Travel to France for US citizenship

A transit Schengen visa is a permit for persons who need to enter the territory of the Schengen area only to change their vehicle.

Depending on how you travel (by plane or by sea), there are two types of French transit visas:

1. Transit Schengen visa for the airport
2. Schengen transit visa for seafarers

They have different requirements and validity periods.

The Schengen visa for airport transit is a permit intended for travelers who need to make a connection at a Schengen airport. It allows them to stop and wait in the international transit area of a Schengen airport for their flight to their destination country.

However, this visa does not allow its holder to leave the international transit zone of the airport, even if the traveler has to wait all night.

Who needs a transit visa to the French airport?

You need an airport transit visa to change flights at a French airport if you are from the following countries:

• Angola
• Bolivia
• Cameroon
• Central African Republic
• Chad
• Republic of Congo
• Côte d'Ivoire
• Cuba
• Dominican Republic
• Guinea
• Haiti
• India
• Small
• Mauritania
• Nepal
• Philippines****.
• Russia***
• Senegal
• Sierra Leone
• South Sudan
• Sudan
• Syria
• Turkey
• Palestinians****

*A transit visa is required even for holders of a diplomatic passport of Guinea.

**A transit visa is not required for seafarers who hold a seafarer's identity card in accordance with the International Labor Organization (ILO) Seafarers' Identity Card Convention No. 108 (1958) or No. 185 (2003), the Convention on the Facilitation of International Carriage by Sea (FAL Convention) and French national legislation.

***A transit visa is required for persons traveling from an airport in any of these countries: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, Turkey or Egypt.

**** Transit visa is required only for holders of Palestinian refugee travel documents.

Documents required to obtain a transit visa to the French airport:

• Passport or travel document (recognized by the French authorities, valid for no more than 10 years, valid for at least 3 months of the visa validity period, undamaged and with at least 2 blank pages) + photocopy of the passport data page.
• Duly completed application form for a short-term visa to France;
• Two recently taken passport-size (biometric) photographs.
• Visa or other authorization document for entry to the final destination (valid) + photocopy.
• Booking a round-trip flight.
• An official cover letter from the employer stating that the reason for traveling to the final destination is related to the candidate's work (signed and stamped) + a full travel itinerary if traveling for work.
• A cover letter written by the candidate, stating the reason for traveling to the final destination - if traveling for private matters.
• A completed list of children or family members who live outside the candidate's home country (if applicable).

How to apply for a Schengen transit visa

1. Fill out the application form.
2. Gather the necessary documents;
3. Make an appointment.
4. Attend the appointed time to submit the necessary documents.
5. Pay the fee. The fee for a transit visa is 60 euros. However, you should check the list of visa fees, as you may have to pay a lower fee or none at all.

Where to apply for a Schengen transit visa

You have to apply for a Schengen transit visa at the visa office of the country where the airport/seaport where you will change to another flight/ship is located. Such a representative body may be

• Embassy of the country where the airport/seaport is located
• consulate
• A third-party visa center to which the country has outsourced the visa application process
• Embassy/consulate of another country with which this country has concluded an agreement on outsourcing visa services

How much does a transit visa to a French airport cost?

Applicants will have to pay 90 euros after applying for a visa at the French airport.

Pets imported from third countries (non-EU countries) must be declared and presented to customs for document and identity verification before they can be allowed into the European Union. Importing an undeclared animal may result in a fine and confiscation of the animal.

Only the following animals accompanying the traveler are considered pets according to veterinary regulations and, as such, are allowed under the conditions set out below:

• dogs (including guide dogs), cats, ferrets;
• reptiles;
• amphibians;
• invertebrates (except for bees and crustaceans);
• rodents and domestic rabbits;
• ornamental fish;
• all types of birds (except poultry).

All other animals (including monkeys) are excluded and must be presented for veterinary examination at a border inspection post when entering France.

The person accompanying the animal must be either the owner or a person who is responsible for it on behalf of the owner.

Customs authorities carry out the inspection in the context of non-commercial transportation involving no more than five specimens. If these conditions are not met, the veterinary authorities are responsible for the inspection of the animals concerned at the border inspection post. A Common Veterinary Entry Document (CVED) is issued after the inspection is completed and must be submitted with the customs declaration.

PLEASE NOTE: if traveling in connection with exhibitions, competitions or sporting events, the maximum number of domestic carnivorous animals (dogs, cats, ferrets) may exceed five if the animals are over six months old and have written proof of registration;

Restrictions and bans on the import of animals

1. There is a ban on the import of certain attack dogs into France. These are category 1 dogs without a pedigree recognized by the French Ministry of Agriculture, belonging to the following breeds: Staffordshire Terrier, American Staffordshire Terrier (pit bull), Mastiff (bull) and Tosa.
2. Special conditions and restrictions apply to protected species, especially certain birds and reptiles, according to the Washington Convention - the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
3. There are special conditions for importing such animals to other EU member states. You should consult the embassies of these countries in your third country of residence.

For more information, please follow the link https://www.douane.gouv.fr/fiche/travel-coming-france-your-pet.

• Emergency medical care (Samu): 15.
• Police/Gendarmerie: 17.
• Fire service: 18.
• European emergency number: 112.
• Social emergencies (Samu social): 115.
• Childhood is in danger: 119.

The EU, like the rest of the world, recognizes two types of rights: national and international.

For international rights, it is necessary:

• medical certificate;
• paid state duty;
• national rights;
• passport;
• statement.

Another issue is that an international license will not always be needed. The fact is that there are two main international conventions on road traffic - the Vienna Convention (1968) and the Geneva Convention (1949). The members of the Vienna Convention mutually recognize the national rights of other signatory countries (if these are newly issued rights since 2011), while the members of the Geneva Convention require the use of the ILD on their territory.

France recognizes national driving licenses. The main condition is the use of a new model license in the form of a plastic card with the driver's information duplicated in Latin.

Despite the signing of the Vienna Convention and the obligation to recognize the national rights of other signatory countries, some European countries still have restrictions on their use. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in France, the national driver's license will be valid only for one year.

Required documents

Car rental agencies have their own terms and conditions, so you should always check them before any other. There may be slight variations in the legal requirements for driving in France in rental cars, but some common requirements include:

• Full valid local driving license
• International driving license for France
• Your passport
• For advance booking - international debit or credit card
• To receive it, you will need a receipt or voucher to confirm payment for the rent

For more information, please visit the site.

When imported into France:

When entering the territory of France from countries that are not members of the European Union and that are not part of the French customs territory (e.g. French Polynesia, New Caledonia, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Wallis and Futuna, Saint Martin), you have the right not to declare goods that are imported without payment of customs duties and customs charges, in limited quantities, and that meet the following requirements:

• You have the right to carry (import) only those goods that you carry in your personal luggage with you.
• Non-commercial goods for personal use, consumption or gifts, goods purchased in the EU or other countries with receipts or invoices that include VAT;
• The total value of the goods must not exceed the amounts indicated below in the equivalent in euros (traveler aged 15 years and older):

1. in the case of transportation of goods by any means of transport, except for air and sea - 300 €;

2. in case of transportation by air or sea - 430 €;

3. for children under the age of 15 in the amount of up to € 150.

Duty-free import of cigarettes - 200 pcs, spirits - 1 liter, wine - 2 liters, perfume - 50 g, coffee - 500 g, food: fish - 2 kg, caviar - 250 g, animal products - 1 kg, new items or food for personal consumption - up to a maximum of 300 euros (150 euros for children under 15 years of age) is allowed.

PLEASE NOTE that the country allows the import of cash at the rate of 10 thousand euros per family, not per person. The amount does not change regardless of the number of family members.

It is prohibited to import gold bullion, plates and coins without the permission of the country's bank, as well as illegally produced printed materials.

The following are subject to mandatory customs control when exported: Weapons, antiquities and art, gold and precious metals.

French embassies around the world can be found here: https://www.embassy-worldwide.com/country/france/