French Reference Grammar - Verb forms
The immediate future
This tense is so called because it implies that something is going to be done or is going to happen in the near future, rather than at some indeterminate point in the future.
'I’m going to wash the dishes' is more immediate than 'I will wash the dishes'.
Nonetheless, it can be used with reference to events which are a long way away: 'At Christmas I’m going to Canada.'
In English, and in French, the immediate future is formed by using the present tense of the verb 'to go' - 'aller' - followed immediately by an infinitive.
'Je vais regarder la télévision.' - 'I’m going to watch television.'
'Nous allons aller en France.' - 'We’re going to go to France.'
In this construction, the infinitive never changes.
Note that the present tense can be used to express futurity if it is accompanied by an appropriate adverb or adverbial expression.
If, for example, you are travelling by train, it is 5 pm, and you say 'on arrive à six heures', you are expressing futurity although you are using the present tense.