Франциядағы префекттің лауазымы

State's representative in a French department or region

A prefect (, plural préfets) in France is the state's representative in a department or region. Subprefects (French: sous préfets) are responsible for the subdivisions of departments, known as arrondissements. The office of a prefect is known as a prefecture and that of a subprefect as a subprefecture. Regional prefects are ex officio the departmental prefects of the regional prefecture. Prefects are tasked with upholding the law in the department they serve in, including controlling the actions of local authorities to ensure adhesion to national guidelines. They are authorised to sue local collectivities in the name of the state. Prefects are appointed by a decree of the President of France when presiding over the government's Council of Ministers, following a proposal by the Prime Minister and the Minister of the Interior. They serve at the government's discretion and can be replaced at any meeting of the Council of Ministers. From 1982 to 1988, under the Socialist administration of President François Mitterrand, prefects were called commissaires de la République (the Republic's commissioners) and subprefects commissaires adjoints de la République (the Republic's deputy commissioners).

In New Caledonia and French Polynesia, the prefect's roles, with certain differences in status, are fulfilled by a high commissioner; in Wallis and Futuna, by a superior administrator. The French Southern and Antarctic Lands used to be run by a superior administrator, but since 2004 are run by a prefect. The prefect, however, is not based in the territories, but in Réunion. Paris, which is both a city (commune) and a department, is an exception. While it has a prefect, who is also prefect of the Île de France region, another prefect handles law enforcement in Paris and some surrounding areas, as well many other administrative duties: the Prefect of Police of Paris. In Paris, the law enforcement powers exercised in other French cities and towns by the mayor belong to the Prefect of Police. In 2012, a Prefecture of Police of the Bouches du Rhône was also created, seated at Marseille, with similar powers. The authority of the state over the sea is exercised by the Maritime Prefect of the relevant region.