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VACCINE

UPDATE: How to get the French vaccination certificate (and what to do if you don’t have a carte vitale)

For those who want to travel this summer it looks like a vaccination certificate will be the must-have accessory - so here's how to get one.

Published: 7 May 2021 16:34 CEST
Updated: 27 May 2021 15:20 CEST
UPDATE: How to get the French vaccination certificate (and what to do if you don't have a carte vitale)
Photo: Bertrand Guay/AFP

If you are not yet vaccinated

People getting the vaccine now should be given the certificate when they get the injection.

This is a paper certificate with a QR code that can be scanned into the TousAntiCovid app to create a ‘health pass’ that, from June, can be used for international travel and to access certain leisure activities.

It looks like the example below and to upload it you open up the TousAntiCovid app, click on ‘my wallet’ and then ‘scan QR code’. Point your phone’s camera at the square code on the right hand side, and it will take a picture and then upload the certificate.

A carte vitale is not necessary to get the certificate.

READ ALSO How to book an appointment for a Covid vaccine in France

If you are already vaccinated

Since the certificates only started being given out at appointments from May 3rd, people who got their vaccine before that won’t have a certificate.

For most people, the easiest way for people to get them is via their Ameli account.

And from Thursday, certificates are ready to download for account holders. Simply log in to your account and head to attestation-vaccin.ameli.fr

Ameli is an online portal to the French health insurance system and if you don’t already have one – here’s how to set up an account.

If you don’t have a carte vitale

In order to set up an Ameli account, however, you need a French social security number, which is a problem for those not yet registered within the French health system.

We asked the health ministry what their advice was for people who do not yet have their carte vitale and therefore can’t use Ameli.

They told us: “These groups are invited to contact the vaccination centre or the doctor/pharmacist who performed the injection to obtain a paper certificate of vaccination.”

You should take along with you the certificate or card that you were given when you were vaccinated in order to swap it for the new certificate. All centres should be ready to do this from May 29th, but some centres have already begun.

Once you have the crucial certificate, you can scan it into the TousAntiCovid app and voilà you have a health passport.

READ ALSO How France’s ‘health pass’ will work

Member comments

  2. We had our second jab last Friday (so after 3 May) in Cherbourg but they could not issue us with our certificates because we don’t have social security numbers. The very pleasant girl at the desk explained that they don’t have a way of issuing certificates to people without a social security number/Carte Vitale. She said they will hopefully find out how to do it and when they do they’ll send the certificates out to us. We believe her but are anxious that the system won’t allow us to have a certificate. Can The Local get any further clarification on this?

  3. How do I get a ‘Health Passport’ with a US Vaccination Certificate that does not have a QR Code to upload?

  4. If we can show evidence of having had both doses in the UK can we get a French certificate to add to out Tous Anti-Covid app?

  5. I don’t have a carte vitale or Ameli account. I received my second jab on April 9 and received a vaccination certificate with a QR code from the City of Nice at that time, showing both vaccinations. (Note that this date is before the date your article says when QR codes will be included.) However, my QR code doesn’t work with the AntiCovid app.

    Should I wait a few weeks and check it again or should I contact the City for a new QR code?

  6. As I’ve had Covid I only get one vaccine and don’t yet have my CV ( applied for in October) will I still be able to get health certificate?

  7. I am planning (hoping) to travel to France in July. I’m an American citizen and have been fully vaccinated since March. I have a card from the CDC and can easily link on my phone to the hospital system that houses all my information, including which vaccine I received and when. So…what am I supposed to do?

  8. i have had both injections but it was before the beginning of May. I have the Anticovid app on my phone and want to get the Covid Passport. Is the number on my carte vitale a social security number? i cannot register on the Amelie site.

  9. It would be really useful if you could discover whether UK citizens will be able to use the NHS app to p[rove their vaccination status. I discovered this morning that the NHS app now creates a QR code (it didn’t yesterday!!!) which you can print or carry as a pdf – I have tried scanning this into the Tousanticovid app, but the app doesn’t recognise it….

  10. Our primary residence is in the US, and that is where we were fully vaccinated. How do we prove this to the EU and specifically to France where our second home is? We have a vaccination card, but it is in English and has no QR code.

  11. I had my 2 vaccines in Paris in May before I received my French social security number. I now have my Carte Vitale and have created an Ameli account. Does anyone know a way to link my previous vaccinations to show up in Ameli?

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For members

WORK PERMITS

Reader question: How long will it take to renew my Swiss permit?

The answer to this question, which is, naturally, of concern to foreign nationals living in Switzerland, depends on several factors.

Published: 21 June 2023 12:25 CEST
Reader question: How long will it take to renew my Swiss permit?

The first thing to consider is what kind of work/residency permit you have, as different rules apply.

Let’s look at the long-term B permits and permanent residency C permits that most foreign nationals living in Switzerland are likely to have.

Typically in both of these cases, you will receive a letter from local authorities approximately six weeks before the deadline reminding you to renew.

There will also be an application form that you will need to fill out, which must be submitted to your commune of residence no earlier than three months and no later than two weeks prior to the expiration date.

READ ALSO: When and how should you renew your Swiss residence permit?

Some cantons also impose additional rules for certain categories of foreigners. 

In Geneva, for instance, non-EU/EFTA spouses of B or C permit holders must include a French language certificate if it had not yet been done previously.

Further, for nationals of a non-EU/EFTA state who depend on social assistance for an amount equal to or greater than 50,000 francs for a single person or 80,000 francs for a household of several people, a letter indicating the reasons for the dependence on government aid and the steps taken to get out of it must be submitted.

In Vaud, “your situation and your degree of integration are examined, in particular your financial autonomy”.

Your canton may have other special rules in place as well, so it’s good to find them out beforehand, allowing you to submit all the necessary paperwork with your renewal application.

How long does the renewal process take?

The extension of your current permit may depend on various factors set by your canton which, in turn, may determine how long the renewal process will take.

In straightforward cases, you will receive the renewal within two to four weeks. However, this timeline is not set in stone.

It may happen that the new permit is not immediately issued, because the volumes of applications to be processed are very large, especially in cantons with a sizeable foreign population like Geneva, Zurich, Basel, and Vaud.

And the stricter the regulations (as mentioned above), the longer the process is likely to take.

Can authorities refuse to extend your permit?

Yes, that can happen under certain circumstances.

For instance, short-term L or B permits that are tied to a particular job, which ends within the specified time period (usually up to a year), will expire when the contract is over.

As non-EU / EFTA nationals are subject to a quota system, their work permits are not automatically renewed either.

Other reasons include lack of integration or dependence on welfare, as mentioned above. Also, if you’ve committed serious crimes or other infractions, you can kiss your permit goodbye.

And if you forgot to apply for renewal in the first place, then you forfeit your right to the permit.

The authorities could take special circumstances, such as serious illness, a debilitating accident, or another extreme situation into consideration and make an exception, but you shouldn’t count on that.

READ ALSO: Can Swiss authorities refuse to renew work permits — and for what reasons?

What if you applied on time and provided all the required documentation, but your permit expired before a new one was issued?

The good news is that, if you are a holder of either a long-term B or settlement C permit, your rights are protected while you wait for the renewal.

You can continue to work and live in Switzerland as before.

Under the Foreign Nationals and Integration Act, “when the person concerned has submitted an application to extend a permit, he or she is authorised to stay in Switzerland during the procedure, provided that no other decision has been taken”.

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