CAF Family Benefits in France: PAJE, Prime à la Naissance, and CMG
CAF family benefits in France mostly sit under the PAJE (prestation d’accueil du jeune enfant). It has four parts: the prime à la naissance (a one-time payment during pregnancy), the allocation de base (a monthly payment until your child turns 3), the PreParE (for a parent who stops or reduces work), and the CMG (complément de libre choix du mode de garde, which helps pay for childcare). Most depend on household income, so not every family gets all of them, and if you’re not French you also need to show lawful residence, usually a valid residence permit. In my house, I didn’t qualify for the prime à la naissance, but we did qualify for the CMG.
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My own first contact with the CAF was refreshingly low-key. My midwife declared my pregnancy online for me, so I simply waited for the CAF to get in touch, by email or letter, and followed what they asked. The one thing I went after myself was a card I’d been told about, the carte nationale de priorité de la famille, which gives pregnant women and parents priority access to public transportation and to the counters of administrative and public services. I messaged the CAF, they sent it to me, and all I had to do was add my photo.
If you’re an American (or any non-EU national) having a baby in France, the CAF is one of the first French acronyms that will touch your wallet. The Caisse d’allocations familiales pays out family benefits, and the rules for who gets what are not obvious, especially when you’re not French.
This guide to CAF family benefits in France is a map, not a manual. I’ll name each benefit, explain why it matters, and show where being a foreign national changes things. I’m a documenter, not a guru, and I’m not a lawyer or a financial advisor, so please confirm every figure on caf.fr before you plan around it.
What is the PAJE, and what does the CAF actually pay?
The PAJE (prestation d’accueil du jeune enfant) is not one payment. It’s an umbrella over four aids, and each works differently:
Aid | What it is? | How it is paid? | Do you apply separately? |
Prime à la naissance | A one-time lump sum for the birth | Once, around the 7th month of pregnancy | Yes: apply online during pregnancy, after the pregnancy declaration |
Allocation de base | A monthly allowance | Monthly, until the month before the child turns 3 | Send the CAF your child’s birth certificate and livret de famille pages |
PreParE | Support if you stop or reduce work after the birth; you need 8 quarters of pension contributions beforehand | Monthly, while you are on leave | Yes, a specific request |
CMG | Help paying for childcare | Monthly, based on your childcare costs | Yes, a specific request |
How much is the prime à la naissance, and who gets it?
The prime à la naissance is a one-time payment of €1,093.08 per child as of April 1, 2026, according to the CAF’s own scale. It’s paid around the seventh month of pregnancy, and it’s income-tested, based on your household income from two years earlier (2024 income for a 2026 claim). With twins, you receive one prime per child.
The detail that trips people up is timing: the pregnancy has to be declared before the end of the third month (here’s how to declare your pregnancy in France), and you also have to attend your first prenatal medical exam. You then apply online during the pregnancy. Your administrative situation in France has to be regular too. If you’re not French, that is where your residence permit comes in, which I cover below.
How much is the allocation de base each month?
The allocation de base is a monthly payment for a child under 3: €198.16 at the full rate or €99.09 at the partial rate in 2026, depending on household income. Like the prime, it’s based on income from two years earlier. Payment starts the month after the birth and runs until the month before your child turns 3. You send the CAF your child’s birth certificate and livret de famille pages.
It’s worth knowing it exists, because it runs for three years and is easy to overlook next to the bigger one-time bonus.
What is the CMG, and how does it help with childcare?
The CMG (complément de libre choix du mode de garde) helps cover childcare for children under 6. It applies when you use a registered childminder (assistante maternelle, and here’s how to hire an assistante maternelle in France), a home childcare worker, or an approved childcare structure. It’s a separate request from the other aids. If you’re hoping for a crèche place instead, I cover that in getting a crèche place in France: what nobody tells you.
Two things changed recently. The calculation for the direct-employment CMG was overhauled on September 1, 2025, and single-parent families can now claim it for children up to 12. In general, the parent (or their partner) needs to be working, or meet one of the exceptions.
What changes if you’re not French?
Most conditions are the same for French and foreign parents: income limits, number of children, living in France. The difference is proof that your stay is lawful.
- Non-EU nationals (including Americans) need a valid residence permit, such as a carte de résident or a carte de séjour temporaire. A récépissé for renewing one of those also counts.
- EU, EEA and Swiss nationals don’t need a permit but must be legally resident in France.
- Permanent residence rights are acquired after five years of regular, uninterrupted residence.
- Your child’s papers are checked too. If your child was born abroad, expect to prove their lawful entry and stay.
One warning from the CAF’s own materials: holding a permit doesn’t automatically open every right. The type of permit and your situation both matter.
The CAF asks you to declare all income earned outside France, even if it isn’t taxable in France. If the CAF doesn’t have your tax notice, it will ask you to declare your annual income online, with supporting documents.
Every situation is different. If you’re arriving mid-pregnancy, have no income history in France, or aren’t sure how your permit affects things, contact the CAF directly rather than relying on any blog post, including this one.
Is there a free CAF card for pregnant women and parents?
Yes, and it isn’t a payment, but it’s worth knowing about. The carte nationale de priorité de la famille gives you priority access to the offices and counters of administrations and public services and to public transportation, including priority for seats in public places and in queues.
It’s free and issued on request by the CAF (or the MSA, for the agricultural system) to pregnant women, to people who have effective and permanent charge of a child under 3, and to larger families: at least 3 children under 16, or 2 children under 4.
There’s no form: you request it by email or letter to the CAF in your département, ideally with a supporting document such as a birth certificate extract for each child. If you’re pregnant, your doctor or midwife can send your pregnancy declaration directly to the CAF, so you don’t need to provide proof. I applied for mine during my pregnancy. I haven’t had to use it yet, but it’s nice to have if I need a boost of proof.
For pregnant women, the card is valid for the length of the pregnancy. For parents, it’s valid for 3 years and renewable for as long as you still meet the conditions. If you’re not French and aren’t sure whether you qualify, ask your CAF directly. Each situation is different.
What should you do first?
This is the short version. The step-by-step detail lives in the Expat Mum in France ebooks.
- Declare your pregnancy on time, before the end of the third month. Here’s how.
- Get your health insurance in place: how to apply for French Sécurité sociale as a foreigner.
- Create or confirm your CAF online account.
- Gather your core documents: residence permit, birth certificates, proof of address, and bank details (RIB).
- Request the CMG separately once your childcare is lined up.
- When in doubt, contact your CAF directly. Every situation is different.
Could the rules change for non-EU parents? Watch this space
A draft bill for the 2027 social security budget (PLFSS 2027) included a measure, article 37 of the government’s text, that would have required non-EU nationals to have lived in France for at least one year before receiving family benefits, with exemptions for categories such as refugees.
The National Assembly rejected the bill’s revenue section on October 23, 2026, which sent the whole text to the Senate in the government’s original version. Senators began examining it on November 9. As of November 10, 2026, the one-year rule is not law and nothing has changed for expat parents. I’ll update this post if that changes.
What was my own experience with the CAF?
Honestly, I didn’t interact much with the CAF. I didn’t qualify for the prime à la naissance, but we did qualify for the CMG once my daughter was born. We received it when we hired a garde à domicile, and we’re using it now with an assistante maternelle. Day to day, what the CAF asks is simple: keep my online account up to date, and answer their questions and messages quickly. Even so, it’s nice to have everything set up, so make sure you’re signed up, whether through your pregnancy declaration, your doctor or midwife, or online.
If you use the CMG, a few things I’d pass on: sign up for Pajemploi as soon as you know you’ll be hiring someone, rather than waiting until payment is due; a déclaration can be corrected after you submit it; and keep your avis d’imposition current in your CAF file, because it drives your quotient familial calculation.
Your situation may look very different from mine, which is why I checked the rules for this post instead of only telling you my own story.
If you want a second pair of eyes on your situation, I offer a one-hour French Admin Hour: we talk through where you stand and I send you a written checklist afterwards. I don’t fill out paperwork for you, but I’ll help you know what to do and in what order. Book a French Admin Hour here.
Disclosure: this post contains no affiliate links and I received nothing from the CAF or any company mentioned. This is general information from my own research, not legal or financial advice.
Can I get the prime à la naissance if I'm not French?
Yes, if you meet the same income and timing conditions as French parents and can show lawful residence, which for non-EU nationals means a valid residence permit.
Can I combine the allocation de base and the CMG?
Yes. They are separate parts of the PAJE and can be received together.
Does a récépissé protect my rights while my permit is renewed?
The CAF lists a récépissé for renewal among the documents that prove regular residence. Keep a copy and tell the CAF about any change in your status.
When do I get paid?
The prime is paid around the seventh month of pregnancy. The allocation de base starts the month after the birth and runs until the month before your child turns 3.
What if I move to France mid-pregnancy?
Every situation is different, so contact your CAF directly as early as you can. Two official rules to keep in mind: the pregnancy must be declared before the end of the third month to qualify for the prime (how to declare your pregnancy in France), and for permit holders the CAF opens rights the month after the date the permit becomes valid.
Does income I earned in the US count?
The CAF asks you to declare all income earned outside France, even if it isn’t taxable in France. How it counts in your case depends on your situation, so ask your CAF directly.
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