occupational illness benefits by your local French health insurance fund (“CPAM”) on the basis of your SE 401 Q 108 form.
If you qualify for any industrial accident/ occupational illness cash benefits, these will be paid directly by the CNESST.
*As defined under article 2 b) of the Administrative arrangement, i.e. a vocational-, college-, or university-level degree program at a school recognized by Quebec's Ministry of Education, Higher Education, and Research, including qualifying studies for admission to this program.
Applicable legal instruments:
If you or any dependents who have come over with you receive medical care during your internship in France, you will need to pay upfront and then apply to Quebec's Health Insurance Plan (RAMQ) for reimbursement of your expenses.
RAMQ will reimburse your expenses as provided by Quebec's social security legislation on behalf of the French scheme.
N.B.: No form is required under these circumstances.
Applicable legal instruments:
You will also have industrial accident/ occupational illness coverage through Quebec's social security system. If you qualify for any industrial accident/ occupational illness benefits in kind, these will be awarded by your local French health insurance fund (“Caisse Primaire d'Assurance Maladie”/ CPAM) where you are temporarily residing on behalf of Quebec's social security system. This award requires approval; on the basis of the SE 401 Q 108 form “certificate of entitlement to industrial accident and occupational illness insurance benefits;” from CNESST, the Quebec government's mandatory insurance plan for victims of work-related accidents or diseases.
You are not eligible for the social security coverage set forth by the Memorandum of Understanding of December 19, 1998, between France and Quebec.
However, under French social security law, students doing an internship in France may qualify for social security coverage. A distinction is made between internships with compensation amounting to more than 15% of France's hourly social security ceiling (546 € for January, 2021) and those with compensation less than or equal to that amount.
Your French host company will not be required to pay contributions for you.
You will need to take out a private health, maternity, disability, and death insurance policy.
Applicable legal instruments:
You will be covered for industrial accidents and occupational illnesses under France's general social security scheme, even if the contribution for this risk could not be collected from the school where you are enrolled.
If an industrial accident occurs, it will need to be declared by your host company in France.
Your host company in France will need to register you for coverage under France's general social security scheme and pay contributions for all risks.
You will become a member of France's general scheme. If you qualify, you will be entitled to cash benefits and benefits in kind from France's health, maternity, disability, and industrial accident and occupational illness insurance programs.
N.B. You will accrue retirement pension entitlements under ordinary French law as it applies to France's basic scheme.