The Minister of the Interior is responsible for the following:

• The general interior security of the country, with respect to criminal acts or natural catastrophes including the major law-enforcement forces
• The French National Police, the French Gendarmerie for its police operations (as a part of the French Armed Forces, the Gendarmerie is administratively under the purview of the Ministry of Defence) General directorate for civil defence and crisis management (Sécurité Civile) the directorate of Firefighters (Sapeurs-Pompiers)
• Granting of identity documents (passports, identity cards) and driving licenses through the network of préfectures elations between the central government and local governments logistics and organization of political elections, at the national and prefectoral levels (but the results of the elections are overseen by the Constitutional Council or the administrative courts)
• Regulation of immigration and preventing illegal immigration, integration of legal immigrants (professionally, linguistically, housing)
• All départemental préfets and sub-prefects are subordinate to the Minister of the Interior.
• Takes on the role of the former Ministre des cultes and is formally consulted in the process of appointment of Catholic diocesan bishops (Briand-Ceretti Agreement). The Minister of Worship used to be a fully-fledged minister, but this position no longer exists since 1912.

While the Ministry of the Interior supervises police forces, it does not supervise criminal enquiries. Those enquiries are conducted under the supervision of the judiciary.