When is a French visa needed?

[Shauna&Wael 211]

Hello all,

I got into an argument with my husband today about if he'll be needing a French visa to travel from Tunis-Paris-San Francisco. According to these links:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_requirements_for_Tunisian_citizens

http://visafrance.co.uk/doyouneedafrenchvisa-php/

He does. However, after looking at the website for the French embassy in Tunis, there's no option for English (lol).

Can someone (preferably from Tunisia) please clarify this. If it is needed, what will the steps be? I told him he should go to the French embassy in Tunis to get clarification but he blew up and is extremely pissed that he might be needing another visa, understandably so.

What I'm thinking is it might be like when we traveled to Turkey and were able to get the visas in the airport after paying a fee. Please, any guidance is so appreciated!!

[nomadnoor 29]

Hi! Asalaam alaikum!

Yes your husband will need a transit visa to go through the airport in Paris. A few alternative routes - since my husband who is Moroccan was in the same boat - are TUN - FRANKFURT - SFO or TUN - DUBAI - SFO.

If you were considering Spain - he would also need a transit visa for their airports as well!

Wa alaikum salaam!

Ally & Omar

[Shauna&Wael 211]

Hi! Asalaam alaikum!

Yes your husband will need a transit visa to go through the airport in Paris. A few alternative routes - since my husband who is Moroccan was in the same boat - are TUN - FRANKFURT - SFO or TUN - DUBAI - SFO.

If you were considering Spain - he would also need a transit visa for their airports as well!

Wa alaikum salaam!

Ally & Omar

ishaq sahbi (lol i'm so white...)

Okay, but did he get the transit visa from the airport or he had to go through the French embassy? According to my links it can take 2-3 weeks to obtain the visa. And your husband was coming from Morocco, so it was a little different right?

Are there particular advantages to the alternative routes you've listed? I chose Air France because they're what I used the past 2 times I visited him. Not only do I enjoy the experience of their airline, I also love that they have the direct flight from Paris to SF. It will just be easier for my husband since it will be his first time traveling alone. Thank you so much for your response. I'm glad I'm right

EDIT: I've been to the DXB airport, that place is a fricken nightmare although quite a spectacle.

Edited August 26, 2015 by Shauna&Wael

[nomadnoor 29]

ishaq sahbi (lol i'm so white...)

Okay, but did he get the transit visa from the airport or he had to go through the French embassy? According to my links it can take 2-3 weeks to obtain the visa. And your husband was coming from Morocco, so it was a little different right?

Are there particular advantages to the alternative routes you've listed? I chose Air France because they're what I used the past 2 times I visited him. Not only do I enjoy the experience of their airline, I also love that they have the direct flight from Paris to SF. It will just be easier for my husband since it will be his first time traveling alone. Thank you so much for your response. I'm glad I'm right

EDIT: I've been to the DXB airport, that place is a fricken nightmare although quite a spectacle.

So my husband traveled through Casablanca to Frankfurt to SFO on Lufthasa & United. He did NOT need a transit visa for this route because Frankfurt does not require a transit visa for individuals holding a valid visa to the USA and the same goes DXB and Istanbul (just remembered that airport)

My husband actually met a ton of Moroccan's on his flight who were traveling to the East Coast and helped him to his gate in Frankfurt.

Yes its a little different but in general the "the Magrib," which refers to Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria all have verys similiar visa requirements by EU countries. I suggest not being so loyal to Air France I have found they are extremely overpriced in compared to other airlines. Check different flights and routes using kayak.com and skyscanner.com

I flew CMN- DXB- SFO on Emirates - it wasn't direct (there was a 12 hour layover) but cheaper and excellent in flight service (better than Air France IMO). I also specifically considered DXB because my husband speaks Arabic as his first language then French and English as his third and I wanted to be sure he would be able to ask for help if any issues arose ie a delay in Arabic. Dubai was freaking insane - a huge mall instead of an airport - that said it has a hotel in it - so if you could afford it put him up if the layover is really long.

I hope this helps.

Ally & Omar

[Shauna&Wael 211]

So my husband traveled through Casablanca to Frankfurt to SFO on Lufthasa & United. He did NOT need a transit visa for this route because Frankfurt does not require a transit visa for individuals holding a valid visa to the USA and the same goes DXB and Istanbul (just remembered that airport)

My husband actually met a ton of Moroccan's on his flight who were traveling to the East Coast and helped him to his gate in Frankfurt.

Yes its a little different but in general the "the Magrib," which refers to Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria all have verys similiar visa requirements by EU countries. I suggest not being so loyal to Air France I have found they are extremely overpriced in compared to other airlines. Check different flights and routes using kayak.com and skyscanner.com

I flew CMN- DXB- SFO on Emirates - it wasn't direct (there was a 12 hour layover) but cheaper and excellent in flight service (better than Air France IMO). I also specifically considered DXB because my husband speaks Arabic as his first language then French and English as his third and I wanted to be sure he would be able to ask for help if any issues arose ie a delay in Arabic. Dubai was freaking insane - a huge mall instead of an airport - that said it has a hotel in it - so if you could afford it put him up if the layover is really long.

I hope this helps.

Ally & Omar

Yeah, I totally get that flights with long layovers and backwards routes are typically cheaper, IMO it's worth it to pay extra for the ease and comfort of everything being smooth and not a hassle. And you even said it yourself, it evens out because what you're not paying for in the extra cost of the ticket, you're paying for in time and hotel cost, etc. etc. I actually use Google flight matrix when I'm looking for the cheapest tickets, it generates results all across the board.

I flew JFK-DXB-TUN the first time I met my husband, and I felt so dumb afterwards because I never even looked at a map and realized just how much time was wasted backtracking to Dubai. Not to mention how physcially and mentally draining it was. It's not for everyone, and to me it's not worth the cheaper price. Now I know better and Air France makes the whole ordeal pretty painless (IMHO). I'm sure plenty of people speak Arabic at CDG

[KimberlyAhmed 28]

If your husband has one ticket to the USA even with layovers he will not need a transit visa. He will have to stay in the international zone in the airport, but should be ok.

[Shauna&Wael 211]

If your husband has one ticket to the USA even with layovers he will not need a transit visa. He will have to stay in the international zone in the airport, but should be ok.

What's your source?

[jen+taher 0]

What's your source?

I, obviously, didnt originally post this, but as it applies to my situation as well, I took a look:

http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/coming-to-france/getting-a-visa/article/what-type-of-visa-do-i-need-to

Seems as if the second case would be where our partners lie, and Tunisia is not listed as needing an ATV (airport transit visa)

Also, this applies to Nigerians, but, probably to Tunisians as well:

http://www.airfrance.com/NG/en/local/page_flottante/hp/airport_transit_visa.htm

I, obviously, didnt originally post this, but as it applies to my situation as well, I took a look:

http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/en/coming-to-france/getting-a-visa/article/what-type-of-visa-do-i-need-to

Seems as if the second case would be where our partners lie, and Tunisia is not listed as needing an ATV (airport transit visa)

Also, this applies to Nigerians, but, probably to Tunisians as well:

http://www.airfrance.com/NG/en/local/page_flottante/hp/airport_transit_visa.htm

And THIS LINK is even better.....Part 2, 6th point.

http://www.consulfrance-washington.org/spip.php?article383