Student guarantor: a complete guide to renting in France

A guarantor is a person — or sometimes an organisation — that commits to paying the rent if the tenant runs into financial difficulties.

For landlords, this guarantee secures the rental and limits the risk of unpaid rent.

Most students don't yet have a stable income or professional situation, so landlords ask for a guarantor to feel reassured before renting out their property.

In some student cities such as Bordeaux, Paris or Lyon, competition is especially fierce. Landlords sometimes receive many applications for a single unit and favour the most reassuring ones. Having a guarantor can make a real difference when booking.

In France, a guarantor is not legally required. However, in practice landlords very often ask for one, and student residences require a guarantee before accepting an application.

Without a guarantor, some students may face more difficulties when renting. Luckily, several alternatives exist today to help students who don't have a physical guarantor.

The guarantor is often:

• a parent
• a family member
• a close relative or friend

In some cases, it can also be an organisation specialised in rental guarantees.

The guarantor must usually provide several documents:

• a valid ID
• proof of income
• proof of address
• sometimes a tax notice

These documents are also used to build a housing file on CLOÉ, so students can reuse the same documents for their booking requests and housing-aid applications.

When a landlord asks for a guarantor, it can be either a simple surety or a joint surety.

For many students, finding a guarantor can quickly become complicated.

This is often the case for:

• international students
• students living far from their family
• students without significant income
• students whose relatives live abroad

Some landlords also require the guarantor to live in France and have a high income, which can make the search even harder.

For international students, finding housing can become a source of worry even before arriving in France. They are often the most affected by this issue.

Many arrive in France without:

• a French guarantor
• income in France
• a French banking history
• knowledge of the rental system

On top of that, administrative procedures must often be carried out remotely, sometimes with very short deadlines before the start of the academic year — especially for students admitted to international schools such as ESCP Europe.

For some students, these challenges can become a real source of stress even before arriving in France.

Yes — it is now perfectly possible to rent student housing without a physical guarantor thanks to rental-guarantee solutions.

These solutions reassure landlords while making housing more accessible to students.

They are particularly useful for:

• international students
• students without a French guarantor
• students living alone
• students with an incomplete file

For most student rentals, landlords ask for a joint surety.

Guarantee solutions such as VISALE or Garantme work on a similar principle — they give landlords additional security and make housing more accessible to students.

VISALE is a free rental guarantee offered by Action Logement.

It allows students and young workers to benefit from a guarantee without needing a physical guarantor.

In case of unpaid rent, VISALE covers the landlord, which secures the rental.

This solution is now widely used in student housing because it simplifies the process for both students and landlords.

Garantme is another rental-guarantee solution particularly used by students and international students.

The principle is simple:

• the student submits their file
• the situation is analysed
• a guarantee certificate is issued
• the landlord is reassured

This solution allows many students to rent housing even without a physical guarantor in France.