South Africans wishing to travel to France will now have a much easier time following the French government’s decision to further relax travel restrictions.
According to a statement by Air France on Monday (7 March), South Africa has been moved to the “Green” country list for France, a welcome relief for tourists.
France relaxes travel restrictions for South Africa
The new regulations feature some significant changes – specifically for unvaccinated passengers wanting to travel to France.
The new entry regulations are as follows:
- Vaccinated passengers do not require a negative PCR/Antigen test to enter. They are only required to present proof of vaccination.
- Unvaccinated passengers no longer need a compelling reason to travel to France. They must, however, present a negative PCR test less than 72 hours old or a negative Antigen test less than 48 hours old prior to departure.
- From 14 March, it will no longer be necessary to obtain a “Pass Sanitaire” to access certain leisure activities for vaccinated and unvaccinated passengers.
“The above is subject to visa requirements as has always been the case. Air France wishes to remind passengers that these requirements are specifically for those travelling to France as their final destination. For those transiting, the entry requirements of the country of final destination must be adhered to,” the airline explained.
For further information, passengers can check the French government website or the Air France website.
Resumption of flights
The latest relaxations come soon after Air France resumed flights to South Africa in December last year after France imposed a travel ban in November.
The ban was a response to South Africa’s announcement that a new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, had emerged in the country and was reportedly more transmissible compared to earlier variants.
Prior to the “Green” country list, South Africa was on France’s “Scarlet Red” red list, which was a notch lower than the travel ban.