News 13 September 2021

COVID-19: Entry and stay of foreign talents in France

Conditions of travel to France from abroad

As of June 9, 2021, the sanitary measures applying to travelers coming to France depend on the sanitary situation of the country of origin and the vaccination of the traveler.

The countries of origin of travelers have been classified by the authorities according to their epidemic situation and are subject to differentiated measures. The lists of countries are subject to change depending on the evolution of their epidemic situation.

List of countries classified according to their health situation

“Green” countries: the Covid-19 is not actively circulating.

This list includes: the European area (Andorra, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Norway, San Marino, Switzerland and Vatican City), Australia, Bahrein, Brunei, Canada, Chili, Hong-Kong, Japan, Jordan, Lebanon, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Taïwan, Ukraine, Union of Comoros, Uruguay and Vanuatu.

“Red” countries: the Covid-19 is actively circulating and several variants of concern have been identified.

This list includes: Afghanistan, Algeria, Argentina, Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, Costa-Rica, Cuba, Democratic Republic of Congo, Georgia, Indonesia, Iran, Maldives, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Russia, Seychelles, South Africa, Suriname, Tunisia and Turkey.

“Amber” countries: the Covid-19 is circulating actively but moderately without the detection of variants of concern.

This list includes: all non-EU countries except those on the “green” and “red” country lists.

For more information on the situation and the new travel conditions, please visit the government website.

Travelers coming from a "green" country

Vaccinated travelers from a “green” country must prove that they have received all prescribed doses of one of the vaccines recognized by the European Medicines Agency in order to be able to travel to France.

For their travel, they must carry proof of their vaccination status and a sworn statement attesting that they have no symptoms of Covid-19 infection and that they are not aware of any contact with a confirmed case of Covid-19 in the 14 days prior to travel.

The vaccines recognized are Pfizer / Comirnaty, Moderna, AstraZeneca / Vaxzevria/Covishield and Johnson & Johnson.

Vaccinated travelers must provide proof of having received all prescribed doses of one of these vaccines and of traveling at least :
– 7 days after the 2nd injection for dual-injection vaccines (Pfizer / Comirnaty, Moderna, AstraZeneca / Vaxzevria/Covishield);
– 28 days after the injection for vaccines with a single injection (Johnson & Johnson);
– 7 days after injection for vaccines in persons with a history of Covid-19 (only 1 injection required).

Unvaccinated travelers must provide proof of a negative PCR or antigen test for Covid-19 performed within 72 hours prior to departure for France.

Unvaccinated travelers from Cyprus, Spain, Greece, Malta, the Netherlands and Portugal are subject to enhanced measures. They will have to present the result of a PCR or antigenic test of less than 24 hours old in order to travel to France.

They are also required to carry a sworn statement attesting that they have no symptoms of Covid-19 infection and that they are not aware of any contact with a confirmed case of Covid-19 in the 14 days prior to travel.

The measures applying to vaccinated parents also apply to their accompanying minor children, whether they are vaccinated or not. Nevertheless, minors between 12 and 18 years of age must present a negative test if they are not vaccinated. Minors under 12 years old are exempt from doing a test.

Find more information in the article “I am currently abroad”.

Travelers coming from a "red" country

Vaccinated travelers from a “red” country have to :

show a proof of their vaccination status ;
carry a sworn statement attesting that they have no symptoms of Covid-19 infection and that they are not aware of any contact with a confirmed case of Covid-19 in the 14 days prior to travel.

The vaccines recognized are Pfizer / Comirnaty, Moderna, AstraZeneca / Vaxzevria/Covishield and Johnson & Johnson.

Travellers who have not been vaccinated have to :

carry the travel certificate that corresponds to their situation and includes the various compelling reasons applicable to their country of origin;
carry a sworn statement attesting that they have no symptoms of Covid-19 infection and that they are not aware of any contact with a confirmed case of Covid-19 in the 14 days prior to travel ;
provide a negative PCR or antigenic test for Covid-19 carried out within 48 hours of departure;
do the mandatory antigenic test on arrival (for travelers aged 11 or over) ;
respect a 10 days isolation period after their arrival in France which will be controlled by the authorities.

Find more information in the article “I am currently abroad”.

Travelers coming from an "amber" country

Vaccinated travelers from countries other than those listed above are not subject to the compelling reasons regime in order to travel to France.

To travel, they must come with :

a proof of their vaccination status ;
a sworn statement attesting that they have no symptoms of Covid-19 infection and that they are not aware of any contact with a confirmed case of Covid-19 in the 14 days prior to travel.

The vaccines recognized are Pfizer / Comirnaty, Moderna, AstraZeneca / Vaxzevria/Covishield and Johnson & Johnson.

Travelers who have not been vaccinated have to :

carry the travel certificate that corresponds to their situation and includes the different compelling reasons applicable to the country of origin;
carry a sworn statement attesting that they have no symptoms of Covid-19 infection and that they are not aware of any contact with a confirmed case of Covid-19 in the 14 days prior to travel ;
provide a negative PCR test for Covid-19 carried out within 72 hours of departure or a negative antigen test carried out within 48 hours before departure (except travelers from the United Kingdom who will have to present a PCR or antigen test of less than 24 hours);
accept to do an antigen test upon arrival if asked (for travelers aged 11 or over);
respect a 7 days isolation period after their arrival in France.

Find more information in the article “I am currently abroad”.

Conditions of travel on the French territory

A “health pass” is now required to access some specific places in France.

Since August 9, 2021, any person over 18 years old must present it to access:

to trade fairs and shows, and to professional seminars ;
to leisure and cultural venues (theaters, amusement parks, concert halls, festivals, sports halls, cinemas, etc.);
to catering facilities (cafés, restaurants, etc.), with the exception of collective catering or takeaway sales of prepared meals, professional road and rail catering, room service in hotel restaurants and bars, and non-commercial catering, in particular the free distribution of meals;
to long-distance travels on the national territory (domestic flights, TGV, Intercité and night trains, inter-regional buses);
to health, social and medical services and establishments (people accompanying or visiting people in these services and establishments as well as those who are admitted for scheduled non-urgent medical care);
to shopping centers of more than 20,000 square metres, by decision of the prefect of the department.

In order to travel and access the overseas departments and regions (DROM), different sanitary measures must be respected depending on the destination.

Find all the information about the “health pass” and the different travel conditions on the “I am currently in France” page.

Travel conditions to go outside the European area

Any traveler wishing to travel to a country outside the European area will have to justify a compelling reason (of health, family, professional nature that cannot be postponed or in order to return to the country of residence or of origin with no guarantee of a return to France without a compelling reason) except if he or she goes to Australia, Bahrein, Brunei, Canada, Chili, Hong-Kong, Japan, Jordan, Lebanon, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Korea, Taïwan, Ukraine, Union of Comoros, Uruguay and Vanuatu. The travel certificate can be downloaded here.

It will also be necessary to inquire about health measures to be respected in the country of destination.

In France or abroad, you are wondering about your situation? Let us guide you and do not hesitate to contact us for further details through our contact form. A free hotline is also available: 0800 130 000.

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