Turkish student says French visa rejected over headscarf

A student at Galatasaray University in Istanbul has alleged that her application for a long-stay student visa to France was rejected because her biometric photograph showed her wearing a headscarf.

Speaking to Anadolu, the student, who requested anonymity, said she had been accepted for an Erasmus exchange program at Sorbonne University and qualified for Erasmus funding but was unable to obtain a visa after three applications.

She said she eventually received a signed document stating that her photograph needed to show her head uncovered.

Three unsuccessful applications

The student said she applied for the visa three times through VFS Global, France's authorized visa service provider in Türkiye.

According to her account, her first application was rejected because of doubts about her intended stay in France, despite documents showing that her accommodation and academic arrangements had been made through the Erasmus program.

She said she submitted a second application alongside a friend, whose visa was approved while hers was rejected again.

Suspecting that her headscarf might be the reason, she decided to apply for a third time to obtain written confirmation of the grounds for the decision.

"I wanted to see the reason in their own words, in a verifiable and written form," she said.

Student cites signed document

The student said her application file was forwarded through VFS Global to the French Consulate General in Istanbul and subsequently returned with a document dated Sept. 14, 2026, titled "Attestation de retour d’un dossier."

According to the student, the document stated that the photograph had to show her "tête nue," meaning with her head uncovered.

She also said other students wearing headscarves had obtained French visas during the same period, raising questions about the consistency of the process.

"I have friends who received visas during the same period. They submitted photographs wearing headscarves. I was told that my photograph was not accepted because of my headscarf. There is a contradiction," she said.

'An academic opportunity was taken away'

The student said studying at Sorbonne University would have been an important opportunity for her academic and professional development.

"I was very excited that Sorbonne would be on my CV. I thought it would open other doors for me as well. It felt terrible to have an opportunity I had earned taken away from me like this. I was very upset," she said.

She added that being asked to remove her headscarf left her feeling forced to choose between her religious practice and an academic opportunity.

"Taking off my headscarf is not possible for me, but the person in front of me expects me to do it. You are forced to choose between two things," she said.

Calls for clarity and equal treatment

The student said she decided to make her experience public not to seek support on social media but to alert other students to the difficulties they might encounter and draw the attention of the relevant authorities.

"There is an achievement here. I am not going to be ashamed of my achievement. Nor am I going to hide my success because I wear a headscarf," she said.

She noted that Galatasaray University and other French-language universities in Türkiye have many students who wear headscarves and want to pursue academic opportunities in France.

"If I earned a place at Sorbonne, why should I have to go to another country?" she asked.

The student said she did not intend to submit another visa application after the three unsuccessful attempts but hoped the issue would be addressed to prevent similar experiences for other students.

"If there is a rule, the authorities should explain it clearly. Everyone should know what they will face," she said.

"Visa center staff should also be told how students should be treated. We should not have to endure the arbitrary attitude of an individual employee."

No response from the French Consulate General in Istanbul or the relevant French authorities was included in the account provided by the student.

Source:AA