Living in Ghana as a French National: Visa, Residence Permit, Cities, Housing, Schooling and Safety

Ghana has Accra as its capital, English as its official language and Kumasi, Sekondi-Takoradi and Tamale as its main cities (France Diplomatie, country presentation updated on 11 May 2026). The currency is the cedi, and the country hosts the secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area in Accra. For a French national, several advantages make settling in easier: an international airport well served by international airlines, domestic flights between Accra, Kumasi, Takoradi and Tamale, and a French presence organised around the embassy, the consular section and an AEFE lycée.

• Health: France Diplomatie describes services of average quality, payable in advance, and infrastructure that is generally insufficient outside Accra. See the healthcare system in Ghana.
• Social protection: France and Ghana have no social security agreement. The choice of cover is prepared before departure; see reimbursement of care in Ghana.
• Safety and roads: France Diplomatie’s advice covers crime, traffic and the zones in the north, detailed below.

French nationals who work on site will find permits, wages and tax in the page on working in Ghana, and those preparing their retirement the page on retirement in Ghana.

Accra and Greater Accra are home to the French embassy and its consular section (Cantonments), Kotoka international airport and the French lycée, located in East Legon. France Diplomatie cites among the residential and commercial areas Cantonments, Ridge, Airport Residential, East Legon and Osu, where it reports relatively frequent pickpocketing and bag snatching and recommends avoiding walking at night. The capital also benefits from a microclimate with reduced rainfall.

• Kumasi, cited among the main cities of the country, is linked to Accra by one of the two major road routes (Accra-Kumasi and Accra-Takoradi) and by domestic flights; its referral hospitals appear in the page on the healthcare system in Ghana.
• Sekondi-Takoradi, on the west coast, is linked to Accra by road and by several private airlines.
• Tamale, in the north, is served by a domestic flight from Accra. France Diplomatie recommends increased vigilance in the north and advises asking the embassy for information before going to the north-eastern regions.

France Diplomatie points out that the number of accidents is rising on the Accra-Kumasi and Accra-Takoradi routes and advises against the private minibuses known as “trotros” and against night journeys outside the main cities. The choice of district depends on the workplace, the children’s school and the distance to emergency services.

France Diplomatie indicates, in its update of 15 September 2026, that a French national staying less than three months applies for a short-stay visa at the Ghanaian embassy in Paris, a visa that must be obtained before arrival. The official e-visa portal of the Ghana Immigration Service, run with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, answers “eVisa required” for French nationality and offers a tourist or business visa online: USD 260 for standard processing (96 hours), USD 338 for priority processing (48 hours) and USD 442 for express processing (5 hours), for a single entry valid for 90 days and a stay of 60 days at most. The yellow fever vaccination certificate is among the documents requested.

• Duration: the entry stamp allows 60 days at most, whatever the type of visa. France Diplomatie mentions an extension of the tourist stay up to three months with the immigration services in Accra (Kanda Crescent, Kanda).
• Employment: the e-visa authorises a visit, not work: the portal specifies that any professional activity without the required permit is prohibited. A job goes through a work and residence permit (see working in Ghana).
• More than three months: a residence permit is required (France Diplomatie). The immigration service’s fee schedule distinguishes permits for work, study and dependants, as well as an indefinite residence status.

The fees are set in cedis or in dollars depending on the category, in a schedule that came into force on 15 May 2025. The dependant permit costs 388 cedis and the student permit 259 cedis for a non-ECOWAS national. Formalities are checked with the Ghana Immigration Service (info@immigration.gov.gh) before travelling.

The National Identification Authority issues the identity card for non-citizens, or “Non-Citizen Ghana Card”, to foreigners cumulatively resident for at least 90 days. The file includes the passport, the residence permit, the birth certificate validated by the embassy of the applicant’s country and an identity oath form obtained through a sponsorship procedure before a Commissioner for Oaths. The fees are USD 120 on first issue, USD 78 a year on renewal and USD 75 for a replacement; data updates are free. Diplomats and United Nations organisation staff are exempt.

• Tax number: since 1 April 2021, the personal number of the Ghana Card serves as the tax identification number for individuals. It is used to open a bank account, register a vehicle or obtain a driving licence (Ghana Revenue Authority).
• Driving licence: the French licence is not accepted in Ghana. A visitor drives with an international licence, requested online before departure on the website of the ANTS (the French agency for secure documents) and presented with the national licence. Residents drive with a Ghanaian licence, issued to foreigners holding a residence permit (France Diplomatie).
• Consular registration: the embassy recommends registering on the register of French nationals living abroad for any stay of more than six months. See the checklist for the first 90 days.

The economic reference block of this page gives the updated price indicators. For rents, no official series from the Ghanaian administration was found: amounts are compared on site, district by district, and checked against the district’s safety advice before signing a lease.

On housing security, France Diplomatie recommends staying in secure accommodation, with a guard and window bars, and reports that burglaries and thefts also affect residential districts, particularly during the festive period. For payments, the French administration advises being vigilant with bank cards, preferring certain payments in cash or by virtual card and avoiding cash withdrawals at night or in isolated places.

To put local pay in context, the page on working in Ghana gives the daily minimum wage and the tax scale. Health is a full item of its own: the rates of the CFE (Caisse des Français de l’étranger, the French social security fund for French nationals abroad) and of international policies are compared in the page on reimbursement of care in Ghana, and the guide to budgeting for health abroad helps you put a figure on this item.

The Lycée français international Jacques-Prévert in Accra, an establishment under agreement with the AEFE, offers 15 accredited levels of education, from the first nursery year to the final year, and takes 634 pupils according to the AEFE’s record; it is located in East Legon. Ghana also has a local school network in English, the country’s official language. France Diplomatie notes that about 10% of Ghanaian school pupils learn French.

Tuition fees, available places and any aid are requested directly from the establishment and from the consular section of the embassy, after registration on the register of French nationals living abroad. The guide to children’s cover abroad deals with children’s health protection.

Zones of vigilance: France Diplomatie places most of the territory under heightened vigilance. It formally advises against the northern border with Burkina Faso, including the localities of Tumu, Navrongo and Bawku where curfews are in force, and advises against, except for compelling reasons, Gbele park and other border areas with Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire and Togo. The page is updated regularly: it should be reread before each trip.

• Crime: thefts, carjackings, bag snatchings and burglaries are frequently recorded; several kidnappings for ransom have taken place in the large cities. The administration advises avoiding walking at night and being wary of cybercrime (romance scams, fake business proposals).
• Beaches and swimming: swimming is dangerous on the coast because of strong currents, and the beaches are not supervised; Kokrobite beach, 25 km west of Accra, calls for particular vigilance.
• Floods and seismic risk: during the rainy season, the country can suffer major flooding; the south-east lies in a seismic zone, with no significant earthquake since 1939.
• Local legislation: smoking is prohibited in public spaces outside designated areas, drug possession is heavily punished and exporting antiques requires a permit. France Diplomatie also specifies that sexual relations between persons of the same sex are a criminal offence in Ghana and reports an increase in homophobic acts in recent years; the legal situation can be reread in its “Useful information” section.

Emergencies: police 191, ambulance 193 and fire brigade 192 according to the French embassy, which has an emergency line reserved for French nationals. The climate is tropical, with a temperature between 25 and 30 degrees all year round and two rainy seasons (April-May and August-October); the official language is English, and national languages are numerous (Asante, Ewe, Fante, Ga, Hausa and others). See also expat health insurance to prepare your cover before departure.