ISTANBUL

French Defense Minister Catherine Vautrin announced on Monday at a press conference in Paris the opening of applications for a new paid 10-month “national service” designed to strengthen the ranks of the armed forces.

The recruitment campaign, led by the government and the armed forces’ general staff, aims to form an initial cohort of 3,000 young volunteers, women and men aged 18 to 25, whose induction is scheduled between September and November 2026. Applications open this month and will be reviewed on a rolling basis, with responses expected no later than July 1.

Announced in late November by President Emmanuel Macron, the new national service is described as “purely military.”

Volunteers will serve exclusively on national territory, both in mainland France and overseas, with no deployments abroad.

The scheme will be rolled out gradually. After 3,000 volunteers in 2026, the target is to reach 4,000 recruits in 2027, then 10,000 per year by 2030, and around 42,500 by 2035.

Ultimately, the annual total could reach 50,000, including the Voluntary Military Service and the Adapted Military Service, which will continue in parallel.

According to the Defense Ministry, about 80% of volunteers will be aged 18-19, for whom the service could serve as a “gap year” before higher education and be recognized within the Parcoursup university admissions system.

Other candidates, up to age 25, will be recruited based on specific skills, particularly in technical, medical, or language fields.

The service will provide a minimum monthly salary of €800 ($935). Volunteers will be housed, fed, and equipped, and will undergo one month of initial training before being assigned for nine months to missions carried out by the armed forces on national territory.

The launch of the new scheme also marks the abandonment of the Universal National Service (SNU). Introduced in 2019 and aimed at 15- to 17-year-olds, the SNU was never fully rolled out and is now considered by the government to be unsuited to the strategic context shaped by the war in Ukraine.