Définition
Under the terms of the definition adopted by the French High Council for Integration, an immigrant is a person who is born a foreigner and abroad, and resides in France. Persons who were born abroad and of French nationality and live in France are therefore not counted. Certain immigrants may have become French while others remain foreign. The foreign and immigrant populations only partially overlap: an immigrant is not necessarily foreign and certain foreigners were born in France (mainly children). Immigrant status is permanent: an individual will continue to belong to the immigrant population even if they acquire French nationality. It is the country of birth, and not nationality at birth, that defines the geographical origin of an immigrant.