French passports are issued to nationals of the French Republic for the purpose of international travel. Besides serving as indication of French citizenship (but not proof; the possession of a French passport only establishes the presumption of French citizenship according to French law), they facilitate the process of securing assistance from French consular officials abroad or other EU-members in case a French consular is absent, if needed. French passports are valid for ten years. France is a signatory to the 1995 Schengen Agreement.
Passport Requirements
Being French. You can claim French Citizenship if at least one of your parents is French, or in some cases French-born. The requirements are different according to the agreements and treaties between France and your home country. Any French consulate or French Embassy abroad will provide you with the list of requirements.
Entry Access
U.S. and Canadian citizens planning to travel to France for short visits of 90 days or less do not need visas to enter France.
A valid passport is sufficient. Exceptions exist for:
- Journalists traveling to France on assignment
- Crew Members on short-term assignment (film crews, etc.)
- Individuals holding diplomatic or official passports
Physical Appearance
French passports are Bordeaux-red, with the French Coat of arms emblazoned in the center of the front cover. The word “PASSEPORT” (English: Passport) is inscribed below the coat of arms and “Union européenne” (English: European Union), “République française” (English: French Republic) above. The “e-passport” cover has the biometric symbol at the bottom. French passports use the standard EU design, with the standard passport containing 36 pages.
Identity Information Page
The French Passport includes the following data:
- Photo of Passport Holder
- Type (P)
- Code (FRA)
- Passport No.
- Surname (1)
- Given Names (2)
- Nationality (3)
- Date of Birth (4)
- Sex (5)
- Place of Birth (6)
- Date of Issue (7)
- Date of Expiry (8)
- Authority (9)
- Holder’s Signature (10)
- Height (12)
- Color of Eyes (13)
- Residence (15) – Page 36
The information page ends with the Machine Readable Zone.
Languages
The data page is printed in English and French.
Note
A valid passport valid 6 month after day of departure is often required 1 RT = Return Ticket M = Money covering the stay I = Invitation letter P = Photo A = Accommodation confirmation TI = Travel insurance IV = International Vaccination Record
I am msg’ing on behalf of my Partner in France (french resident by birth), I am in Australia. my partner has recently spent 2 years in Japan working as a paid volunteer thru a french/Japanese business which involved him getting an “official” passport which is not including his personal passport. He has been back in Paris for 2 months now and has had endless trouble trying to return this passport which belongs to them, now because he is meant to be coming here to Australia in just over one month, we feel he needs to return this official passport b4 he can come down here on his personal passport, yet constant contact to his former department has provided no answer and no contact on who to return the passport too ….. please help, I really need some idea on what to do …
Thanx
Yours Sincerely
Shane Stubbs (Australia)
anakha75@hotmail.com
Was born is st.martin. And grow up in dominica. Went to st.martin to try and get my pastport they told me am not french so where am I from. Wat to do please help I was born there