Three seats were allocated to the Council of the Republic (the then-upper house of Parliament), representing citizens residing in Europe, America and Asia-Oceania.

The conflict between these organization and the National Assembly in appointing the three members of the Council of the Republic led to the decision to form an entirely new body to represent French citizens abroad.

In addition, the electoral boundaries were revised to account for the changing demographics of French nationals abroad.

The assembly also appoints representatives to various public agencies in France, including the National Stock Exchange, Permanent Commission for Employment and Vocational Training of French Citizens Abroad, etc.

[4] The AFE is composed of 90 members elected by universal suffrage from 15 districts around the world who serve six-year terms[4] Day-to-day affairs are run by a general secretariat.