France has banned unvaccinated American tourists from entering the country around two weeks after the European Union removed the US from its safe travel list as the Delta variant continues to cause a spike in cases.
The French government, led by President Emmanuel Macron, announced Thursday the US will move from the green travel list to the orange list on September 12, effectively banning nonessential travel to France for unvaccinated visitors.
The rules have not changed for vaccinated travelers from the US, however, who are still able to visit France provided they show proof of full vaccination.
Only the four vaccines approved by the European Medicines Agency - Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, and Johnson & Johnson - are accepted for travelers entering France from any country.
The French government, led by President Emmanuel Macron, holding the mic, said that unvaccinated Americans will be barred from entering the country for non-essential travel starting September 12. Macron, pictured, during a news conference on Friday
U.S. tourists will need to provide proof of vaccination to visit France and its attractions
Visits to The Eiffel Tower require people to display proof of vaccination or a negative test result
Unvaccinated travelers who have 'essential reasons' to visit France will need to provide a negative COVID-19 test before travel and isolate for seven days upon arrival, USA Today reported.
France already requires proof of vaccination or a negative test result for people to eat at restaurants, ride trains or to visit popular destinations like the Eiffel Tower and other national monuments and museums.
Anyone who wants to visit France must fill out an application for a COVID certificate with the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs.
French President Emmanuel Macron, left, and his government issued an order to bar unvaccinated travelers from the US. Biden has yet to reopen the US to EU tourists
France's clampdown on unvaccinated Americans comes after a wave of other EU countries tightened restrictions on tourists from the US.
Denmark, the Netherlands and Spain have all made similar requirements that US travelers show proof of vaccination, and Sweden has barred all American arrivals regardless of vaccination status, CNN reported.
Italy began requiring requiring all visitors, including those from the US, to show prof of a negative COVID-19 rests 72 hours before traveling, whether they are vaccinated or not.
Many European nations had eases travel restrictions for the summer tourism season as COVID-19 cases began to drop in June.
However, the US began seeing dramatic spikes due to the Delta Variant in July and August, at times reporting nearly 300,000 new cases a day.
On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported more than 163,000 new cases, and nearly 1,650 new deaths.
More than 75% of adults eligible for the vaccine in the U.S. have gotten at least one jab, according to the CDC.
The sudden surge of cases is what led the EU to recommend that its member nations place vaccine restrictions to curb the number of Americans coming into Europe.
The guidance is nonbinding, however. The EU has no unified COVID-19 tourism policy and national governments have the authority to decide whether they keep their borders open to US tourists.
In early August, Germany added the US to its 'high-risk' area list, requiring unvaccinated travelers to quarantine or undergo testing.
The recommendation doesn’t apply to Britain, which formally left the EU at the beginning of the year and opened its borders to fully vaccinated travelers from the US earlier this month.
The United States remains on Britain’s 'amber' travel list, meaning that fully vaccinated adults arriving from the US to the UK don’t have to self-isolate. A COVID-19 test is required three days before arrival in the UK and another test is needed two days after arriving.
The United States has yet to reopen its own borders to EU tourists, despite calls from the bloc for the Biden administration to lift its ban.
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