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French civic exam 2026, Institutions and political system
How many departments are there in France?
An official question of the French civic exam, with its answer and the official text that proves it, in French and English.
Multi-year residence permit no. 69
Combien y a-t-il de départements en France ?
How many departments are there in France?
Answer. 101 departments.
101 départements.
France has 101 departments, including 5 overseas. The department mainly handles social welfare and middle schools (colleges).
The official text that proves it
« Le département agit surtout dans l’action sociale (exemples : aide aux personnes handicapées, gestion du RSA). Il gère aussi les collèges, et a des compétences partagées avec les autres collectivités territoriales. Il y a 101 départements en France. »
The department mainly acts in social welfare (for example, help for people with disabilities, managing the RSA welfare benefit). It also manages middle schools, and shares some powers with other local authorities. There are 101 departments in France.
In French, with its English meaning. read the official sheet
Next questions in this theme
- Who represents the State in a department?
- Who runs the commune?
- Does the President of the Republic hold all the powers?
- Who is the prefect?
- What is the role of Parliament?
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Questions from the official lists of the French Ministry of the Interior, quotations from the civic training sheets, the Constitution and the 1789 Declaration, Licence Ouverte Etalab 2.0. This is not a government site. The official sheets are free, in French, on formation-civique.interieur.gouv.fr.
