Her father, Jean-Claude Joseph Lavigne, is a French national. Her mother, Judith-Rosanne "Judy" (Loshaw), has English, Scottish, and German ancestry. Avril and her siblings are both Canadian and French citizens from birth, as France applies the "right of blood". Avril applied for, and received, her French passport in February 2011. She has since spent a significant amount of time living in Paris and learning French.