Britons hoping to travel to France for a ski holiday this winter have had their plans thrown into chaos after being told they will require a vaccine passport.
Everyone over the age of 12 will now have to provide proof they are double-vaccinated to access the slopes and that their last jab was no more than seven months ago, under plans announced Thursday by health minister Olivier Veran.
That poses multiple issues for British travellers - with children aged under 16 unable to get a vaccination passport and those aged 12-15 only eligible for one jab.
Additionally, boosters are currently only being offered to Britons aged over 40 meaning people in their mid-to-late 30s whose second doses were given in June risk missing out as their passports will 'expire' in January.
The new rules, which kick in from December 4, are part of a package designed to stem France's winter wave of Covid which includes making boosters available to all over-18s and shortening the time between second dose and booster to five months.
Infections and deaths are soaring across Europe, but there are encouraging signs that epidemics in hard-hit Austria and the Netherlands are easing - albeit only after the former went into full lockdown and the latter imposed a night-time curfew.
France will require everyone over the age of 12 to show a vaccine passport in order to access ski slopes from December 4
New rules will cause chaos for Brits, with those under 16 unable to get a Covid passport, those aged 12-15 only eligible for one jab, and those in mid-to-late 30s unable to get boosters
Daily case figures for Austria show that infections largely plateaued in the week between November 18 and 25, beginning after the country locked down its unvaccinated citizens but before it went into full lockdown.
Data shows a similar effect being felt in the Netherlands over the same period of time, coming roughly a week after it imposed a night-time curfew and brought back mandatory face masks on public transport and some indoor spaces.
European leaders have been scrambling to reimpose restrictions in an attempt to curb cases of the virus, but measures between countries have varied widely.
Austria has been among the harshest, shutting down all non-essential shops and making vaccines mandatory for everyone who is eligible to get one.
Others, such as France, Italy and Germany, have cracked down on the unvaccinated - tightening rules around their Covid
