VACCINE PASS. While the bill on the vaccine pass was adopted at first reading in the National Assembly, Thursday January 6, the text will be presented to the Senate on Monday January 10. What is the difference with the health pass? When will it be applied and who is affected? The Internet user takes stock of the new rules.
The essential
- After three days of debate, the law on the vaccine pass was adopted by the National Assembly on Thursday, January 6, with 214 votes in favor, 93 votes against and 27 abstentions.
- Requested from the age of 12, the vaccination pass will apply in restaurants, bars, cafes, cinemas, theaters and other leisure activities, fairs and seminars, such as the health pass. It will also be compulsory in inter-regional transport (TGV, Intercités) but not in regional trains (TER, Transilien, RER, metros, buses) nor in mainland-Corsica journeys by boat or plane. Health establishments and services will also be exempt from the vaccination pass.
- The text of the law was slightly modified on first reading, providing to limit the vaccination pass to French people over 16 years old instead of 12 years within the framework of “extracurricular and extracurricular” activities.
- Monday January 10, the text of the law passes in committee of the Senate. Then from Tuesday 11 to Wednesday 12 January, in public session. The date of entry into force of the vaccination pass could be postponed beyond January 15.
- The left-wing deputies (LFI, PCF, PS, Libertés et Territoires) are considering an appeal to the Constitutional Council against the law on the vaccine pass.
- How to get the vaccination pass? French people over 12 years old must present a complete vaccination schedule (one or two doses depending on the vaccine) or a recovery certificate, the criteria of which will be determined by a decree from the Prime Minister. PCR or antigenic tests negative for Covid-19 will no longer be valid.
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01/09/22 – 18:29 – When can I be eligible to obtain the vaccination pass?
With regard to its time to obtain, as for the health pass, the general directorate of health specified last week that “a person who would start his scheme today can obtain a vaccination pass one week after his second dose “, and after one month after the double injection of the Janssen vaccine.
01/09/22 – 17:56 – The possible verification of the identity of people with a vaccination pass
On January 6, the deputies of the National Assembly adopted the government amendment which specifies that “when there are serious reasons for believing that the document presented is not authentic or does not relate to the person presenting it , a check can be made to verify the correspondence between the identity elements mentioned on this document and those mentioned on an official identity document “.
01/09/22 – 5:24 pm – Will the vaccination pass be compulsory in health establishments?
For the moment, health establishments are not affected by the draft law on the vaccination pass. Access to health establishments and medico-social services will nevertheless remain subject to the health pass (complete vaccination schedule, negative test for Covid-19 or certificate of recovery) for patients and accompanying persons, except of course in emergencies, where none of the these two passes are not requested.
01/09/22 – 4:49 pm – Will the presidential elections be affected by the vaccination pass?
As for the health pass, the vaccination pass will not be required to access the polling stations in April during the presidential election or at least June during the legislative elections.
01/09/22 – 4:22 pm – Will the vaccination pass be compulsory at work?
As with the health pass, employees in the sectors concerned will be required to have the vaccination pass. On the other hand, the option of the health pass in business was not retained.
01/09/22 – 15:46 – What date for the start of the vaccination pass?
“We hope for January 15th,” the Prime Minister replied Thursday morning. Jean Castex interviewed on BFM-TV and RMC. But “it does not depend only on us”. Indeed, if the deputies of the National Assembly have caught up with their delay after two days of suspensions, the law must now pass into the hands of the Senate from Monday, January 10, and the latter can still slow down its adoption.
The bill “to transform the health pass into a vaccine pass” will not enter the Senate before Monday January 10 in committee, then will be examined in public session from January 11 to 12 in the evening. The government wanted the vaccine pass to enter into force from January 15, 2022, but the government’s agenda was turned upside down as the majority of deputies suspended debates overnight from Monday to Tuesday, then from Tuesday to Wednesday following to the controversial remarks of Emmanuel Macron on the unvaccinated in an interview with the Parisian on January 4. If, in the end, the majority of the deputies validated the bill in the National Assembly, the Senate, which examines the text of the law soon, could still slow down its adoption.
With this measure, the government clearly aims to “put stress on the unvaccinated” in the words of the Prime Minister on Friday, December 17 at a press conference, who judges that it is “no longer possible” to have nearly 5.3 million unvaccinated in the country. During his speech, Jean Castex recalled the importance of vaccination and recall, in particular in the “speed race” against Covid-19 and the Omicron variant which has become the majority in the territory. In addition, he specified that this law should make it possible to “tighten the controls and the sanctions against the false pass”.
If the law is adopted, the places subject to this new pass will be almost the same as those currently subject to the health pass, since it is a transformation of the latter, with the exception of health establishments, transport to Corsica or Overseas Territories, where the health pass will remain in force. It will necessarily be necessary to have been vaccinated (or cured of the Covid under certain conditions) to go to the following places:
- Restaurants, bars and cafes, including terraces.
- Trains long distance (TGV, Intercités, night trains): trains affected by the health pass will be “subject to this vaccination obligation”, according to a ministerial source. This should be clarified soon. The pass is not required for daily transport (TER, RER, Transilien, metros and buses are not affected).
- Campsites, hotels and holiday centers in certain cases only : campsites, holiday centers and hotels which only have an accommodation offer are not subject to the pass. On the other hand, campsites, holiday centers and hotels which have a restaurant, bar, swimming pool or performance hall require the pass, but only once upon arrival at the campsite, and regardless of the length of stay. .
- Sports halls or swimming pools : the pass is in effect for access to all sports establishments, such as weights and fitness rooms, indoor or outdoor swimming pools.
- Stadiums and other outdoor sports facilities : the pass is required to enter a stadium.
- Ski stations : the pass is made compulsory on board the ski lifts.
- Museums and monuments : At theTriumphal arch, the Eiffel Tower, the Castle of Versailles or any other museums and monuments, the pass is required.
- Amusement parks : the pass is required to go to amusement parks, such as the Asterix Park, Futuroscope or Disneyland Paris.
- Concerts and festivals : the obligation concerns concerts, shows and festivals bringing together more than 50 spectators.
- Movie theater : the pass is in effect in movie theaters.
- Theaters and other performance halls : theaters, operas, conservatory, lyric art … The pass is compulsory when the gauge exceeds 50 spectators.
- Trade fair and fairs : a contemporary art fair, such as the FIAC, a large-scale exhibition such as the Salon de l’Agriculture, du Chocolat or the Salon du Livre or the Mondial du Tatouage … The accessibility of all these places is subject to the pass. It is required in fairs and exhibitions with a capacity exceeding 50 people.
- Casinos and other gambling halls : casino activities, with or without contact, as well as bowling alleys, escape games and gaming rooms.
- Places of worship : “Type V” worship establishments, namely churches, mosques, synagogues or temples, are subject to the pass only within the framework of activities “which are not of a religious nature”, or leisure activities such as a concert or show, organized in these establishments. But in no case is the pass required during ceremonies or times of prayer.
- Weddings : If the wedding ceremony takes place in a private location, the pass is not required. On the other hand, in places accessible to the public (village hall, etc.), it is.
- Boat cruises : the pass is compulsory as long as 50 passengers are present.
- Nightclubs : nightclubs are subject to the pass.
- Shopping centers and department stores : the vaccination pass may be required by decision of the prefect.
- Trip : the pass is compulsory for inter-regional connections in hexagonal France. Links with Corsica or even overseas are exempt from the vaccination pass because they come under the border health pass.
If the possibility of obliging employees to present a vaccination pass to their company in order to be able to work has been considered, discussions with representatives of employees and employers have led the government to review its position on the subject. The assumption will therefore not appear in the bill.
More than ten countries are already using the vaccination pass around the world. Recently, Sweden opted for the vaccination pass from December 1 for indoor gatherings of more than 100 people. A new measure which comes at a time when the country has one of the lowest incidence rates (197 cases per 100,000 inhabitants) in Europe. Since November 18, the Czech Republic also uses this system. To enter shops and restaurants, hotels, museums or sporting events, you must be vaccinated or cured of Covid-19. Even more stringent, Latvia, which announced that unvaccinated deputies have been suspended from their duties since November 15. A decision that should last at least until July 2022 and then will be reviewed every two months. Finally, Estonia, which combines technology and the vaccine passport. Indeed, the country had launched a digital “immune passport” in June 2021 for all employees in the country. Thus, once employees have arrived at their workplace, they must present their mobile phone to a terminal which analyzes their immune system in the face of Covid-19.