Overview

• By age 17, 25% of young people from rural areas have left home versus 4% in dense urban zones, and more than half of rural youths are independent before 19.
• Within the countryside, early departures are most common among those raised in the most isolated communes.
• Leaving home clusters around schooling milestones, with 16% moving for secondary studies and 20% departing after the baccalauréat.
• Later exits follow the end of studies, driven by first jobs (10%), couple formation (13%) or other reasons (12%), and most movers settle in cities.
• Rural-origin youths are more likely to return home after a period away (51% versus 40% for urban-origin), and 10% nationally have never left by 26, rising to 17% in dense urban areas.