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COVID-19: ESSENTIAL INFO

Face masks to cafés: What Covid-19 rules are still in place in France?

Falling Covid-19 cases in France have prompted the government to ease certain restrictions earlier than anticipated - but some rules still remain. Here's a round-up of what rules and restrictions you still need to respect.

Face masks to cafés: What Covid-19 rules are still in place in France?
Nightlife is returning to towns and cities across France, but some Covid-19 restrictions remain in place Photo: Ludovic Marin | AFP

Tumbling Covid case numbers and increasing vaccine rates lead to the government announcing last week two accelerations of the reopening plan – an earlier than expected end to the curfew and the lifting of the requirement for face masks in some outdoor areas.

But that’s not the end of the strict health measures. Many remain in place including for bars and restaurants, festivals and events and the €135 fines are still being dished out for people who fail to respect the rules.

Face masks

Prime Minister Jean Castex announced that wearing masks outdoors is no longer compulsory from Thursday, June 17th. But he also said wearing a mask would remain the rule, “when we get together, when we are in a crowded place – a queue, in a market or in the stands of a stadium”.

Wearing masks in indoor public spaces – including shops, cinemas, and schools – remains compulsory.

They are also still compulsory in certain outdoor spaces including stadiums, queues, open air markets, busy places and public gatherings and on public transport. Pupils from primary age upwards will no longer have to wear masks in the school playground, the government confirmed on Wednesday, but they remain compulsory for most employees in the workplace.

You can find the full list of places where you still need a mask HERE.

Curfew

The curfew is now over so you can stay out all night for any reason and there is no longer any requirement to have an attestation when leaving the home.

The Health Pass

France’s Pass Sanitaire scheme launched on June 9th. You can find a complete list of places and events where it is necessary to hold proof of vaccination, recovery or a recent negative Covid-19 test here.

Gyms, swimming pools and sporting venues

We’re still on phase three of reopening for gyms, swimming pools and sporting venues, meaning they are open but with limits on the numbers who can gain entry at any one time and strict health rules in place, which means changing rooms may be closed.

As things stand, capacity limits are set to be lifted on June 30th – but this depends on the health situation at that time and the government may decide to do this on a local basis.

ALSO READ: EXPLAINED: The rules on playing or watching sport in France this summer

Bars and restaurants

Rules that came into force on June 9th are still in effect. So, while a capacity of 100 percent is allowed on bars and restaurants’ outdoor terraces, a 50 percent maximum indoor capacity – with a maximum of six people per table – remains. 

Customers are required to provide contact details if they want to eat or drink indoors and bar service remains banned.

Cinemas

On Wednesday June 9th, the upper limit on cinema audiences was set at 65 percent capacity. For now, that limit is still in force. Under current plans, cinemas will be able to open up fully from June 30th.

Museums and stadiums

The upper limit for both large museums and sports stadiums is set at 5,000 visitors. As is the case with bars and restaurants, new rules, which will take effect from July 1st, are due to be published next week.

Festivals and Events

France’s Fête de la musique goes ahead on Monday, June 21st, as scheduled and with restrictions in place. Until June 30th, visitors to outdoor festivals must remain seated. From June 30th the seating rule no longer applies, but outdoor venues must allow 4m2 per attendee. Health passes will be required at larger events.

Indoor concerts

Venues are still closed to the public, though a test concert in Paris involving rock band Indochine passed off smoothly. They are expected to open, with health measures in place, from June 30th. Health passes will be required.

Nightclubs and concert venues

Nightclubs remain closed for now, but Health Minister Olivier Véran said on Thursday, June 17th that they will be allowed to reopen from July, with specific measures in place such as health pass. President Emmanuel Macron is meeting nightclub owners on Monday to discuss reopening.

Travel

There are still strict rules for travel for both those who arrive in France and those who leave in the country, though much now depends on whether you are vaccinated.

You can read about France’s existing travel requirements here.

French PM Jean Castex said on Thursday that border controls would be tightened in a bid to control the spread of variants. He did not go into detail on how this would happen, and no further information has been released.

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READER QUESTIONS

Vaccine pass for visitors in France – your questions answered

France now has in place a vaccine pass that is required for entry into a wide range of everyday venues including bars, cafés, tourist sites and long-distance trains - but this can be complicated for visitors or people vaccinated outside France.

Vaccine pass for visitors in France - your questions answered
Bars and cafés are among the French venues that require a vaccine pass. Photo: Sameer Al Doumy/AFP

Since January 24th, France has put in place a vaccine pass which is required to enter a wide range of venues including bars, cafés, restaurants, gyms, leisure centres, cinemas, theatres, museums, large events and long-distance trains.

In short, if you intend to spend time in France, you are going to need one if you want to do anything fun.

Previously a health pass was in place, which allowed for either proof of vaccination or a recent negative test, but from January 24th negative tests are no longer accepted for anyone aged 16 and older.

You can find more details on how the pass works HERE, but there are some issues which particularly affect tourists, visitors or people vaccinated outside France.

Do I need a vaccine pass to enter France?

No. When the French government talks about the vaccine pass, they mean the domestic pass required to access everyday activities in France.

Depending on where you are travelling from, you may need to show proof of vaccination at the border, but this can be a vaccination certificate from your home country.

Once you’re in France, however, you will most likely need the pass. 

How do I get a vaccine pass?

The vaccine pass isn’t a physical document, it just means that you need to show proof of either vaccination, recent recovery from Covid or a medical exemption in order to enter certain venues (more on those below).

Importantly, however, these documents must have a French QR code so that staff in venues can scan them.

Most people use the TousAntiCovid app, which is available on all smartphones and has an option in English, but you can show paper certificates if you prefer.

If you are travelling from an EU or Schengen zone country you can use your own country’s domestic health/vaccine pass, since all QR codes are compatible within the bloc.

I had a health pass when I came to France in the summer, is the vaccine pass the same thing?

In effect, yes. The health pass required either proof of vaccination, proof of recent recovery from Covid or proof of a recent negative Covid test and most people used the TousAntiCovid app to show this (although you can also show paper certificates).

The vaccine pass doesn’t allow presentation of a negative test result, but in most other respects is the same, so if you have proof of full vaccination, nothing changes for you. Apart, that is, from boosters . . .

Do I need a booster shot to use the vaccine pass?

Probably, yes.

It depends on when you were vaccinated, but over 18s who have not had a booster more than seven months after their second dose are no longer counted as fully vaccinated. 

From February 15th, this window shrinks to four months.

If you have had the booster, it doesn’t matter if the gap between second dose and booster was longer than four or seven months, this concerns only those who have not received a booster shot.

The booster requirement applies to all vaccine pass users, including visitors.

However boosters are not required for travel, so in brief you can enter France without a booster, but you won’t be able to do much once you’re here.

Full details on who needs a booster HERE.

Will my vaccination certificate/booster shot certificate work with the French pass?

It depends on where you were vaccinated.

If you were vaccinated in the EU, Schengen zone or UK then you can scan the QR code on your vaccination certificate straight into the French app. This is also the case if you previously had a health pass and need to add a booster shot in order to keep it valid.

If, however, you were vaccinated in the USA, Canada, Australia or any other non EU/UK/Schengen country then things are a little more complicated. Once in France, you will have to take your vaccination certificate to an approved pharmacy in order to get a QR code that can be used with the French app. Full details HERE.

A vaccination certificate from your home country will be accepted at the border.

I’m not vaccinated but I have recently recovered from Covid, can I use the pass?

The vaccine pass requires one of three things; proof of full Covid vaccination, proof of recent recovery from Covid or proof of a medical exemption (more on that below).

However, the proof of recent recovery must be in an accepted format.

You can find full details on that here, but again it depends on where you tested positive for Covid. If it was in the EU, UK or Schengen zone then you should be able to upload your positive Covid test to the French app. The test must be more than 11 days old, but less than six months old in order to be valid.

If you tested positive outside the EU, you may have a problem. Some countries provide positive tests in a format recognised by France but others – including the USA – do not.

You can find full details of compatible codes HERE.

I had Covid before I could get a booster, what should I do?

If you want to use proof of recent recovery from Covid instead of a booster shot, then it’s the same process as outlined above.

I can’t be vaccinated for medical reasons, what can I do?

France does provide an option for medical exemptions, but the process is so complicated as to be virtually inaccessible to people who are just visiting France.

READ ALSO How can people who cannot be vaccinated use France’s vaccine pass?

In order to use the medical exemption clause, you require a French certificat de contre-indication, and getting one of these is not easy.

First you must fit the criteria of listed medical conditions which constitute an acceptable reason not to be vaccinated – and that is a short list.

Then you need a certificate from a French doctor stating that you cannot be vaccinated, certificates from doctors outside France are not accepted.

Once you have the certificate you need to send it to Assurance Maladie – the French state health insurer – which validates the certificate and issues you with a QR code that can be used with the vaccine pass. French residents can use an online process to send their certificate to Assurance Maladie, but this requires a French social security number. 

Where can I go without a vaccine pass?

The theory behind the vaccine pass is that people can do the essentials of daily life without it, but anything fun requires the pass.

It is not required for shops, short-distance transport or city public transport such as the Paris Metro, most workplaces, parks, beaches and outdoor gyms or when buying food or drink to take out.

It is required for; ski lifts, bars, restaurants, cafés, cinemas, theatres, museums, galleries, tourist sites (including outdoor sites), gyms, leisure centres, sports grounds, concerts, nightclubs (when they reopen), large events like festivals or long-distance train travel.

Are there any exemptions?

There are a couple of exemptions where a negative Covid test, taken within the previous 24 hours, is accepted instead of a vaccine pass.

  • If you need to travel on a long-distance train and have “imperative reasons of a family or health nature” such as going to visit a dying relative – you would need to present some proof of this.
  • A vaccine pass is required to access non-emergency medical treatment or to visit a medical or social establishment (such as a nursing home). If you do not have a vaccine pass you can use a negative test instead. Emergency medical treatment does not require a vaccine pass or a Covid test.

What about children?

  • A vaccine pass is required for anyone aged 16 or above.
  • Children aged between 12 and 15 are required to use the health pass, in which a negative Covid test no more than 24 hours is accepted for those who are not fully vaccinated.
  • Under 12s do not require any type of pass.

The definition of fully vaccinated for children is the same as for adults; to be at least seven days after two doses of Pfizer, AstraZeneca or Moderna vaccines or 28 days after a Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Booster shots are not required for under 18s.

For children travelling from countries that have only recently started offering vaccinations to under 18s, or that only offer a single shot of Pfizer, AstraZeneca or Moderna, this creates a problem as the children are unvaccinated by the French definition and face daily Covid tests in order to keep the health pass.

Do all these venues really check the pass?

Staff at any of the listed vaccine pass venues are supposed to check the pass on entry, but as ever in life, compliance is not 100 percent.

The majority of places do check, especially in the cities, but it can be variable. We’ve also heard anecdotal accounts of staff accepting non-French vaccination certificates, especially the American CDC cards, but be aware that this is not official policy.

It’s probably best not to chance it on a train – guards can remove you from the train at the next stop if you are found to be travelling without a valid pass.

And if you’re tempted to use someone else’s pass in order to gain access to a bar/café etc then we would strongly advise against this – that is vaccine pass fraud and there are very stiff penalties in place for this, including jail time.

Do you have a question on vaccine passes that is not covered here? Email us on [email protected] and we will do our best to answer it.

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