Live vacancies: browse current podiatry jobs in France on the IMEA POD jobs board, or search directly on LinkedIn.
France has a large, well-organised foot care profession with its own professional order, a three-year state diploma, and a defined role in preventing diabetic foot complications under the national health insurance scheme. For French-speaking podiatrists from North Africa, West and Central Africa, Lebanon and the Indian Ocean, France is a natural reference point.
The protected title is pédicure-podologue, often shortened to “podologue”. The profession combines “pédicurie” (skin and nail care of the foot) with “podologie” (assessment and the making and fitting of foot orthoses, called semelles orthopédiques). Before you plan a move, note one key point: France does not currently recognise pédicure-podologue diplomas obtained outside the EU unless another EU or EEA state has already recognised them. Most IMEA-trained podiatrists therefore cannot practise in France on their home diploma alone.
How podiatry is regulated in France
Practice is reserved for holders of the diplôme d’État (DE) de pédicure-podologue, under article L. 4322-2 of the Code de la santé publique. The DE takes three years after the baccalauréat and includes 2,028 hours of theory and practical teaching and 1,170 hours of clinical training (inpi.fr). The Ordre national des pédicures-podologues (ONPP) says the DE is earned by validating 180 European credits at one of 12 training institutes in France, two of them public (onpp.fr).
Every practising pédicure-podologue, salaried or self-employed, must be registered on the ONPP’s tableau. Practising without registration is illegal and can bring up to one year in prison and a €15,000 fine. You apply to the regional or interregional council for the area where you work, with a CV, sworn statements and the annual membership fee (onpp.fr). The ONPP also registers practitioners in the RPPS national directory of health professionals. Practitioners are bound by the profession’s code of ethics, set out in the Code de la santé publique.
EU and EEA diplomas. Holders of EU, EEA or Swiss diplomas, or of third-country diplomas already recognised by an EU state, can apply for an autorisation d’exercice (authorisation to practise). You apply to the regional DREETS for the area where you plan to work (DRIEETS in Île-de-France). A regional commission gives its opinion and the regional prefect decides. The outcome can be direct authorisation, compensation measures (an unpaid adaptation placement or an aptitude test), or refusal (onpp.fr). Temporary and occasional practice under freedom to provide services needs an annual declaration to the Ordre instead.
Non-EU diplomas. The ONPP states plainly that holders of non-EU diplomas cannot practise in France with their foreign diploma and that there is currently no equivalence recognition (onpp.fr). The usual route is to earn the French DE. The ONPP explains that if your country has a bilateral agreement with an EU state on professional qualifications, you can sit the entrance competition that training institutes reserve for non-EU graduates. If you pass, the institute director may exempt you from parts of the course. Contact the institutes and the DREETS directly to confirm current admission rules and possible exemptions.
The podiatry employment landscape in France
Most French pédicures-podologues work in private practice (exercice libéral), alone or in group practices and multidisciplinary health centres. Salaried posts exist in hospitals, diabetic foot clinics, rehabilitation centres, care homes and sports medicine, and some practitioners combine part-time salaried work with a private practice. Self-employed practitioners must hold professional liability insurance.
Diabetic foot prevention is the main insured activity. The Assurance Maladie covers podiatry sessions on medical prescription for diabetic patients at foot risk grade 2 or 3. Grade 2 patients can have up to five prevention sessions a year. Grade 3 patients, who have had an ulcer or amputation, can have up to six sessions a year, or eight if they have a healing wound (ameli.fr). Outside these indications, most routine care, nail surgery and custom foot orthoses are paid by the patient or by complementary insurance (mutuelle). Biomechanics, posture assessment and orthoses make up a large part of private practice, alongside sports podiatry, paediatrics and nail care.
Employers and job search channels
Because so much of the profession is self-employed, many openings are for a collaborateur (associate practitioner sharing a practice), a remplaçant (locum covering a practice), or a buyer for an established practice, rather than salaried jobs. Salaried roles in hospitals and clinics appear on the public employment service France Travail, on hospital career pages and on LinkedIn. The ONPP’s regional councils are another useful contact point for local practice information.
Job titles in French adverts include Pédicure-podologue (H/F), Podologue, Pédicure-podologue collaborateur, Remplaçant pédicure-podologue, Pédicure-podologue salarié, Podologue du sport and Podo-orthésiste. All pédicure-podologue posts require the DE (or an authorisation to practise) and ONPP registration.
International candidates and documentation
Applications to the DREETS for an authorisation to practise usually include a copy of the diploma, a sworn translation and valid identity documents. Some diplomas need a specific form sent by registered post. You can open a file in only one region, but an authorisation is valid across France (onpp.fr). Documents not in French must be translated by a sworn translator, and applicants living outside the EU may need consular certification.
Language is a practical requirement. EU applicants must have the language skills needed to practise (inpi.fr). Patient care, ONPP procedures, health insurance billing and DE training are all conducted in French. Non-EU candidates entering a training institute should expect to study, sit exams and do clinical placements entirely in French.
Visa and employment considerations
Non-EU nationals generally need a residence permit that allows them to work. For many permits, the employer must get a work authorisation, which is applied for online (service-public.gouv.fr). Candidates coming to France to take the DE will usually need a student visa first. Because non-EU podiatry diplomas are not recognised, a job offer as a pédicure-podologue is rarely possible until you hold the DE or an authorisation to practise. Immigration rules change regularly, so confirm the current requirements with the French consulate in your country and on official French government websites.
Pedorthists, footwear and supplier-side roles
Orthopaedic footwear is a separate regulated profession, the podo-orthésiste. Podo-orthésistes make orthopaedic shoes and custom orthoses on medical prescription. You need the diplôme d’État de podo-orthésiste or the brevet de technicien supérieur (BTS) in podo-orthèse, under articles L. 4364-1 and D. 4364-8 of the Code de la santé publique, and you must register in the RPPS through the regional health agency (ARS) (bpifrance-creation.fr). A new BTS podo-orthésiste reference framework, set by an arrêté of 27 November 2024, replaces the 1997 framework. Its first examination session is in 2028, after the last session under the old rules in 2027 (education.fr). Orthosis laboratories, insole manufacturers, sports footwear brands and medical device companies also hire foot health professionals for technical, training and sales roles.
Why France matters for IMEA POD readers
For French-speaking podiatrists in the Maghreb, sub-Saharan Africa and Lebanon, France is the closest model of an organised profession, with an Ordre, a code of ethics, a state diploma and insured diabetic foot prevention. Because French is a shared working language, French clinical guidance, congresses and continuing education are easy to access for these readers.
Be realistic, though. Unless your diploma was issued or recognised in the EU, working as a pédicure-podologue in France usually means retraining for the French DE. For many readers, the more practical options are continuing education with French institutes, French congresses, or collaboration with French podo-orthésistes and orthosis laboratories, rather than direct migration.
- ONPP: autorisation d’exercice en France (foreign diplomas)
- ONPP: registering with the Ordre
- ONPP: the diplôme d’État de pédicure-podologue
- INPI: pédicure-podologue regulated activity sheet
- Assurance Maladie: foot follow-up for people with diabetes
- Bpifrance Création: podo-orthésiste regulation
- Service-Public: work authorisation for foreign employees
- France Travail