Volontariat in France: status, allowance and the main schemes

In France, two words are often confused: bénévolat and volontariat. They are not the same. Bénévolat is free, unpaid volunteering — giving your time to an association whenever you like, with no contract. Volontariat sits between volunteering and employment: it's a formal, legally framed commitment, with a status, a monthly allowance and social protection — but without the subordination of an employment contract.

Here's what defines volontariat in France, the main schemes, and how to tell which one fits you.

Volontariat, bénévolat, employment: three different things

• Bénévolat (volunteering) is free and unpaid. No contract, no fixed duration. (That's the focus of our sister site, benevole.com.)
• Employment means an employment contract: a salary, set hours, and subordination to an employer.
• Volontariat is in between: you commit formally, to a mission of general interest, for a defined period, in exchange for an allowance (not a salary) and social protection. It isn't work, but it isn't "free" volunteering either.

What characterises volontariat

Whatever the scheme, volontariat generally combines:

• a specific legal framework (each form has its own law);
• a signed engagement contract;
• a defined duration (from a few months to a year);
• a monthly allowance (distinct from a salary);
• social protection (healthcare, pension rights, depending on the scheme);
• a mission of general interest.

This is exactly why volontariat must be presented separately from bénévolat: the rights, obligations and status are not the same.

The main volontariat schemes

Service Civique

By far the best known and most common.

• Who: ages 16–25 (up to 30 for people with disabilities), with no qualification required.
• Duration: 6 to 12 months, at least 24 hours per week.
• Allowance: around €620 per month (mostly funded by the State, topped up by the host organisation).
• Missions: general interest — solidarity, environment, education, health, culture, sport.
• Hosts: mainly associations, plus local authorities and public bodies.

Over 150,000 young people start a Service Civique every year.

Volunteer firefighters

Volunteer firefighters (sapeurs-pompiers volontaires) make up about 80% of France's firefighters — nearly 200,000 people. It's a citizen commitment you can take on alongside studies or a job, with training and hourly allowances. Recruitment is through the local SDIS (departmental fire and rescue service).

The reserves

The reserves let you serve the country part-time:

• the operational reserve of the armed forces;
• the gendarmerie and national police reserves;
• the civic reserve.

You give a few days a year, keeping your main activity, with an allowance. These schemes are set to grow in the coming years.

International volontariat

There are also schemes oriented abroad: the Volontariat de Solidarité Internationale (VSI), run by accredited NGOs, the European Solidarity Corps, and the Volontariat International en Entreprise / Administration (VIE / VIA).

Who can do a volontariat?

It depends on the scheme. Service Civique is open to 16–25-year-olds with no qualification; firefighter and reserve commitments have their own conditions. The common thread: most of these are open without any particular qualification — what matters is motivation.

Volontariat or bénévolat: which to choose?

In one sentence: if you want to help out when you can, with no fixed commitment, that's bénévolat — head to benevole.com. If you're looking for a longer, full-time or regular commitment, with a status and an allowance, that's volontariat.

Find a volontariat mission

volontariat.com brings together volontariat missions across France — Service Civique, volunteer firefighters, reserves — to help you find the one that fits, wherever you are.