Travel To France: France Tourist Visa Application, Requirements & More

Depending on your nationality, you may need a France tourist visa to visit France for less than 90 days.

The France tourist visa is a short stay visa issued for 90 day stays at most per a period of 180 days. Except for Limited Territorial Validity visas, you can travel to other Schengen nations with this visa.

Your nationality determines whether you need a short-stay visa to visit European France or its overseas territories, collectivities, departments, and regions. Tourists from Andorra, Monaco, Switzerland, the EU, or the EEA do not need a visa to enter and stay in France.

If you live in one of these countries, you won’t require a French tourist visa. Monaco requires a visa if you need one for France. You may need a visa to enter France if you don’t live in one of this countries.

Things to Consider Before Applying for a French Tourist Visa

Before you apply for a French tourist visa you should:

• Check your passport. Make sure your passport meets the validity requirement. If not, apply for a new one before you apply for a visa.
• Book your flight in time. Do not leave it for the night before your visa appointment after you have completed everything else. You may fail to find a place on a flight on your intended date.
• Make sure everything is as required. Do not tell yourself “Maybe they won’t notice this,” or “they can’t make a huge deal out of such a small detail.” The consular officers check everything with the utmost attention, so you’d better follow all procedures and meet all requirements.

When Can I Submit the Application?

Submitting the application file at the right time is crucial for a positive outcome on your France Tourist Visa application. According to the France tourist visa rules the earliest that you can make the application is six months before your booked flight to France.

On the other hand, the latest you can do so is two weeks before the date of your intended trip.

Where Should I Lodge my Application for a France Tourist Visa?

According to the French authorities in your country of residence and how they have regulated visa admission, you may have to submit your application at:

The consular section of the French embassy in your country.

• A French consulate in your country.
• A third party visa-processing center, to which France has outsourced visa submission in your country.
• The French embassy/consulate/visa processing-center in a neighboring country, to which French authorities in your country of residence have outsourced visa submission.

What if I have to travel to other countries besides France?

If you’re visiting countries other than France in the Schengen Area, you may need to apply at their embassy. Many find this confusing, yet it’s straightforward.

First, write down the nations you’ll visit and how long you’ll stay in each. Apply to the embassy where you’ll spend most time. If you are visiting Germany and France and staying three days in Germany and five in France, you must apply at the French embassy.

You must apply at the embassy of the country where you will land first if you will spend equal or more days in two or more countries, such as two in France, two in Germany, and two in Switzerland.

How to Obtain a French Tourist Visa?

The application process for a French Tourist visa might seem complicated and frustrating, especially for people who have never had to obtain a visa before. However, if you make a list of the steps you have to take and follow them slowly, then you will easily achieve your goal and obtain the visa:

• Complete the French Tourist Schengen visa application form.
• Collect the required documents.
• Book an appointment.
• Pay the fees.
• Show up at the appointment.

Complete the French Tourist Schengen visa application form

The France tourist visa application form is available on the website of the France embassy in your home country. If you do not, you can request that the embassy send you a form by email online.

Fill out the application form completely and truthfully. To avoid making mistakes, practice “how to fill out the visa application form” ahead of time. Keep in mind that the information you provide in this form must match the information in the other documents; otherwise, your application will most likely be refused. Please print it twice and sign both copies at the end.

Collect the required documents

After the completing application form, collect the required documents for a France tourist visa. Take care to have each document in original and copy. Do not miss even one document on the day of your appointment since that might result in the refusal of your application.

You should submit the following documents to apply for a Tourist visa for France:

• Completed French Tourist Visa Application Form. Make sure you complete the right form, and the information you provide is correct.
• Two passport-style photos. They must be no older than three months.
• Your valid passport. It must have been issued within the last 10 years and valid for a minimum of 3 months after the end of your planned stay in France. The passport must have at least two blank pages in order to be able to put the visa sticker on it.
• Copies of older visas. If you have ever held any visa to any country in the world, submit copies of those visas.
• Travel Medical Insurance covers a minimum of €30,000 for your entire stay in France and the Schengen.
• Certificate of criminal record of the home country– showing that candidate has no open crime case involvement
• Proof of paid visa fee.
• Travel Itinerary. This is a document that shows what you will be doing in France, when you will arrive and when you will leave, and includes proof of arranged transportation as i.e. plane tickets booking.
• Proof of Accommodation in France. It can be a hotel/ hostel booking, or a letter of invitation if you are planning to stay over at friends or relatives.
• Means of subsistence. Proof that you have the financial means to cover your whole stay in France and other Schengen countries if you are planning to. This could be: a bank statement no older than three days covering the last three months or a scholarship certificate stating how much you will be receiving during your whole stay.

Book an appointment

You will need to book an appointment for your interview with a consular officer of the French embassy. The interview is a must for every applicant over the age of 12. Book the interview online at the website of the France embassy or consulate in your country. If that option is not available in your country, then you will have to go to the embassy to schedule an appointment.

Pay the fees

You will have to pay the visa fee before you attend the interview on the day of your appointment, at the embassy, consulate, or visa application center. The fee for a French tourist visa is €80.

You will have to pay the fee in euros or the local currency, according to the exchange rates applied by the embassy.

On the day of the appointment

Arrive on time at the France embassy, consulate, or visa application center on the day of your appointment. If you arrive late, your appointment may be canceled, and you will have to arrange another appointment and wait your turn.

Wear something that allows you to be comfortable while also looking professional. Try not to be tense. Prepare your paperwork ahead of time so that you don’t have a jumble in your hands during your encounter with the consular officer. The interviewer will inquire about your vacation to France, its aim, and so forth. This interview should last no more than 10 minutes.

France Tourist Visa Validity

Your visa’s validity is determined by the French embassy that issued it to you. A French tourist visa has a maximum validity of three months within a half-year period.

The embassy may now offer you a visa for the specified time period, such as ten days, three weeks, or even three or five days. However, if you are a frequent visitor to the Schengen area, you can still obtain a multiple entry 3 month valid visa.

Can I visit Other Countries in Europe?

It depends on the type of Schengen Visa you’re granted. If the visa sticker in your passport says “Schengen States” or “États Schengen” or the same words in another EU language, then you can travel in the whole Schengen territory with that visa, as soon as it becomes valid.

On the other hand, if your visa says “Schengen states (-the acronym of a country)” it means you cannot visit only that particular country i.e. “Schengen states (-ES)” it means you can visit all the Schengen states but Spain. You can also receive a visa that includes only the acronyms of the states you are permitted to visit i.e. “F, FIN, GR”, which means you can only visit France, Finland, and Greece.

Tips for Traveling With a France Tourist Visa

You may be an experienced traveler, or at least you have previously been to France as a tourist. Yet, some extra tips may be quite handy for you. After you receive your France tourist visa:

• Make a list of the places you want to see in France. The Eiffel Tower, the Louvre Museum, the Arch of Triumph, these are of course things every person in France with a tourist visa wants to see. Yet, you should know that traveling from one place to the other will take time. Therefore, instead of just going from the Eiffel Tower to the Arch of Triumph, you should take the time to visit the places in between. That my friend, is called good trip planning.
• Pack according to the weather. You should pack according to the temperatures in France. Still, always take with you at least an outfit for colder weather, and one for warmer days than foreseen.
• Take comfy shoes with you. You may have to do a lot of walking.

When in France with a tourist visa:

• Keep cash. In most places, you can pay with a card, but in others, you may have to pay in cash, in particular, in smaller shops and restaurants.
• Be careful of pickpocketing. Especially in crowded places as museums and highly frequented streets. They may come from behind of you, or snatch your wallet or phone out of your hands. Keep these things always close.
• Try the street food. Whether it is a baguette sandwich, grilled cheese, or crêpes, you should try at least one of them. Visiting France is meaningless if you do not take the time to taste street food.