General Information

Travel insurance requirements

Due to a regulation of the European Union (Decision 2004/17/CE of December 22nd 2003), there is a requirement to hold travel insurance, which is a compulsory document.

The travel insurance should be*:

• Valid throughout the territory of the Member States of the Schengen area if you apply for short stay visa**;
• Valid for France if it is required in the document list and you apply for long stay visa;
• Valid for the French Overseas Territories according to your itinerary.

Your travel insurance must be valid with a minimum cover of EUR 30,000.00 in order to face any expenses that may arise in connection with your repatriation for medical reasons, urgent medical attention or emergency hospital treatment. The travel insurance should fully cover the period of your stay in the Schengen Area (or French overseas territories), please see list of approved insurance companies.

*A coverage “Worldwide” or “International” will be compliant in any situation (Short stay, Long stay, French overseas territories).

**For short stay the coverage area must encompass the totality of the Schengen area. An insurance mentioning only one destination country (e.g “France”) won’t be regarded as valid by the visa section.

Special insurance requirement for the long stay visa types:

• Visitor;
• Study under 18 years old;
• Ascendant of a French citizen or ascendant of a French citizen spouse (dependent & non-dependent).

Especially for the visa types mentioned above, the medical insurance required for your visa application is a “First Euro/Dollar” medical insurance for expatriates that covers the planned duration of stay. The insurance has to cover France or a larger zone (Europe, International etc...).

Travel Insurance that is 100% compliant with the Schengen requirements is mandatory for your visa application. Learn more.