Short visa issuing times for visitors to France
France is setting out to boost tourist numbers by shortening visa delivery time to 48 hours for Thais and citizens of Russia, India, the Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Indonesia.
Affected by the wave of attacks in Paris and Nice, tourism dropped last year though seem to be rising again this year. France is targeting a record of as many as 89 million foreign tourists in 2017, up from 83 million last year, and 100 million visitors in 2020.
From November 1, citizens of Thailand, Russia, India, the Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Indonesia will see the processing time to get a visa, which currently takes an estimated 10 days and more in peak season significantly reduced to 48 hours.
This measure, which is already in place for a few other countries, including Qatar, would be extended to Saudi Arabia and Vietnam next year if a change in EU visa procedures for those countries allows it.
The French government will assign more staff for airport passport checks to limit waiting time to 30 minutes for EU citizens and 45 minutes for nonEU citizens. Currently, tourism generates over 7 per cent of France’s gross domestic product and employs 2 million people.
Find out more at www.AtoutFrance.fr.
