Cruising Association welcomes easier check in/out for cruising to France
by The Cruising Association 31 May 2024 10:52 PDT
Cruising Association welcomes easier check in/out for cruising to France © The Cruising Association
French officials have announced a new 'protocol' for small boats to enter France from outside of the EU.
Normally boats would have to arrive at and depart from a Port of Entry (PPF), although last year there were a few ports with a special derogation which allowed entry for a limited period.
The new 'protocol' will apply from 1 June 2024 and grants some 53 marinas (which are not PPFs) the rights to handle boats arriving from or departing to outside of the EU/Schengen area. Below is the list of PPFs and other marinas/ports for Channel France.
Skippers of these boats will need to email a specific completed form to the relevant port in advance of arrival or departure. These forms will then be processed by local officials, and we anticipate the stamped papers may be picked up on arrival or emailed in the case of departure (as last year for those few ports).
The Cruising Association will publish further information for our members, including a comprehensive list of the relevant ports along with the associated forms as these are announced. The CA will also provide additional advice on some of the extra considerations such as cruising onwards to other EU countries and crew changes.
Further details for the Channel area but also applicable more widely, can be viewed by members on the France - Channel - Entry Procedures and Ports of Entry.
This announcement will make cruising to and from France this summer much easier and more attractive for all. The CA and cruising community is grateful to the French authorities as well as the ports and marina officials for their work to enable this outcome.
List of Ports
This list details all the ports which are included in the new protocol (as at 31 May 2024). Some of these are also existing PPFs:
- Barneville-Carteret
- Binic
- Bonifacio
- Boulogne sur mer
- Calais
- Calvi
- Carentan
- Charles Ornano
- Conquet
- Corbières port services
- Courseulles-sur-Mer
- Deauville
- Dielette
- Dieppe
- Dives-sur-Mer
- Dunkerque Marina
- Fécamp
- Grandcamps Maisy
- Granville
- Gravelines
- Honfleur
- l'Aber-Wrac'h
- La Rochelle
- Larmor-Baden
- Le Havre
- Lézardrieux
- Morlaix
- Paimpol
- Perros-Guirec
- Plouër-sur-Rance
- Pontrieux
- Port Chantereyne et avant-port
- Port de Cap d'Ail
- Port de Trébeurden
- Port en Bessin
- Port Napoléon
- Port Pierre Canto
- Port Saint Louis du Rhône
- Port Saint Pierre, ville d'Hyères
- Port Vauban
- Port-Bail-sur-Mer
- Porto Vecchio
- Propriano
- Saint Vaast la Hougue
- Saint-Cast
- Saint-Malo Plaisance
- Saint-Quay Port d'Armor
- Saint-Raphaël
- Saint-Tropez
- Saint-Valery-en-Caux
- Sanary-sur-Mer
- Tino Rossi
- Tréguier
The Channel PPFs (Ports of Entry) are flagged on the map
View the official announcement from the French authorities
Source: Cruising Association - www.theca.org.uk/news/france-easier-check-in-out