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AMERICANS IN FRANCE

What visitors can do if their French health pass doesn’t arrive in time

As travel rules around the world are relaxed, tourists and visitors are returning to France. But for those travelling from outside Europe one hurdle remains - converting vaccination certificates into a French health passport.

Published: 13 October 2021 10:03 CEST
What to do if you're still waiting for the vital French health pass code?
What to do if you're still waiting for the vital French health pass code? Photo: Joel Saget/AFP

Fully vaccinated visitors to France can show their own country’s vaccine certificate at the border, but once in the country they will need the pass sanitaire (health passport) to visit venues including cafés, bars, restaurants, tourist sites and long-distance train travel.

EXPLAINED How the French health pass works

For European visitors this is relatively simple – people vaccinated in the EU can use the EU digital health passport while the UK’s NHS app is compatible with the French pass – full details on how to use that here.

But for non-British or EU visitors such as Americans, Canadians, New Zealanders and Australians things are more complicated and they need to register in advance to swap their vaccination certificate for a QR code that will work with the French health passport.

This can be done online – click here for full details on how to make the swap and who is eligible.

But does the online system actually work?

Readers of The Local have provided quite mixed feedback on this – some got their code within a couple of days, others waited several weeks for it to arrive.

Added to this is confusion surrounding the issue because the system for getting a French code has changed several times. The online portal now appears to be here to stay, but is currently warning people of a wait of up to 25 days before they receive their code.

The Local advises people who have pre-planned trips to make their application one month in advance of travel. Once you have received the code there is no expiry date, and it can be used for multiple trips to France.

What if I’m still waiting?

We have received many questions from readers who are still waiting for their code by the time they arrive in France, and there are several options if you are in this situation.

Home vaccination cards – Non-EU vaccination card is not officially accepted in France, however some visitors have reported that bars and cafés have accepted their vaccination certificates from home as proof of vaccination. This seems to be particularly common for the American CDC certificate. We should stress that this is not official, so staff are not obliged to accept the card, but if you’re still waiting for your French code this is worth a try.

Pharmacy swap – before the online portal was created, swapping non-French vaccination certificates was done at pharmacies, and some still offer this service. Again, we should stress that this is not official policy, not all pharmacies offer this and they are not obliged to do so, but readers have reported that some pharmacies still do this, so if you are still waiting for your code this too is worth a try.

Testing – the health passport has options to show either a certificate of vaccination or a recent negative Covid test. So if you are still waiting for your code, the other option is to get a test. Testing is very easy to access in France, almost all pharmacies offer Covid tests which are done on a walk-in basis without the need for an appointment and in larger towns and tourist sites there are also many pop-up testing centres. The rapid-result antigen tests are valid for the health passport and for non-residents cost €29. The test result is valid for 72 hours.

READ ALSO

French vocab

Le pass sanitaire – the health passport

TousAntiCovid – the name of the French app which hosts the passport

Une attestation de vaccination – a vaccination certificate

Un code QR – a QR code (pronounced code coo aire)

Dépistage Covid/Un test Covid – Covid testing/a Covid test 

Bonjour, Pouvez-vous échanger mon attestation de vaccination américaine contre un QR code pour le pass sanitaire ? – Hello, can you exchange my American vaccination certificate for a QR code for the health passport?

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EES PASSPORT CHECKS

EES border checks could undergo ‘soft launch’, UK says as app concerns mount

The UK government is preparing for a "soft launch" of the new EU border system – the Entry/Exit (EES) system - in October but authorities are still waiting for European Commission to confirm the start date, amid concerns over the delay of a new app.

Published: 4 May 2024 09:30 CEST
EES border checks could undergo 'soft launch', UK says as app concerns mount

The UK government is preparing for a soft launch of the new EU border system – the entry/exit (EES) system – on the assumption that it will go live on October 6th, ministers told a hearing at the House of Commons European scrutiny committee this week.

But the European Commission is expected to confirm the exact launch date of the new biometric checks for non-EU travellers entering the Schengen area at some point this summer, they added.

“We are very much working on a basis whereby this policy will go live on the 6th of October. It is important that we plan for that eventuality. We are expecting to hear definitively from the European Union that ‘go live’ arrangement in the summer,” Tom Pursglove, UK Minister for Legal Migration and the Border told the committee.

The parliamentary committee is conducting an inquiry on the disruptions the system will cause in the UK.

Pursglove also said that “precautionary measures” have been agreed by the EU, that will be put in place in certain circumstances after the start of EES, for example if delays at the borders exceeded a certain length of time.

Guy Opperman, Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Transport, said that in practice this meant a “soft launch” of EES for 6 months before “a full go live”. During that soft launch EU member states and the UK could deploy flexibility measures should problems occur.

“The likelihood is, after multiple delays, that the 6th of October will proceed” and the implementation looks “very different” compared to previous scenarios considering the flexibility allowed in the first 6 months, he argued.

No details were given on what these “flexible” measures would involve however. 

READ ALSO: Your questions answered about Europe’s EES passport checks

He conceded that “a lot of work” still needs to be done but the UK “should be as ready as everybody” and “better be at front of the queue”.

App not ready

During the meeting, it also emerged that a much-anticipated app that would allow remote pre-registration of non-EU citizens subject to the checks will not be available for testing until August “at best”, prompting concerns about the EES launch date.

“You don’t need to be a sceptic about future projects to think that the provision of the app in August for going live in October is optimistic,” Opperman said.

Ministers confirmed that the app will not be ready in time for October and the committee previously stated it might be delayed until summer 2025.

The app will facilitate pre-registration, but photo and fingerprints will still have to be taken at the border in front of a guard, the committee heard.

READ ALSO: How do the EU’s new EES passport checks affect the 90-day rule?

Several MPs asked whether the entry into operation of the EES should be delayed again if technology is not ready. But Under-Secretary Opperman said the app “is not going to be a panacea to fix all problems”.

The main aim of EES is to increase security and to ensure that non-EU nationals visiting the Schengen area for a short-term do not stay more than 90 days in any 180-day period.

The entry into operation of the system has already been delayed several times and there have been calls from certain travel companies and national authorities to delay it again.

Under the new scheme, non-EU/EFTA travellers who do not need a visa will have to register their biometric data (finger prints and facial images) in a database that will also record each time they enter and exit the Schengen area.

Instead of having passports manually stamped, travellers will have to scan them at self-service kiosks before crossing the border. However, fingerprints and a photo will have to be registered in front of a guard at the first crossing and there are concerns the extra time needed will generate long queues, especially in Dover, Folkestone and St. Pancras station in London, where there are juxtaposed French and UK border checks.

Progress in preparations

Minister Pursglove also updated MPs on ongoing preparations. He said some testing of the system will take place within days, 5 kiosks have been installed at St. Pancras station and are available for testing. “You are beginning to see the physical infrastructure appear,” he said.

Kiosks and extra lanes are also being created at the port Dover and it was agreed with the EU passengers travelling by coach will be checked away from the Eastern dock, where controls usually take place, allowing to gain space. The vehicles will then sealed and drive on the ferries.

MPs also discussed the infrastructure cost linked to the introduction of the EES. Opperman said all EU countries will have to make “huge investments” in their ports. In the UK, he argued, this will help “address problems that have existed for some time”. Because of this “massive investment”, in a few years time “Dover will be totally transformed,” he said.

This article is published in cooperation with Europe Street News.

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