France

Using or possessing drugs including cannabis is illegal in France even in private, and police can issue an immediate flat-rate fine of €200.

The €200 fine rises to €450 if unpaid, goes on your criminal record, and serious cases carry up to 1 year in prison and a €3,750 fine.

Verified Jul 5, 2026

Cannabis is illegal in France and using it is a criminal offence, not a fine-only infraction. The law sets a maximum of 1 year in prison and a €3,750 fine for use alone, and selling or supplying — even giving it to a friend — is treated as trafficking. Cannabis bought legally in another country does not become legal on arrival in France.

Use: up to 1 year imprisonment and a €3,750 fine (Code de la santé publique art. L3421-1), or a €200 fixed fine that still counts as an admission of guilt and is recorded on the criminal record. Trafficking: up to 10 years and a €7.5 million fine.

Verified Sep 17, 2026

You may bring personal medication into France only in quantities matching your prescription (up to 3 months for ordinary drugs), and narcotic or psychotropic medicines require the original prescription and roughly a 1-month limit.

Original doctor's prescription is mandatory for narcotic/psychotropic medicines; for narcotics, an ANSM transport certificate may be required by the destination country.

Verified Jul 5, 2026

France lets adults BUY pepper spray (100 ml max), switchblades, butterfly knives and stun devices freely - but carrying one outside your home, including in your car, is a crime without a legitimate reason, and self-defence is expressly NOT one. Up to 15,000 EUR and 1 year in prison.

Carrying or transporting a category D weapon (pepper spray, knives, stun devices) outside the home without a legitimate reason: 15,000 EUR fine and 1 year in prison; 30,000 EUR and 2 years if committed together with another person. If you instead hand the weapon over voluntarily to the police, a fixed fine of 500 EUR applies, reduced to 400 EUR or increased to 1,000 EUR depending on how quickly you pay. Air rifles and paintball launchers of 2 to 20 joules: 750 EUR. Visibly carrying anything resembling a weapon in public transport: fine up to 750 EUR and the object may be confiscated.

Verified Sep 15, 2026

You must declare cash, gold or equivalent of €10,000 or more to customs when entering or leaving France (or the EU).

Non-declaration can mean a fine of up to 50% of the sum and temporary seizure of the money.

Verified Jul 5, 2026

That fake handbag is a customs offence in France, and buying it for yourself is no defence. French customs treat importing counterfeit goods as a delit douanier under articles L.513-1 to L.513-5 of the Code des douanes, punishable by a fine of one to two times the value of the GENUINE article - "une amende comprise entre une et deux fois la valeur de l'objet de la fraude" - by up to three years' imprisonment, and by confiscation of the goods, the means of transport and anything used to conceal them. Where an organised gang is involved the fine rises to ten times the value and the term to ten years. Customs may settle minor traveller cases by transaction rather than prosecution, but the goods are still seized.

Fine of 1 to 2 times the value of the genuine goods and up to 3 years' imprisonment, plus confiscation of the goods and the means of transport. Organised-gang cases: up to 10 times the value and 10 years.

Verified Sep 18, 2026

France has no national street-drinking ban - but Paris bans drinking on public streets from 7pm to 7am across dozens of named areas, and beer and wine count. Licensed cafe and restaurant terraces are exempt.

Anyone found drunk in a public place anywhere in France may be taken into police custody at their own expense and held until they sober up (Code de la sante publique art. L3341-1, version en vigueur 27 May 2021). Breach of the Paris arrete is enforced as a contravention under the Code penal; the exact fine was not confirmed from primary text this run. Separately, selling alcohol to a minor is punished by a 7,500 EUR fine (art. L3353-3).

Verified Sep 8, 2026

Bring your own vape - France has banned the SALE of disposables. Since 26 February 2025 no shop may sell, supply or give away a prefilled non-refillable "puff", so you cannot buy or replace one here; refillable devices and pods are still sold, and the ban binds sellers, not your pocket. Do not vape in schools, enclosed public transport or enclosed shared workplaces - a fine of up to EUR 750. Cafes, bars and restaurants sit outside that statutory ban, but every venue sets its own rule, so ask. And know the trap: France's 2025 outdoor ban on beaches, parks, bus shelters and school approaches covers SMOKING only, not vaping - the rule flips depending on which one you are holding.

Vaping in a place listed at CSP art. L3513-6: art. R3515-7 makes it a 4th-class contravention, and Code penal art. 131-13 4. sets that at EUR 750 maximum. Whether a fixed on-the-spot amende forfaitaire applies was not verified. Selling or giving vaping products to a minor is a 5th-class contravention (art. R3515-6, amended 29 June 2025) - EUR 1,500 maximum - and binds the seller, not the traveller. The penalty for selling disposables is reported by the government's own Service-Public/DILA guidance as up to EUR 100,000, rising to EUR 200,000 on repeat; art. L3515-2-1 A, the article that carries it, could not be read verbatim, so that figure is attributed to guidance rather than to primary text, and it is a seller-side penalty in any case. A secondary claim of EUR 300,000 for a legal person was seen and is deliberately not published.

Verified Sep 9, 2026

Flying into France from the US you get 200 cigarettes duty-free - or 100 cigarillos, or 50 cigars, or 250 g of loose smoking tobacco. Pick ONE; they do not stack. You must be 17 or older.

No fine is documented for an individual traveller exceeding the tobacco allowance - the consequence is TAX, not a penalty: "Les quantites excedant celles fixees ci-dessus sont soumises au paiement des droits de douane, de la taxe sur la valeur ajoutee (TVA) et des droits d'accises exigibles." Separately and unrelated to over-allowance, DGDDI states that buying tobacco on a website is prohibited and the goods will be confiscated by customs before delivery.

Verified Aug 27, 2026

France's drink-drive limit is 0.5 g of alcohol per litre of blood (0.25 mg/L of breath), dropping to 0.2 g/L for novice drivers with a probationary licence.

From 0.5 g/L: fine up to €750 and loss of 6 licence points; 0.8 g/L or more is a criminal offence with up to €9,000 fine and 3 years in prison.

Verified Jul 5, 2026

In France you must give way to traffic approaching from your right at most intersections and roundabouts, and driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol can lead to immediate arrest.

Driving under the influence may result in immediate arrest and detention.

Verified Jul 5, 2026

French law restricts drone use and photography/video of sensitive sites — airports, military bases, prisons, nuclear plants — and large gatherings such as concerts and parades.

Up to 75,000 euro fine or 1-year imprisonment

Verified Jul 5, 2026

France bans signal jammers outright, and the ban reaches merely HAVING one: importing, advertising, giving away or selling, putting into circulation, installing, POSSESSING and using any device meant to knock out radio equipment are all prohibited — so a jammer in your bag is an offence before you ever switch it on. Up to 6 months in prison and a EUR 30,000 fine. Separately, do not plug in the US-style mobile signal booster (repeater) you brought for a rural cottage or a camper: installing one without the prior authorisation of the mobile operators carries the SAME 6-month / EUR 30,000 penalty, and France's frequency agency handles roughly 150 of these cases a year. If indoor coverage is poor, use Wi-Fi calling — the agency says that needs no operator agreement.

Up to 6 months' imprisonment and a EUR 30,000 fine (Code des postes et des communications electroniques art. L.39-1) — the same penalty for an unauthorised jammer and for an unauthorised mobile repeater. ANFR agents are sworn and empowered to locate the equipment, identify the person responsible and draw up a proces-verbal.

Verified Sep 14, 2026

There are no legal restrictions on same-sex relationships or the organization of events in France.

Verified Jul 5, 2026

Concealing your face in a public place is an offence in France under Law No. 2010-1192 of 11 October 2010 (Penal Code art. R645-14). "Public place" is broad: streets, roads and highways, public gardens, stations, airports, beaches, cinemas, shops, restaurants, banks and public transport, plus courts, town halls, hospitals, schools, museums and libraries. Exceptions cover safety equipment required by law such as a motorcycle helmet, health or professional requirements, sport such as a fencing mask, artistic and traditional events such as carnivals and theatre, and places of worship. At a demonstration the rule is far harsher, and forcing another person to cover their face is a separate and much more serious offence.

A 5th-class contravention: a 150 EUR fine, with a citizenship course available instead of or in addition to it. Concealing the face at a demonstration: 1,500 EUR, rising to 3,000 EUR on repeat, and up to 1 year's imprisonment plus 15,000 EUR where public disorder occurs or may occur (art. 431-9-1). Forcing another person to conceal their face by threat, violence or coercion on grounds of sex: 1 year's imprisonment and 30,000 EUR, doubled to 2 years and 60,000 EUR where the victim is a minor (art. 225-4-10).

Verified Sep 17, 2026