What the file is for
Your tenant file gathers, once and for all, the information and documents a landlord asks for before renting you a home. You prepare it at your own pace, then apply in one click to listings, choosing each time what you share. Open the I am a tenant menu (top bar or the console's general menu, which gathers your leases, your email alerts and your file), then My tenant file (sign-in required, see Create your account).
1. Your profile
Fill in: first and last name, phone, current address, employment situation (employee, self-employed, student, retired, job seeker, other), occupation or studies, employer, net monthly income and its currency, number of people in the household, desired move-in date, maximum budget and, if you wish, a short introduction.
What we do not ask
Neither your nationality, nor your family situation, nor your health, nor your opinions: this information is not needed to assess an application.
2. Your guarantor
This section is separate from the profile. Choose the type of guarantor:
- Individual (a relative, a friend…): name, relationship, net monthly income, phone and email. Their ID, proof of address and proof of income are expected;
- Legal entity – Visale (Action Logement's free guarantee): visa number, name of the holder, issue date (optional) and validity date. The certified visa is expected among your documents;
- Legal entity – professional guarantor (GarantMe, Unkle, Cautioneo, SmartGarant, CLÉ scheme for students): pick the provider, then enter the contract or certificate number, the holder and the dates, as for Visale. The guarantee deed or certificate is expected among your documents;
- Legal entity – other company or organisation (bank guarantee, unpaid-rent insurance, employer, surety company…): company name, type of organisation, contract or file reference, contact phone and email. The guarantee deed or certificate is expected among your documents;
- No guarantor.
Visale visa and professional guarantor checks
When you enter a Visale visa or a professional guarantor (GarantMe, Unkle…), Smartlife runs automatic consistency checks, shown under the form:
- visa number: 6 to 20 letters or digits (spaces and hyphens ignored);
- holder's name: it must match the identity in your profile (accents, case and word order ignored);
- dates: issue date not in the future and before the end of validity;
- validity: the visa is not expired. An “Expires soon” reminder appears in the 15 days before the end date.
What this check does not do
Smartlife cannot query Visale: a “consistent” visa is not an authenticated visa. The landlord checks the visa on the official visale.fr website (or the guarantee with the chosen provider) and then confirms it in the application (see Handling applications). An expired or inconsistent visa cannot be confirmed: fix it in your file before applying.
3. Your supporting documents
For each document, upload a PDF, JPEG or PNG file of 5 MB at most (up to 6 files per type, 24 in total). The list depends on your situation:
A progress bar shows how complete the file is. A document can be viewed, replaced or deleted at any time; deleting it also removes it from all your applications.
- Always: valid ID, proof of address;
- Employee: proof of employment (contract or employer certificate), latest payslips;
- Self-employed: company registration extract or equivalent, proof of income;
- Student: student card (a guarantor is strongly advised);
- Retired, other: proof of income (pension, benefits, grant…);
- Recommended: latest tax notice.
A progress bar shows how complete the file is. A document can be viewed, replaced or deleted at any time; deleting it also removes it from all your applications.
Documents to renew
Some documents must be recent. A banner and badges flag those to renew:
- proof of address and payslips (yours and your guarantor's): valid for 3 months from upload;
- tax notice from the profile: to renew when its year is earlier than last year;
- “Expires soon” appears in the 15 days before the deadline, “To renew” afterwards.
Documents we never request
The law (ALUR act and decree no. 2015-1437) strictly limits what a landlord may require. Smartlife therefore never offers: bank statements, health insurance card, photo (other than the ID), certificate of good account standing or of no outstanding credit, direct-debit authorisation, medical records, criminal record extract, divorce judgment, certificate of no enforcement proceedings. If a landlord asks for them, you may refuse. The list follows the French framework; in other countries only the documents useful to assess the application remain requested.
Effort rate
When your income is filled in, the application page shows your effort rate for the listing: (rent + charges) ÷ net monthly income. It is a simple benchmark, for you and for the landlord; it does not decide the outcome of the application.
A watermark protects your documents
When a landlord views a document you shared, it is displayed with their company name as a watermark (repeated diagonal pattern) and the viewing date. They never receive the original: a copy or screenshot therefore carries the name of whoever obtained it. For this reason, a protected PDF, one over 30 pages or in a format that is too recent may be refused at upload: save it again as a standard PDF or send photos (JPEG, PNG). You always see your own documents without a watermark.
What next?
- Apply to a home with your file;
- check your rental reliability score;
- understand who sees what and your rights.