In response to an increase since 1999 in the number of AIDS cases among people of Sub-Saharan African nationality, a descriptive study of HIV-positive patients from Sub-Saharan Africa was conducted in several hospitals in the Ile-de-France region during the first half of 2002. The aim of this study was to describe the sociodemographic characteristics of these patients, their living conditions, how their HIV infection was diagnosed, and their medical history. Of the 250 people who agreed to participate in the study, 19% had arrived in France by 1987, 47% between 1988 and 1998, and 34% since 1999. Family reunification, continuing education, and job seeking accounted for 67% of the reasons for coming to France. At the time of the study, 47% of the individuals reported being unemployed, and 52% were living in precarious housing conditions. Six percent of those surveyed lacked health insurance coverage. The most common reason for HIV testing was the presence of symptoms, in 46% of cases. A multiple correspondence analysis identified three homogeneous groups of individuals: a group characterized primarily by men who arrived in France by 1987, were well-integrated socially, and discovered their HIV-positive status late; a group consisting mainly of women who came to France between 1988 and 1998 to reunite with family and who discovered their HIV-positive status during pregnancy; a third group comprising individuals who arrived in France since 1999, who lack social security coverage or have AME (Medical Aid for Foreigners) and live in conditions of extreme precariousness. According to immigration data from the Ministry of the Interior, the recent increase in the number of AIDS cases in France among people from sub-Saharan Africa is mainly due to the rise in migration flows from that region of the world, as evidenced in the study by the significant percentage of patients who arrived in France since 1999. Since the prevalence of HIV infection is very high in most Sub-Saharan African countries, a number of people from these countries develop AIDS after arriving in France. However, this increase also reflects a rise in the incidence of infections in recent years, which are often diagnosed late. Problems with access to health insurance coverage appear to have been partially resolved among the HIV-positive population from sub-Saharan Africa surveyed, but could resurface due to changes in the rules governing eligibility for AME. However, the socioeconomic vulnerability of these individuals remains a concern and constitutes a major obstacle to access to screening and adequate medical care.