Court Clerks for Judicial Services: a second competitive examination session open for 2027

The Keeper of the Seals, Minister of Justice, has authorized the opening, for the year 2027, of a second external and internal competitive examination session for the recruitment of court clerks. The decree of October 21, 2026, published in the Official Journal (Journal officiel) No. 0250 on October 25, 2026, under reference NOR: JUSB2628160A, sets the written eligibility tests for March 31 and April 1, 2027, and opens the registration registers from November 4, 2026, to January 5, 2027.

This second session is in addition to the first, for which the number of positions was set on September 22, 2026 (NOR: JUSB2624755A, JORF No. 0224 of September 25, 2026): 435 positions in total, divided into 236 places for the external competition, 174 for the internal competition, and 25 for the third competition, supplemented by 52 places reserved for beneficiaries of the military invalidity pension code and 31 places offered to beneficiaries of the employment obligation. The written tests for this first session were held in October 2026.

For the second session, the number of positions is not yet known: it “will be the subject of a subsequent decree by the Keeper of the Seals, Minister of Justice,” as will the composition of the juries and the list of candidates authorized to take the tests.

A Tight Registration Schedule

Candidates have two months to apply, with the closing deadline set for 11:59 p.m. Paris time on the final day:

• opening of the registers on Wednesday, November 4, 2026;
• closing of registrations and online entry on Tuesday, January 5, 2027, at 11:59 p.m.;
• deadline for the withdrawal and submission of files on Tuesday, January 5, 2027, strict deadline.

Registration is carried out electronically via lajusticerecrute.fr, the website of the Ministry of Justice, or on the intranet of the Directorate of Judicial Services, under the section “HR for court staff and contractors.” If this is not possible, the printed application form can be collected from the office of the Public Prosecutor at the judicial court of the place of administrative residence, then sent no later than January 5, 2027 (postmark as proof) to the recruitment hub of the RHG4 office, 13, place Vendôme, 75042 Paris Cedex 01.

Thirty-eight Examination Centers, Including Overseas

The written tests will take place at the headquarters of the courts of appeal designated as examination centers, totaling 38 locations covering mainland France and overseas territories:

• in mainland France: Agen, Aix-en-Provence, Amiens, Angers, Bastia, Besançon, Bordeaux, Bourges, Caen, Chambéry, Colmar, Dijon, Douai, Grenoble, Limoges, Lyon, Metz, Montpellier, Nancy, Nîmes, Orléans, Paris, Pau, Poitiers, Reims, Rennes, Riom, Rouen, Toulouse and Versailles;
• overseas: Basse-Terre, Cayenne, Fort-de-France, Saint-Denis de La Réunion, the appeals chamber of Mamoudzou, the court of appeal of Nouméa and the court of appeal of Papeete;
• abroad and specific collectivities: the superior court of appeal of Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon.

Documents to provide and accommodations

The written eligibility tests for both the external and internal tracks are scheduled for March 31 and April 1, 2027. Eligible candidates must then adhere to several mandatory deadlines:

• individual information sheet (external competition) submitted online no later than May 28, 2027, at 5:00 PM;
• professional experience recognition file (RAEP, internal competition) submitted no later than June 9, 2027, at 5:00 PM, with a printed copy to be handed in on the day of the admission test;
• medical certificate from an approved doctor, issued less than six months before the tests, transmitted no later than March 10, 2027, for candidates with disabilities requesting an accommodation, in application of article R. 325-54 of the general code of the public service.

Candidates residing in a collectivity mentioned in Article 72-3 of the Constitution, abroad, with a disability, who are pregnant, or whose state of health requires it, may request to take the oral admission test via videoconference, under the conditions of the decree of July 8, 2024; the request must reach rhg4.dsj-sdrhg@justice.gouv.fr no later than May 28, 2027.

For candidates for the judicial public service, this second session constitutes a second chance within the same calendar year, with a schedule shifted by six months compared to the first. Interested parties must nevertheless monitor the publication of the decree fixing the number of positions, which will determine the actual scale of the opening.

Source: Official Journal of the French Republic, JORF No. 0250 of October 25, 2026, decree of October 21, 2026 authorizing the opening of a 2nd external and internal competition session for the recruitment of judicial service clerks (NOR: JUSB2628160A).