The FHCM runs two womenswear weeks a year in Paris, in September and March. The March week shows Fall/Winter collections, usually shortened to AW. Its Official Calendar lists two kinds of event: runway shows, each with a single start time, and presentations, which run over a window of time by appointment.

The FHCM's published dates around the AW27 womenswear week are:

• Menswear Fall/Winter 2027-2028 Tuesday 19 January to Sunday 24 January 2027

• Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2027 Monday 25 January to Thursday 28 January 2027

• Womenswear Fall/Winter 2027-2028 Monday 1 March to Tuesday 9 March 2027

Paris closes fashion month, after the other big womenswear weeks. The next womenswear week after AW27 is Spring/Summer 2028, from 27 September to 5 October 2027.

In June 2026 AFP spoke to models and agents in Paris and set out the route to a show:

1. Once the official show schedule is published, agencies propose models to casting directors.

2. The models picked go through further rounds: pre-selections and castings.

3. The last stage is a fitting, where the clothes are tried on to see how they look on the model and how they move on a runway.

Even a fitting is no guarantee of a place. Dozens of models can turn up to one casting, and the models AFP spoke to were open about rejection. "There are more nos than yeses," said Kenza Thiam, 21. One agent told AFP that the walk is not everything: the moment a model enters the room matters most, because casting directors have often partly made up their minds by then. As an industry saying puts it, you do not know you are walking in the show until you are on the runway.

The words casting and go-see are used loosely in Paris, as everywhere else. Our guides to go-sees for new models and how castings work explain the difference, and the model's handbook covers the rest of the vocabulary.

Two sets of rules apply to a lot of Paris work: French law, and a charter signed by two of the biggest luxury groups.

French law

Under decrees published in May 2017, models need an occupational health certificate before they can work in France. An occupational health doctor issues it, it lasts up to two years, and it confirms that the model's overall health, judged with particular regard to body mass index, allows them to work as a model. Doctors take weight, age and body shape into account rather than applying a fixed cut-off. The rule also covers models from other European Economic Area countries who come to work in France. Employers who break it face fines of up to €75,000 and up to six months in prison.

A separate rule, in force since 1 October 2017, means retouched images used in advertising must carry the label "photographie retouchée".

The LVMH and Kering charter

In September 2017 LVMH and Kering, owner of Gucci, Balenciaga and Saint Laurent, signed a charter on working with models. It applies to their brands and to the agencies and other contractors they work with. Among its terms:

• Age Brands must not hire models under 16 for shows or shoots representing an adult

• Models aged 16 to 18 They may not work between 10pm and 6am, and need a chaperone appointed by their agency, who can be a parent

• Sizes French size 32 for women and 42 for men are banned, so agencies send women from size 34 and men from size 44

• Health Models must show a medical certificate obtained less than six months before the show or shoot

• Care on the job Food and drink that suits the model's diet, access to a psychologist or therapist during working hours, and a direct way to complain about agencies, casting directors or brand staff

Kering has since raised its own minimum age for models to 18.

Most of the work happens before a model gets on a train or a plane. This is how we approach it.

• Fresh digitals and an edited book Casting directors see your pictures before they see you. Digitals should show how you look now, so update them close to the season. Our step-by-step on digitals explains what a good set looks like

• Current measurements A fitting checks how the clothes sit on you, so the measurements your agency sends out need to be this season's, not last season's

• Paperwork in order That means a valid passport, the health certificate French law asks for, and any medical certificate a brand needs under its own rules

• A walk that is ready Practise before the season, because a casting can ask to see your walk in any room, runway or not

• A plan for each day Castings in show season run back to back across the city. Your booker builds the schedule; your part is to keep your phone charged, check it often and be on time

• Looking after yourself Sleep, food and water matter on long casting days. The new models AFP spoke to talked about running, eating carefully and meditating, and about patience above all

If a season ends without a show, it is not the end. As one new model told AFP, one booking can lead to others. Our model management page explains how we look after the people we represent through a season.