Travel to France

GMJ

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I just notice this off the Government website...

If you have received a booster, you are considered fully vaccinated for entry into France. There is currently no expiry date for booster jabs. If you are aged 18 and over and have not received a booster, but have received two doses of a vaccine approved for use by France, then no more than 9 months must have passed since your second dose, to qualify as fully vaccinated.


So my reading is provided you have had at least 3 jabs you are free to travel to France. Prior to this I believe that it said that the injections had to be administered prior to 9 months/270 days before travel.

Good news for us when we go to Italy in August as I was looking at having to do a PCR test (hopefully Mrs G will have had her 4th jab by then).
 
I just notice this off the Government website...

If you have received a booster, you are considered fully vaccinated for entry into France. There is currently no expiry date for booster jabs. If you are aged 18 and over and have not received a booster, but have received two doses of a vaccine approved for use by France, then no more than 9 months must have passed since your second dose, to qualify as fully vaccinated.


So my reading is provided you have had at least 3 jabs you are free to travel to France. Prior to this I believe that it said that the injections had to be administered prior to 9 months/270 days before travel.

Good news for us when we go to Italy in August as I was looking at having to do a PCR test (hopefully Mrs G will have had her 4th jab by then).
My understanding, Graham, is that the EU had adopted a 'cannot be older than 270 days' criterion for the original vaccinations; and that the Booster met the criterion, rendering further vaccinations redundant. But, always subject to the caveat that a return of the pandemic, new variants, etc could result in new restrictions or requirements

Travel page update from UK Gov website today referred to an update on masks wearing for France, but a very quick scan of the Coronavirus Section (which has no dedicated sub-heading) did not seem to find any new information

Steve
 
I was under the impression that the booster had to have been had within 270 days of travel too hence I have been keeping an eye on it with our August trip pending. However the above advice now seems to say that this is not so - There is currently no expiry date for booster jabs

My booster was/will be over 270 days old by the time we leave but the above line suggests that that is OK now (whereas it was the 270 day rule thing before).

This was in the Entry Requirements section.
 
I was under the impression that the booster had to have been had within 270 days of travel too hence I have been keeping an eye on it with our August trip pending. However the above advice now seems to say that this is not so - There is currently no expiry date for booster jabs

My booster was/will be over 270 days old by the time we leave but the above line suggests that that is OK now (whereas it was the 270 day rule thing before).

This was in the Entry Requirements section.
Think we might be talking at cross purposes, Graham. The original 2 vaccination protection was accepted by EU provided that the package was completed less than 270 days ago. If the vaccinations were over 270 days old, then the Booster was needed, and this is not regarded as having an expiry date, albeit that the experts acknowledge that the Booster may not offer full protection against emerging variants. I think it is this qualification that has prompted UK constituent countries to be talking about Covid vaccinations (Autumn?) for over 50s, tacitly accepting that the 20-49 age group may never get an NHS Booster.

Just to complicate matters, Portugal announced within the last 48 hours that there are no Covid protection measures needed for the upcoming main holiday season!

Steve
 
It was my impression that any jabs received had to have been within 270 days of travel - main ones or boosters - hence my quote in the OP where that has now changed (to my mind). I had not seen that exact phrasing before despite, like you, getting update emails.
 
I would generally agree with @marchie in interpreting the requirements. However:
"Depuis le 1er février 2022, pour que leur schéma vaccinal reste reconnu comme complet, les personnes de dix-huit ans ou plus souhaitant entrer sur le territoire national doivent avoir reçu une dose de vaccin à ARN messager complémentaire au plus tard 9 mois suivant l'injection de la dernière dose requise." https://www.interieur.gouv.fr/covid-19/deplacements-internationaux
This indicates that the booster must have been received within 9 months (so roughly 270 days) of the second jab.

The French Consulate-General in London states:
"Since 1 February 2022, travellers aged 18 and over who had their full vaccine course over 9 months ago and have not since received a COVID-19 vaccine booster must follow the rules for unvaccinated passengers to enter France." https://uk.ambafrance.org/COVID-19-...-UK-28918#t1-Travelling-from-the-UK-to-France
This confirms the requirement for a subsequent booster if it is more than 9 months since the second jab, but does not specify that the booster must have been received within 9 months of the second jab. There is therefore a discrepancy between two French government sources. It would be interesting to know where, and in what language, gov.uk is sourcing its information.
 
So I think we are all agreeing that the bottom line is that as long as we have all had a booster (plus the first 2 jabs )it is timeless and we can go to France without issue.
 
So I think we are all agreeing that the bottom line is that as long as we have all had a booster (plus the first 2 jabs )it is timeless and we can go to France without issue.
That is certainly my understanding based on current rules.
 
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Crossed last Saturday via tunnel, prior to travel, forty eight hour—ish, email operator proof of our double jabs plus booster. No issue at all .
 
Sorry to post this here as well as another Forum (in case you've read it before)
I realise from above that I will be covered to drive into France. But for various reasons my other half has not been vaccinated (don't ask) but she has the Irish passport so I guess she'll have to come along
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I presume at the moment she will need a PCR test before entering France. It may change before October but it's not a problem to get the test done.

But we intend to travel through to Spain after a couple of weeks in France, so theoretically she needs another PCR before crossing the border. Anyone had any experience of border checks between France and Spain.

Presumably if we get turned back we can go back into France and get a new PCR test..............actually maybe we'll just get one anyway.Our last day will be in Elne at the campsite with the "interesting" toilets......do you know the ones I mean.
So presumably a PCR would be available there.

Thanks for any observations
 
Webby
No land border checks earlier this year between Fance and Spain..
As far as I'm aware it's only air or sea checks on arrival in mainland Europe
 
One of the many grey areas that those of us who live in N. Ireland but choose to travel on an Irish passport try to interpret. As vaccinated persons going from Dublin to Cherbourg we did not need to do anything other than show passports.

Your scenario is different in that you are both traveling from GB to France and wife unvaccinated. I can only refer you to the Irish government travel website.


This states, unvaccinated persons must have a pcr test, although it is, of course, stating travel from Ireland to France, which you are not doing (hence the confusion).

We travelled through the Somport tunnel in early May and back into France at Biarritz in mid June. No border stops in action or in evidence. However the Omicron BA 4 and 5 variant seems to attack the lower lungs leading to more severe infections and increasing hospital admissions. There appears to be no carry over protection from earlier omicron versions, (Dr John Campbell) so I anticipate potential tightening of restrictions. Increased face mask use already seems to be happening.

Davy
 
Sorry to post this here as well as another Forum (in case you've read it before)
I realise from above that I will be covered to drive into France. But for various reasons my other half has not been vaccinated (don't ask) but she has the Irish passport so I guess she'll have to come along
icon_biggrin.gif
icon_biggrin.gif


I presume at the moment she will need a PCR test before entering France. It may change before October but it's not a problem to get the test done.

But we intend to travel through to Spain after a couple of weeks in France, so theoretically she needs another PCR before crossing the border. Anyone had any experience of border checks between France and Spain.

Presumably if we get turned back we can go back into France and get a new PCR test..............actually maybe we'll just get one anyway.Our last day will be in Elne at the campsite with the "interesting" toilets......do you know the ones I mean.
So presumably a PCR would be available there.

Thanks for any observations

We weren't stopped/checked when we went down to Spain in Jan and came back in March Pete.

Ray Nipper posted up a French app on MHF some time ago showing where PCR tests could be taken close to the border in the unlikely event that they would be needed. For a 'belt and braces' approach it might be worth sending him a message to get the link but I do not think you will need it unless this rising tide of cases continues and health-wise develops into something more than is being widely reported.

This is the government page which has been regularly updated which is worth keeping an eye on (and signing up for updates too...and indeed they do one for Spain too which is worth signing up for update as well).

 

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