Border Formalities

Ventimiglia-just across the border

Passport

You need a valid passport or ID card to enter France. EU nationals only need to show an ID card. Citizens of all other countries need to show a passport and the passport must be valid at least six months after the return date to your home country.

The French Riviera borders the Liguria region of Italy. In fact, the Italian border is only about 30km from Nice. The last French town before the Italian border is Menton. As France and Italy are both signatories to the Schengen agreement, there are no passport checks between the two countries. You do not need to bring your passport if you are making a day trip to Italy or Monaco and you will not be asked to show your passport upon arriving in France from Italy or Monaco.

Visas

Citizens of the following countries do not need a visa for stays shorter than 90 days:

Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Bermuda, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Holy See, Honduras, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Nicaragua, New Zealand, Panama, Paraguay, San Marino, Singapore, South Korea, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela.

For stays, longer than 90 days, you need a visa which you can obtain from your local French consulate.

Customs

There are occasional customs (douane) checks of travellers entering France from Italy by car, train or bus. The usual purpose of these checks is to search for counterfeit goods purchased in Italy, especially Ventimiglia or San Remo. There is a booming trade in counterfeit luxury items and French Customs is determined to stop it. Fines are steep if you're caught. You could be forced to pay up to three times the value of the authentic item.

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