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Reader question: Can I travel to France if I am fully vaccinated?

Those lucky enough to have received both doses of their vaccine are beginning to think of international travel again, but some restrictions remain in place even for the double-jabbed.

Published: 21 May 2021 17:12 CEST
Updated: 29 May 2021 09:09 CEST
Reader question: Can I travel to France if I am fully vaccinated?
Travel is opening up, but is not paperwork-free even for the fully vaccinated. Photo: Eric Cabanis/AFP

Question: I have received both doses of the vaccine in the UK, so do the new travel restrictions apply to me or can I still travel?

Congratulations on the vaccine, but at present travel rules apply in the same way even to the fully vaccinated.

There are talks going on at bilateral and EU level about vaccine passports and exemptions for the fully vaccinated, but at present the rules for entering France are the same whether you are vaccinated or not.

Anyone over the age of 11 entering France needs to present at the border a negative Covid test. There are only a few groups exempt from the testing requirement, mostly cross-border workers and hauliers, you can find the full list here.

You also need to fill in a declaration stating that you do not have Covid symptoms, have not been in contact with any Covid patients and you agree to abide by relevant quarantine and travel restrictions – you can find the form HERE.

The rest of the rules depend on where you are travelling from;

  • If you’re coming from the UK after May 31st you can only enter France if your journey is essential, you need a negative Covid test less than 48 hours old and must quarantine for seven days. Full details here
  • If you’re coming from within the EU or Schengen zone you can travel for any reason and do not need to quarantine – full details here
  • If you’re coming from Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Israel, Japan and Singapore you can travel for any reason but you need to quarantine for 7 days (doing this in your own home or with friends/relatives is fine and there are no checks in place) – full details here
  • If you’re coming from a non-EU country that is not on the above list, you can only travel for essential reasons, full details here.

Obviously, also check your home country’s rules and recommendations on travel to France. Travelling against official government advice can invalidate travel insurance policies.  

When will this change?

Any vaccine passport in France definitely won’t come in before June 9th, when France introduces the health passport for domestic purposes such as going to concerts.

The EU has come to an agreement on EU-wide recognition of passes with a provisional start date of July 1st.

However, border decisions lie with individual countries within the EU, so French government will have the ultimate say on who gets to enter and what paperwork they need to show and can still decide to impose extra restrictions such as quarantine on arrivals from certain countries.

France already has its health passport app up and running – it’s called TousAntiCovid and you can read about it here – but it works by scanning QR codes from vaccine certificates, which could be a problem for residents in countries that don’t issue certificates with QR codes on them.

The government has said there will be an option for paper forms too, for people who don’t have smartphones, but we don’t yet know the full details of this.

Any vaccine pass or health passport will also have the option to upload test certificates, for people who either cannot be vaccinated or don’t want to be, or proof of having recently recovered from Covid.

We will update our Travelling to France section as soon as we know more.

Member comments

  1. We are hoping to transit France to reach Italy. This would normally involve a hotel or campsite stopover to break the journey, but I am not sure whether transiting is permitted, (We are both fully vaccinated.) Are there any provisions to allow transit?

  2. I have 2 nationalities: French and American, living in the USA. I am fully vaccinated since February. I plan to travel to France from New York on June 20. What do I need besides my vaccination card, which has the dates of my vaccination
    as well as the type of vaccine used ?
    Michel

    1. I also have the same question, but for just an American who also fully vaccinated for months already, planning to travel to France on June 18th.

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TRAVEL NEWS

ID, pets and smoking: 7 things French train ticket inspectors can fine you for

From sitting in the wrong seat to not having your ID on you, here are a few of the rules you need to know in order to avoid fines from France's ticket inspectors.

Published: 13 March 2024 15:44 CET
ID, pets and smoking: 7 things French train ticket inspectors can fine you for

SNCF inspectors on trains in France have something of a ‘jobsworth’ reputation – a recent article in a French newspaper referred to them as ‘les cow-boys‘ and accused them of ‘avoir le sang chaud‘ – ie being hot-blooded or over-enthusiastic.

While it’s true that a minority of railway conductors can seem a little overzealous at times, in most cases they are merely doing their jobs in what can often be difficult circumstances. Anyway, they’re nothing like as bad as the Paris Metro ticket inspectors.

SNCF regulations sometimes leave travellers stunned to find themselves fined, often expensively. Here are a few pointers to help you sort out the obligations on board a train and in a station.

Carry ID when you travel

Conductors rarely ask for identity papers, and usually just scan the ticket, but not being able to show an official document on demand means you could be fined the same amount as if you didn’t have a ticket. 

This is because rail tickets, whether they’re for TGV, Intercités or TER services, are in a person’s name. In the event of an inspection, you may be required to show proof of ID – a photocopy or photo on your mobile phone is not acceptable. 

The same applies to holders of a discount or season ticket, such as the Navigo pass. 

If you’re taking a cross-border train you should have your passport or ID card with you. Although document checks within the Schengen zone are not common, they do happen and you will need a valid travel documents – this includes a passport or national ID card, but does not include a driver’s licence or carte de séjour.

Don’t use someone else’s ticket

Linked to the above, don’t swap tickets with someone else, even if they can’t travel – just in case you need to show some form of ID.

If you don’t have a ticket in your name then you in effect are travelling without a ticket.

Your ticket must be valid for the train you’re using

Don’t try to sneak on an earlier train with a ticket for a later one. In France, a ticket is valid only for the date and time of the train listed on it. If you arrive at the station in time to catch an earlier train, you need to exchange your ticket for the earlier service, or cancel your ticket, get a refund and buy one for the correct service. The same is true if you miss your train, whether it’s your fault or not.

In most regions, TER tickets can be refunded free of charge up to the day before departure, but cannot be exchanged, while a €19 fee applies to TGV ticket exchanges made within six days of departure.

Sit in your assigned a seat

If you are on a train with an assigned seat, use it. One SNCF user took to social media after he was fined €270 for swapping his standard class seat with another user, who had a first class ticket, but wanted to sit with someone who did not. 

Similar to air travel, in theory, everyone must be seated in their assigned seat on a train in France. You may ask a conductor if you can swap seats, but they are not obliged to say yes.

Smoking is banned on trains and station platforms

It seems like a lot of French train passengers have missed this memo, but smoking is outlawed in “a vehicle or area used for public transport of passengers by rail or guided vehicles”.

That includes the train platform and the station (although in reality you’ll often see people hopping off the train for a quick smoke on the platform while a train is in the station).

You can be fined €68 for smoking on a train, or €30 on the platform. Don’t spit on the platform, either – you could cop a €150 fine.

You need a ticket for your pet 

Dogs are allowed on all French trains (apart from the Eurostar), but unless they are registered assistance dogs they will need their own ticket, which costs €7.

Depending on their size they may need to wear a muzzle. Other pets such as cats can also travel, but need to be in a secure carrier – full details here. If you have a pet snail (and who doesn’t?) then it will also need a ticket in order to travel.

And maybe your bike

You can take your bike with you on most types of train, but you may need to reserve a space in advance at a cost of €10. This varies depending on the type of train, with local TER and suburban rail services generally free to take bikes on, while high-speed TGV services may require a reservation. Full details here.

Please note that this is not an exhaustive list of rules, merely some of the most common reasons that people get fined while travelling on a French train.

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