What is the French foreign-investment screening (IEF), and how does it work?

France screens foreign direct investment in sensitive/strategic sectors under the IEF regime (Investissements Étrangers en France, administered by the Ministry of the Economy / Trésor). It applies to non-French (with a tighter test for non-EU/EEA) investors acquiring control or crossing ownership thresholds in companies active in protected sectors — defence, energy, water, telecoms/networks, transport, health, critical technologies (AI, cyber, biotech), and other activities deemed essential to national interests. It's a suspensory authorization: the deal in scope can't close without clearance. Process: an initial review phase (around 30 business days) to decide whether the investment is in scope and can be cleared, and if concerns remain, an extended in-depth phase (around a further 45 business days) that can clear, attach conditions, or block. Conditions are common — commitments on maintaining French employment, R&D, production, security of supply, or governance safeguards. For a deal team it's another clearance to scope early, run in parallel with antitrust, and build into the SPA conditions and timeline, with risk allocation if it's blocked or heavily conditioned.