An emergency plan unveiled by the government, “administrative tourism” with Ile-de-France residents who attack the town halls of neighboring departments, French people who simply abandon their vacation plans… Getting a passport can look like, in some regions, the journey of the fighter. It would take “on average two months” for an identity document renewal request, against “15 days to 3 weeks” usually, according to the National Agency for Secure Documents (ANTS).
Faced with the traffic jam – in particular due to a slowdown in the number of requests during the periods of restrictions linked to the Covid – which could put some people in trouble when going on vacation, we offer you a list of destinations accessible with your only card. ID (valid during your stay) if you wish to leave France.
At the forefront are the 26 countries that make up the European Union, but also those that are part of the Schengen area (Switzerland, Iceland, Norway). The islands of these territories are also subject to the same rules (Azores, Canary Islands, Sardinia, Balearic Islands, etc.), as are the French overseas territories. Note, however, that to reach the most remote paradise islands, such as French Polynesia for example, a stopover in a country outside the European Union (often the United States) may require you to have a passport.
Three other countries offer the possibility of an escape outside Europe and without a passport. So you can go to Egypt to see one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. In addition to your identity card (valid for even more than six months), you will need a compulsory visa which you can apply for on the Egyptian government website. Allow ten working days and around 30 euros to obtain it. In search of the sun, you can also go to Turkey without a visa (with a CNI still valid for five months) or to Tunisia only if you take part in an organized trip. You will then need it to be accompanied by the travel diary issued by the agency.
On the other hand, if you were planning to cross the Channel to go to the United Kingdom, you must now have, since October 1, 2021, a valid passport. Due to Brexit, the British Home Office claims that this change should “prevent organized criminal gangs (…) from abusing the system”, because identity cards are, according to him, a document “ Insecure “.
Finally, one last piece of advice before packing your bags and going abroad: check that the country of your destination accepts identity cards, which appear to be expired, whose validity period has been automatically extended by 5 years. , because this is not the case for all (Belgium, Lithuania or even Norway, according to France diplomatie), even if it is considered by the French authorities to be still valid. And don’t forget to make sure that your vaccination or Covid screening situation is up to date on the embassy website of your destination.