UPDATE: When can second home owners travel to France?
As France exits its second lockdown, here's how the rules apply for second-home owners.
The roadmap for exiting lockdown laid out by French Prime Minister Jean Castex has three stages, with December 15th the key date for people looking to cross borders.
READ ALSO The next key dates in France's plan to end lockdown
Here's an outline of the latest;
I'm at my second home in France, can I return to my home country?
Yes, foreigners who were in France on a visit when lockdown came in are allowed to return to their home countries.
If you are returning to the UK, you will also need to fill in the quarantine locator form before you re-enter the country, and then quarantine for 14 days once you arrive - find this form HERE.
Can I travel to France to visit my second home?
It depends on where you are travelling from.
From December 15th, France, lifts its lockdown which means that all forms of travel - including for tourism and to visit second homes - are again allowed with no extra paperwork required.
This means that people travelling from the UK, the EU and Schengen zone countries are again be allowed to enter France and visit second homes.
All shops are open, but bars, restaurants and cafés remain closed until January and the French government asks people to keep travel and family gatherings to a minimum. There is also an 8pm-6am curfew in place - full detail on the rules around that HERE.
Public gatherings remain banned.
Ski resorts also remain closed until January, so if your second home is in a skiing area you can travel there, but don't expect the slopes to be open.
The EU's external borders remain closed, so non-essential travel to France is still not allowed for non-Europeans.
What about travel for British people?
For British travellers the situation has been slightly complicated by Brexit.
France has followed the EU's declarations on its external borders which state that at present travel within the EU and Schengen zone is allowed for any reason, but travellers coming in from outside the bloc must be travelling for an essential reason, unless they are coming from one of the short list of 'safe' countries.
At present travel from the UK counts as internal travel, but that will change on January 1st and a trip from the UK will count as an external trip.
Unless a special exception is made, that means that from January 1st, people can only travel from the UK for essential reasons, which would again shut out second home owners. Find out more in the latest travel situation HERE.
Return trip
People planning a trip to France need to also bear in mind restrictions that their own country imposes on arrivals from France, including quarantines, compulsory testing and travel forms. These apply to all arrivals - even residents and citizens of that country.
If your home country advises against international travel, this could invalidate your travel insurance.
For more in international travel rules, click HERE.
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The roadmap for exiting lockdown laid out by French Prime Minister Jean Castex has three stages, with December 15th the key date for people looking to cross borders.
READ ALSO The next key dates in France's plan to end lockdown
Here's an outline of the latest;
I'm at my second home in France, can I return to my home country?
Yes, foreigners who were in France on a visit when lockdown came in are allowed to return to their home countries.
If you are returning to the UK, you will also need to fill in the quarantine locator form before you re-enter the country, and then quarantine for 14 days once you arrive - find this form HERE.
Can I travel to France to visit my second home?
It depends on where you are travelling from.
From December 15th, France, lifts its lockdown which means that all forms of travel - including for tourism and to visit second homes - are again allowed with no extra paperwork required.
This means that people travelling from the UK, the EU and Schengen zone countries are again be allowed to enter France and visit second homes.
All shops are open, but bars, restaurants and cafés remain closed until January and the French government asks people to keep travel and family gatherings to a minimum. There is also an 8pm-6am curfew in place - full detail on the rules around that HERE.
Public gatherings remain banned.
Ski resorts also remain closed until January, so if your second home is in a skiing area you can travel there, but don't expect the slopes to be open.
The EU's external borders remain closed, so non-essential travel to France is still not allowed for non-Europeans.
What about travel for British people?
For British travellers the situation has been slightly complicated by Brexit.
France has followed the EU's declarations on its external borders which state that at present travel within the EU and Schengen zone is allowed for any reason, but travellers coming in from outside the bloc must be travelling for an essential reason, unless they are coming from one of the short list of 'safe' countries.
At present travel from the UK counts as internal travel, but that will change on January 1st and a trip from the UK will count as an external trip.
Unless a special exception is made, that means that from January 1st, people can only travel from the UK for essential reasons, which would again shut out second home owners. Find out more in the latest travel situation HERE.
Return trip
People planning a trip to France need to also bear in mind restrictions that their own country imposes on arrivals from France, including quarantines, compulsory testing and travel forms. These apply to all arrivals - even residents and citizens of that country.
If your home country advises against international travel, this could invalidate your travel insurance.
For more in international travel rules, click HERE.
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