Key points: - Approximately 4.7 million HIV tests were conducted in 2003, excluding blood donations, representing an average annual increase of 4% since 2001; - Approximately 10,900 tests returned positive in 2003, representing an average annual increase of 5% since 2001; - nearly 6,000 new HIV diagnoses in 2003; - nearly a quarter of all tests performed and half of all positive tests were conducted in the Île-de-France region; - the number of positive results remained stable relative to the total number of tests (2.3 per thousand from 2001 to 2003). (R.A.)