France today rolled out a plan to begin once again welcoming international leisure travelers as of June 9, effectively restarting transatlantic tourism following a 15-month hiatus.
At that time, it will lift COVID-19 testing entry requirements for fellow Europeans who've been fully vaccinated and will also allow vaccinated tourists from most other parts of the world, although non-Europeans will need to be carrying a negative test.
France is classifying foreign countries of origin outside of Europe using a color-coded model, based upon their current COVID-19 conditions. "Green" countries display no active viral spread or variants of concern and include Australia, South Korea, Israel, Japan, Lebanon, New Zealand and Singapore.
"Orange" countries have active transmission in controlled proportions but no dissemination of worrisome variants (most of the world falls into this category, including the United States).
"Red" countries are dealing with active viral circulation and concerning variants, and include Argentina, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Turkey, Uruguay and South Africa.
Vaccinated European visitors and those originating from "Green" countries will no longer need to quarantine or even undergo testing to gain entry. If unvaccinated, they'll need to provide a PCR or antigen test taken within the past 72 hours but won't have to quarantine upon arrival.
According to France24, vaccinated visitors coming from "Orange" countries (including the U.S.) will no longer be required to quarantine or justify their reasons for traveling to France, but both vaccinated and unvaccinated visitors must arrive with a negative PCR test no more than 72 hours old or antigen test no more than 48 hours old. If unvaccinated, they'll also be required to complete a seven-day self-isolation period.
However, even immunized travelers from "Red" countries will be denied entry into France unless they can provide a "compelling reason" for their stay, supply a negative PCR or antigen test taken within 48 hours of arrival and undergo a seven-day quarantine if they're vaccinated and a 10-day quarantine if they're not.
The Washington Post reported that the French Foreign Ministry did not articulate exactly how U.S. travelers would be expected to prove their vaccination status. The European Union (E.U.) has approved the launch of a shared digital COVID certificate that will be accepted by all of its member nations, but which foreigners presumably won't have access to.
France's new rulebook does note that travelers will need to have completed their full vaccination schedule, meaning that the appropriate period has elapsed following administration of their final dose sufficient to achieve full immunity (two weeks for Pfizer and Moderna and four weeks for Johnson & Johnson vaccines).
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