Legion of Honour served France or the ideals it upholds may receive the honour. Foreign nationals who live in France are subject to the same requirements as the French. Foreign nationals who live abroad may be awarded a distinction of any rank or dignity in the . Foreign heads of state and their spouses or consorts of monarchs are made Grand Cross as a courtesy. American and British veterans who served in either World War I on French soil, or during the 1944 campaigns to liberate France, may be eligible for appointment as Chevalier of the Legion of Honour, provided they were still
Legion of Honour Officer levels, as a recognition of "extraordinary careers" ("). In 2009, Simone Veil became the first person to enter the Order at Grand Officer level. Veil was a member of the , a former Health Minister and President of the European Parliament, as well as an Auschwitz survivor. She was promoted to Grand Cross in 2012. The acceptance of being awarded the Legion of Honour is not mandatory. The composers Maurice Ravel and Charles Koechlin, for example, declined the award when it was offered to them. While membership in the is technically restricted to French nationals, foreign nationals who have