APP Lyon
American Citizens
Services provided by APP Lyon include routine passport applications, consular reports of birth abroad (CROBAs), notarials, and more. APP Lyon is not, however, able to issue emergency passports -- anyone needing a passport within a short timeframe (under three weeks) must apply in either Marseille or Paris. Please do not hesitate to telephone APP Lyon directly at 04-78-38-33-03 if you are unsure about whether your needs can be met in Lyon. APP Lyon does not respond to inquiries about visa applications/appointments and procedures -- all visa issues are handled exclusively by the American Embassy in Paris.
Due to the extremely small nature of the U.S. diplomatic presence in Lyon, a post with only one American officer who is often out of town on official travel, certain procedures differ from the procedures outlined in the Embassy Paris website. The key differences are as follows:
- The American Presence Post in Lyon (APP Lyon) is open ONLY to individuals who have made appointments in advance – walk-ins are not permitted. Any American citizen wishing to come to the office must first telephone 04-78-38-33-03 and schedule an appointment.
- APP Lyon has no telephone operator or switchboard. Only one employee handles services for American citizens. If that one employee happens (as is often the case) to be either in the waiting room assisting citizens with pre-scheduled appointments or on the phone assisting other citizens with their queries, then a voice mail system will engage. Leave a specific message and your call WILL be returned as quickly as possible.
- APP Lyon does not accept payment by cash or cheque. Notarials can be paid for ONLY with mandats cash (available from any post office), and services such as passports and consular reports of birth abroad (CROBAs) can be paid for with either mandats cash or credit cards.
- Anyone who needs to obtain a mandat cash should telephone 04-78-38-33-03 in advance to discuss the amount that should be written on the mandat. The exchange rate listed in the post office is not necessarily the same exact exchange rate used by the consular cashier – to avoid having to return to the post office and obtain a new mandat, check the amount in advance by telephoning APP Lyon. If the post office offers to mail your mandat to the Embassy in Paris for you, decline – APP Lyon cannot perform services for you unless you have the mandat in hand.
- APP Lyon accepts passport applications, including applications to replace lost or stolen passports, but does not have the capability to accept applications for emergency passports. Anyone needing an emergency passport must go either to the American Embassy in Paris or the American Consulate General in Marseille.
- Due to the fact that all APP Lyon-managed passport applications pass through the American Embassy in Paris, passport applications accepted in Lyon take approximately one week longer than ones accepted in Paris. If a passport application submitted in Paris take 2-3 weeks before the new passport arrives, then the same application would take 3-4 weeks if initiated in Lyon. Anyone needing a passport in under three weeks should not apply through APP Lyon.
- American banks: There are no American banks in Auvergne, Bourgogne, or Rhône-Alpes. There is, however, a local French bank which specializes in meeting the banking needs of foreign residents of France.
- American clubs: To the best of our knowledge, only one American Club exists anywhere in Auvergne, Bourgogne, or Rhône-Alpes – the American Club of Lyon.
- American schools: There are no American schools in Auvergne, Bourgogne, or Rhône-Alpes.
- Post office closest to APP Lyon:
La Poste - Lyon Grolée
5 rue Grolée, 69002 LYON
Tel.: 04 78 38 42 50