When will France lift all its travel test requirements?
France has eased the 24-hour test requirement for UK arrivals, but still demands for recent negative Covid tests most arrivals from non-EU countries including the UK, Canada and the USA - so is this likely to change soon?
The measures were originally put in place to control Covid cases and curb the spread of the Omicron variant - but with Omicron now making up 98 percent of all cases in France and daily Covid cases standing at around 400,000, are these restrictions likely to be lifted?
The rules
All arrivals into France - vaccinated or not - from orange countries (which includes the UK, USA, Australia and Canada) need to show a negative test taken within 48 hours of their departure time.
The traffic light travel map. Map: French Interior Ministry
Unvaccinated travellers face further restrictions and must prove that their journey is essential before being allowed to travel at all.
The UK was previously subject to even stricter rules with all arrivals - vaccinated or not required to show a negative test taken within 24 hours of travel. However this was relaxed on February 4th to be within 48 hours for full-vaccinated travellers.
As with orange countries, unvaccinated people must prove that their journey is essential - which rules out tourism, family visits and visits from second-home owners.
In all cases the test can be either a PCR or antigen test, but many home-test kits are not accepted - click HERE for the full breakdown on test type.
Find the full details for travel rules HERE.
The problems
The test requirement is proving a particular travel headache for arrivals from the UK - which includes French residents or French citizens returning from a trip over the Channel.
Unlike France where tests are widely available on a walk-in basis at most pharmacies are are free for fully-vaccinated residents, in the UK travel tests must be booked in advance from private providers. NHS tests cannot be used for travel purposes.
Many people have reported struggling to get results back in time with some travellers missing departures because their test has not come back.
READ ALSO Everything you need to know about travel between France and the UK
The best option is on-site testing at airports or transport interchanges with on-the-spot results, although this can be expensive.
Likewise in the US, many readers have reported having to travel long distances from their home to get a test that is both suitable for travel purposes and will give the results in time.
READ ALSO Everything you need to know about travel between France and the USA
What is changing?
As France began to report higher daily case numbers than the UK, many British travellers regarded the 24-hour testing rule as unfair and unnecessary.
It was finally scrapped on February 4th, bringing the UK in line with other orange list countries.
But arrivals into France from within the EU no longer need to show any tests, so when is this rule likely to be applied to non-EU arrivals?
Unlike some countries, France does not have review dates for its travel rules, instead the regulations are reviewed on a rolling basis and are frequently updated.
The change that is under discussion at present is an EU-wide one, in which the European Council proposes a systemic change that would allow fully vaccinated travellers to travel without the need for any further restrictions - including testing or quarantine.
READ ALSO EU countries agree to simplify travel rules for fully-vaccinated
Like all EU proposals that relate to borders, this must be agreed by individual member states. However France has been at the forefront of calling for an EU-wide approach to travel rules, so it seems likely that the French government will agree.
However there is one important caveat to this - it refers only to travel within the EU and Schengen zone, not to arrivals from outside the EU such as the UK, USA and Canada.
When asked by The Local, an EU official told us: "A review of the recommendation on travel from third-countries [non-EU or Schengen zone countries] to the EU is currently under discussion. Therefore, no changes have been made yet."
France could also decide unilaterally to ease restrictions on arrivals from outside the EU.
On February 4th, France also moved all countries that were on its red list - including the USA - onto the orange list.
Government sources have been reported as saying an announcement will be made to end test requirements for all vaccinated travellers, possibly as soon as mid-February.
We will update our Travel section HERE as soon as there is an announcement.
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The measures were originally put in place to control Covid cases and curb the spread of the Omicron variant - but with Omicron now making up 98 percent of all cases in France and daily Covid cases standing at around 400,000, are these restrictions likely to be lifted?
The rules
All arrivals into France - vaccinated or not - from orange countries (which includes the UK, USA, Australia and Canada) need to show a negative test taken within 48 hours of their departure time.
Unvaccinated travellers face further restrictions and must prove that their journey is essential before being allowed to travel at all.
The UK was previously subject to even stricter rules with all arrivals - vaccinated or not required to show a negative test taken within 24 hours of travel. However this was relaxed on February 4th to be within 48 hours for full-vaccinated travellers.
As with orange countries, unvaccinated people must prove that their journey is essential - which rules out tourism, family visits and visits from second-home owners.
In all cases the test can be either a PCR or antigen test, but many home-test kits are not accepted - click HERE for the full breakdown on test type.
Find the full details for travel rules HERE.
The problems
The test requirement is proving a particular travel headache for arrivals from the UK - which includes French residents or French citizens returning from a trip over the Channel.
Unlike France where tests are widely available on a walk-in basis at most pharmacies are are free for fully-vaccinated residents, in the UK travel tests must be booked in advance from private providers. NHS tests cannot be used for travel purposes.
Many people have reported struggling to get results back in time with some travellers missing departures because their test has not come back.
READ ALSO Everything you need to know about travel between France and the UK
The best option is on-site testing at airports or transport interchanges with on-the-spot results, although this can be expensive.
Likewise in the US, many readers have reported having to travel long distances from their home to get a test that is both suitable for travel purposes and will give the results in time.
READ ALSO Everything you need to know about travel between France and the USA
What is changing?
As France began to report higher daily case numbers than the UK, many British travellers regarded the 24-hour testing rule as unfair and unnecessary.
It was finally scrapped on February 4th, bringing the UK in line with other orange list countries.
But arrivals into France from within the EU no longer need to show any tests, so when is this rule likely to be applied to non-EU arrivals?
Unlike some countries, France does not have review dates for its travel rules, instead the regulations are reviewed on a rolling basis and are frequently updated.
The change that is under discussion at present is an EU-wide one, in which the European Council proposes a systemic change that would allow fully vaccinated travellers to travel without the need for any further restrictions - including testing or quarantine.
READ ALSO EU countries agree to simplify travel rules for fully-vaccinated
Like all EU proposals that relate to borders, this must be agreed by individual member states. However France has been at the forefront of calling for an EU-wide approach to travel rules, so it seems likely that the French government will agree.
However there is one important caveat to this - it refers only to travel within the EU and Schengen zone, not to arrivals from outside the EU such as the UK, USA and Canada.
When asked by The Local, an EU official told us: "A review of the recommendation on travel from third-countries [non-EU or Schengen zone countries] to the EU is currently under discussion. Therefore, no changes have been made yet."
France could also decide unilaterally to ease restrictions on arrivals from outside the EU.
On February 4th, France also moved all countries that were on its red list - including the USA - onto the orange list.
Government sources have been reported as saying an announcement will be made to end test requirements for all vaccinated travellers, possibly as soon as mid-February.
We will update our Travel section HERE as soon as there is an announcement.
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