Is it compulsory to vaccinate children in France?

Parents in France do not have to get their children vaccinated, but GPs and paediatricians will strongly recommend it — and, crucially, those children will not be allowed to go to school, or attend daycare during the holidays, or do extracurricular activities.

Which vaccinations are we talking about?

Article L.3111-2-I of the Public Health Code states that every child born on or after January 1st, 2018, must receive – unless there is a recognised medical reason that they cannot – vaccines against the following diseases:

• diphtheria;
• tetanus;
• polio;
• whooping cough;
• the bacterium Haemophilus influenzae type b;
• hepatitis B;
• pneumococcus;
• ACWY meningococci;
• type B meningococci;
• measles;
• mumps;
• and rubella.

France’s vaccination calendar. Graphic: ameli.fr

Before a child starts school in France, parents have to provide proof of vaccination, via their child’s GP-updated carnet de santé (personal child health record).

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Any child who has not had the full dose of those vaccinations by the time they start in full-time education, which is now compulsory from the age of three, cannot be fully enrolled in school. 

Instead, they will be provisionally enrolled and the parents will be given three months to get their children up to date with their innoculations.

Since April 2023, public health officials have also recommended that infants aged six weeks to six months be vaccinated against Rotavirus, and that children with underlying health conditions also receive an annual vaccination against influenza, if they are aged between two and 17. 

Meanwhile, the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine is increasingly recommended — but not required — for children aged 11 to 14. These prevent up to 90 percent of human papillomavirus infections which cause various cancers.

Furthermore, for adolescents aged 11 to 14, ACWY vaccination is now recommended, regardless of their prior vaccination status. It is also recommended for individuals aged 15 to 24 as part of catch-up vaccination programmes.

Vaccination against meningococcus B can be offered to people aged 15 to 24.

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And schools routinely organise vaccination drives to ensure that all pupils are up to date with their jabs.

But what if I don’t want my child to be vaccinated at all?

Your GP will push to change your mind — they are legally obliged to do so — by informing parents of the benefits of vaccination and of the risks of refusal, for health and social reasons.

If you really don’t want your child to have the required vaccinations, you have the right to refuse.

But you also have the responsibility of understanding that they will not be allowed to attend state or private schools, which means you will have to home school. 

They will also not be allowed to attend holiday daycare centres, such as MJCs, which also demand confirmation of vaccinations; or join sports clubs and take part in extracurricular group activities.

Your refusal to have your child vaccinated will be recorded on their health record.

Can’t I get my doctor to sign a form confirming the vaccines are safe?

Some parents have tried to make vaccination conditional upon the doctor signing a form guaranteeing that the vaccines are not harmful.

Sample documents of this type are available to parents on anti-vax websites. 

These aren’t worth the pixels on the computer screen before you wasted the paper and ink to print it out. Your doctor will, quite rightly, refuse. 

Homeschooling doesn’t sound so bad

Parents of an estimated 50,000 children in France — who have done so for a variety of reasons, including religious ones — would agree with you. But, there are strict rules in place. 

Before you start, you must register to become a home-educator with your local authority, which by all accounts, isn’t necessarily straightforward, and requires consent from the local authority, which is far from a given.

Specific health or disability needs, or if your family moves frequently making school attendance difficult, or if your child has a talent in sports or art that requires intensive practice are some of the more usual reasons for homeschooling.

Once accepted, brace for regular inspections to ensure you are teaching a balanced and appropriate curriculum.