On 17th May 2021, the “State Action at Sea” division of the French Maritime Authorities for the Mediterranean published prefectural order n°094/2021 which, in article 1, provides for the removal of the measures inserted in article 4 of prefectural order n°238/2020 on 30th November 2020.
This article provided in particular that foreign ships, flying flags from outside of the Schengen area, were not allowed to anchor or stop along the French coast.
However, the article provided that foreign-flagged ships were allowed to:
- exercise their right of innocent passage in order to cross French territorial waters quickly and continuously, to reach the open sea,
- or to reach their home port when it was located on the French Mediterranean coast,
- or a shipyard, subject to a repair contract.
In practice: From now on, all yachts can circulate freely and stop along the coast of France and Monaco. Remember you will need to have a negative PCR test that is less than 72 hours old if you wish to enter a port in France or Monaco and you must contact the harbour master’s office to register in accordance with the law.
