I have lived in France since August 1999 and would like to apply for
French Citizenship and passport. A partial reason is that this will
enable me to travel to certain countries for my job without having to
apply for visas that are requiremd for US Passport holders. Can you
please summarize the requirements of French Citizenship, and where I
would initiate the process, and how long it takes between application
and reception of passport

"To apply for a citizenship by naturalisation in France, you must have
lived there continuously for at least five years, be over 18, prove
your ability to speak and write French to a reasonable standard, be of
good character and prove yourself loyal to France..."

Please read whole link first.  ... apply at local perfecture .. etc.


http://72.14.221.104/search?q=cache:8f6IusprcB8J:www.riddellcroft.com/French/FrenchCitizenship.htm+procedure+for+french+citizenship&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10

   (This id from cache, original link
www.riddellcroft.com/French/FrenchCitizenship.htm is gone)


You did not mentioned your current citizenship, (I assume US by default)
nor any 'blood' or mariage ties.


"France has a complicated procedure for granting "easy" citizenship.
According to the jus sanguinis principle, a child of French citizen
parents is ..."
http://migration.ucdavis.edu/mn/more.php?id=312_0_4_0



 Without  'right blood' is a complex procedure which takes patience,
 many give up:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/global/main.jhtml?xml=/global/2005/10/24/exmiles.xml

Here is ofiicial info (in french)
http://www.vie-publique.fr/decouverte_instit/citoyen/citoyen_1_2_1_q4.htm

and interpretation of it  in English:
Mark's Blog: Nationalité & citizenship
Here's what I found out about Americans requesting French citizenship
(nationalit n French) ... After that, the procedure can probably take
up to a year. ...
http://mcraig.org/mark/archives/001108.html

Goof luck

Hedgie