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HELP! Need prompt answer about entering France!

I am pulling my hair out looking for a simple answer from an authorized source!

My wife and I are heading to Alsace later this month from the States. We have each had both of the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccines back in April and posses the cards we received at the time with the date of the shots, which vaccine and the lot number of the vaccine. Is that sufficient to enter France with our passport? I have looked EVERYWHERE (including the American Airlines website, the French embassy website and the Consul-General in NYC's site as well as France.fr) for up-to-date evidence of what is actually required. I specifically would like something that literally says THIS IS WHAT IS REQUIRED AS PROOF OF VACCINATION. I've found lots of references to an app you can download but our vaccination card has no QR scan bar or anything like that to upload the information and is pretty much useless if you didn't get your shot in France.

Anecdotal information is fine but I really would prefer a link to an official link that could be pulled up when we check in. In January, the AA counter agent almost refused my daughter check-in for her flight to college in Canada because SHE was convinced my daughter wouldn't be allowed in, despite having her passport, student visa, and approved quarantine plan (for the record, she spent all of five minutes in line at Emigration in Toronto). Later in January, AA gate agents at PHL were giving out incorrect information to passengers going to Mexico. And then in March, when boarding a flight to Costa Rica, a passenger at the next desk was being told he didn't have the correct information to fly to Belize when, in fact, he DID have it (even according to the AA website!). I don't want to get to the airport to check in and find that I don't have what is legitimately needed to board my flight and get to France. And if the AA agent is equally ill-informed, I would like to be able to call a supervisor and then show them an official link as to what is required.

Many thanks! We are so DESPERATELY looking forward to a week in Alsace!

Jonathan

ADDENDUM - Hell has frozen over! I received a response from the French Consulate in New York City that actually was fairly straightforward to my question about what is needed to enter France! "Travellers fully vaccinated dont need to take a pcr or antigen prior the departure, keep your vaccination card from the cdc handy." Thanks for everyone's input.

Posted by
6 posts

https://fr.usembassy.gov/covid-19-information/

Here's a link to the US Embassy in France. The third bullet under "Country Specific Information" has, I think, the closest declaration of the acceptance of the typical US CDC Covid vaccination card for travel to France. That said, there are plenty of first-hand accounts from folks on this board and others that their CDC vaccination cards have been readily accepted. Hope this is helpful.

Posted by
2916 posts

This issue has been raised repeatedly ever since Iceland, then other countries, opened up to Americans several months ago. I have not seen anything anywhere that says "No, the CDC card is no good for entry."

Posted by
1443 posts

The plus side, if there is one, is that returning to the U.S. doesn't require the PCR as the only approved test. CDG offers it to travels through an online appointment system, in French of course. With the antigen test being accepted as well, many pharmacies in France are offering it which makes it easier to get within the 72 hours of departure.

Enjoy your trip, I will be in Strasbourg & Colmar at the end of November.

Posted by
9436 posts

My son flew to Paris on 6/17-18 with 3 friends. CDC card accepted as proof.

Posted by
262 posts

Thank you Jonathan, I needed this information before I leave for Paris on July 23. Wondering if you, or anyone here, knows if I will have any difficulty scheduling the test that we need to RETURN TO THE US?

Posted by
1 posts

We leave tomorrow seattle/ dfw /cdg = Paris and Alsace

American Airlines (and a couple others) uses a 3rd party VeriFLY to capture covid data (entry requirements) needed prior to boarding a flight.

It has been very unclear within this VeriFLY app if we needed a negative test even after uploading a vaccine card. So we took the 15 min inconvenience and got one- uploaded the results now we are all checked off to fly. Without that negative test I was concerned about having an issue at the airport even though it is clear (as of right now) a negative covid test within 72 hrs is not needed for vaccinated travelers from the USA to France.

Hoping it’s easy to find a covid test in Alsace.

Posted by
10625 posts

I flew over, leaving last Monday, arriving Tuesday morning. The airline checked my CDC card twice, once at my embarkation airport IND, and once at my connecting airport, ATL. At IND the employee wasn't up-to-date on the requirements since she handles people flying to many destinations, but she checked Delta's on-line instructions and with her supervisor. I had the Chicago Consult website ready, but she had her own sources. At CDG passport control, they asked for nothing, but I was using a French EU passport. It might be different with a US passport. The bottom line is that the important control is at the US airport.