(Updated on Saturday, January 30, 2021) – French Prime Minister Jean Castex announced on Friday, January 29 the ban on any entry into France and any exit from French territory to or from a country outside the European area, except for compelling reasons, from Sunday morning January 31, 2021, at midnight.
Please contact your airline if you are planning to travel between the United States and France in the coming days.
This announcement is part of a strategy to limit international travel in order to slow the circulation of the Covid-19 coronavirus and its variants. It complements the measures restricting entry into France already in force (in particular the obligation to present a negative PCR or LAMP test of fewer than 72 hours upon boarding, the commitment to self-isolate for 7 days at arrival in France and to perform a new PCR test at the end of this period of isolation).
When travel for compelling reasons is still necessary, the measures put in place on entering French territory with the aim of limiting the spread of the virus must be respected.
To travel to France from the United States, all travelers, including French nationals, must therefore:
- Present a negative PCR or LAMP test performed less than 72 hours prior to flight to the airline upon check-in for passengers over 11 years of age.
- Have a compelling reason to travel. A certificate to be completed by each traveler is online on the website of the Ministry of the Interior. It specifies the list of compelling reasons. This certificate must be completed, signed, accompanied by a supporting document and presented to the company when boarding.
- Present a certificate of honor, to comply with the rules relating to entry into the national metropolitan territory (note separate form for children under 11). This certificate is available on the website of the Ministry of the Interior. It includes a commitment to self-isolate for 7 days upon arrival in France and to undergo a new PCR test at the end of this period of isolation.
Communication relayed from the site of the Consulate of France in San Francisco.
