Committee of the Parties to the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings

Recommendation CP/Rec(2026)03

on the implementation of the Council of Europe Convention

on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings

by France

adopted at the 38th meeting of the Committee of the Parties

on 3 July 2026

The Committee of the Parties to the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (hereinafter referred to as “the Convention”), acting under the terms of Article 38(7) of the Convention;

Having regard to the purposes of the Convention to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings, while guaranteeing gender equality, protect the human rights of victims of trafficking, design a comprehensive framework for the protection and assistance of victims and witnesses, ensure the effective investigation and prosecution of the offences related to trafficking in human beings, and promote international co-operation;

Bearing in mind the provisions of Article 36(1) of the Convention concerning the monitoring role of the Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA) in the implementation of the Convention;

Having regard to the Rules of Procedure of the Committee of the Parties;

Having regard to the instrument of ratification deposited by France on 22 May 2006;

Having examined the fourth report concerning the implementation of the Convention by France, adopted by GRETA at its 56th meeting (2-6 March 2026), as well as the comments of the French Government received on 2 June 2026;

Bearing in mind the focus of the fourth evaluation round of the Convention on vulnerabilities to human trafficking and measures taken to prevent them, detect and support vulnerable victims, and punish the offenders, as well as the additional focus on the use of information and communication technology (ICT);

Considering the conclusions and proposals for action contained in Appendix 2 of GRETA’s fourth report on France related to the thematic focus of the fourth evaluation round and follow-up topics specific to France;

Welcoming the measures taken and the progress achieved by France in implementing the Convention, and in particular:

-       the launch of the third National Action Plan to combat the exploitation and trafficking of human beings(2024-2027), including specific measures on children, and the establishment of a committee to monitor its implementation;

-       the increase in the staffing levels of the Interministerial task force on combating violence against women and human trafficking (MIPROF), responsible for the co-ordination of national anti-trafficking action;

-       the efforts to raise awareness among the general public and the business sector of the risks of human trafficking, including during the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games;

-       the efforts to improve assistance for victims of trafficking and the opening of the first specialised shelter for child victims of trafficking;

-       the increase in the number of residence permits granted to victims of trafficking;

-       the significant increase in the number of courts andprosecution offices that have appointed a person among prosecutors and judges to act as a focal point for human trafficking cases;  

-       the efforts to strengthen the detection of cases of trafficking for the purpose of labour exploitation, which have led to a notable increase in the number of identified victims and prosecutions.

A.           Recommends that the Government of France take measures to address the following issues for urgent action[1] identified in GRETA’s report:

1.    step up efforts to improve the prevention of trafficking in children and young adults, in particular by:

-     further enhancing the capacities, resources and training of child protection professionals and staff of the Child Welfare Service’s centres;

-     taking measures to deal effectively with the problem of disappearance of children from the Child Welfare Service’s centres, by providing them with secure accommodation, appropriate services and a sufficient number of appropriately trained supervisors, and by alerting them to the risks of abuse and exploitation;

-     implementing economic and social measures and programmes to assist children placed in the child protection system with their reintegration into society, including after they have turned 18; 

-     ensuring that unaccompanied children are given proper support, including accommodation in safe, child-friendly centres or foster families and access to education, healthcare and legal assistance, so as to reduce the risk of exploitation by traffickers who target vulnerable children;

-     improving the recruitment and training of ad hoc administrators, particularly on the issue of unaccompanied children, and appointing an ad hoc administrator for such children as soon as they are brought to the attention of the authorities are by incorporating a presumption of minority into the relevant legislation;

-     stepping up efforts to prevent child trafficking not only for the purpose of sexual exploitation but also for other types of exploitation, such as forced labour, forced begging and forced criminality, in particular by raising awareness among stakeholders who may be in contact with children;

-     setting up systems for prevention and protection specifically adapted to the conditions in each overseas département (administrative division) and region, particularly for French Guiana and Martinique (paragraph 45);

2.    revise the relevant legislation to reduce the dependence of migrant workers on their employers (paragraph 57);

3.    take additional measures to prevent asylum seekers from becoming victims of trafficking in human beings, in particular by:

-     improving the social and economic integration of asylum seekers, focusing in particular on their access to the labour market, vocational training and health services;

-     making more places available in the national reception scheme (DNA) so as to guarantee all asylum seekers access to decent housing;

-     ensuring that a proper assessment of vulnerabilities is carried out on all asylum seekers to identify their individual vulnerabilities andneeds (paragraph 72);

4.    improve the identification of victims of trafficking and, in particular:

-     introduce without a further delay a national identification and referral mechanism, defining the role to be played and the procedure to be followed by all stakeholders that may come into direct contact with victims of human trafficking, including specific procedures relating to children which take account of the specific situation and needs of child victims of human trafficking, and set up a procedure for identifying victims of human trafficking who are French nationals and EU/EEA country nationals;

-     ensure that, in practice, the identification of victims of human trafficking is not subject to their co-operation with law enforcement agencies;

-     increase the capacities for detection in overseas territories and along the border between France and the United Kingdom and between France and Italy by increasing police and gendarme staffing numbers, training professionals on specific local characteristics and supporting the work of NGOs(paragraph 125);

5.    take additional steps to fulfil the obligations under Article 12 of the Convention, in particular by:

-     ensuring that human trafficking victims are given appropriate support and assistance, in keeping with their individual needs and for as long as necessary, in order to facilitate their reintegration and recovery;

-     ensuring that all victims of human trafficking, including men, irregular migrants and victims of trafficking for the purpose of labour exploitation, are provided with accommodation that is safe and suitable for their needs;

-     providing sufficient long-term funding to ensure that the services offered by NGOs are diverse and of high quality, in particular NGOs which specialise in assisting victims of trafficking for labour exploitation, criminal exploitation and exploitation of begging (paragraph 135);

6.    step up efforts to identify child victims of trafficking and provide them with appropriate assistance, in particular by:

-     introducing specific procedures for children in the national identification and referral mechanism to be established (paragraph 125), taking into account the particular situation and needs of trafficked children, making the best interests of the child a primary consideration, involving child specialists, and defining the role to be played and the procedure to be followed by all authorities and professionals who may come into direct contact with child victims of human trafficking, including NGOs;

-     providing in-service training and tools to stakeholders (law enforcement agencies, prosecutors’ offices, asylum and migration authorities, airport staff, service providers, educational staff, child protection authorities, NGOs) in relation to the identification of child victims of human trafficking;

-     taking measures to prevent children and young adults entrusted to the care of  Child Welfare Service (ASE) centres from being recruited for purposes of exploitation through prostitution by providing them with secure accommodation and specialised services with a sufficient number of appropriately trained staff;

-     developing reintegration programmes for child victims of human trafficking (paragraph 145);

7.    align the notion of abuse of vulnerability contained in Article 225-4-1 of the Criminal Code with that of the Convention, which covers all forms of vulnerability, whether physical, psychological, emotional, family-related, social or economic (paragraph 156);

8.    guarantee that victims of human trafficking are granted a recovery and reflection period, by:

-     ensure that presumed foreign trafficking victims, including EU/EEA nationals (see paragraph 114), are systematically informed of the possibility of obtaining a recovery and reflection period and that they are granted such a period in practice;

-     ensure that the relevant authorities are informed of the State’s positive obligation to grant a recovery and reflection period, regardless of whether the victim has made such a request. Reference is made to GRETA’s Guidance Note on the recovery and reflection period (paragraph 205);

9.    take additional measures to ensure that victims of trafficking can fully benefit from the right to obtain a residence permit, including on grounds of their personal situation, and in particular:

-     providing information and training on human trafficking to relevant staff of the prefectures;

-     increasing the human resources deployed for the management of the ANEF platform so as to remedy its technical failings and ensuring that applications are dealt with promptly and reliably or to arranging alternative means for victims of human trafficking to submit their case;

-     ensuring that residence permits are issued to victims within a reasonable time;

-     guaranteeing that Algerian nationals who are victims of human trafficking can obtain a renewable residence permit, in accordance with Articles 3 (non-discrimination) and 14 of the Convention (paragraph 214);

10. adopt a specific legal provision on the non-punishment of victims of THB for their involvement in unlawful activities to the extent that they were compelled to do so and/or to issue instructions to investigators and prosecutors specifying the scope of the non-punishment provision, which applies not only to children but also to adults coerced into unlawful activities (paragraph 236).

B.           Bearing in mind GRETA’s conclusions that some recommendations made repeatedly in preceding evaluation rounds have not been implemented or have been only partially implemented, requests the French authorities to take steps to implement the recommendations in points 4, 5, 6 and 10 as a matter of priority;

C.       Recommends that the French authorities take measures to implement the other proposals for action listed in Appendix 2 of GRETA’s fourth evaluation report;

D.      Requests the Government of France to report to the Committee of the Parties on the measures taken to comply with this recommendation by 3 July 2028;

E.       Invites the Government of France to continue the dialogue in progress with GRETA and to keep GRETA regularly informed of the measures taken in response to GRETA’s conclusions.