Last Updated on July 10, 2026 by Colin Le Conte

Latest information

Following the introduction of EES, things seem to have settled down and a pattern has been established of how EES is affecting private boaters, for 2026 at least.

The majority of French ports around the Channel Island area, use the National Protocol and you send the form to the marina, they forward it to the douane and most of the time, you will received a stamped copy back after a couple of days, which you should retain for your records.

Some douanes / marinas do not send back the stamped form and some douanes only acknowledge receipt and nothing further e.g. Carteret

The Ports of Entry are where historically you had your passports stamped. You still submit your form in advance. Cherbourg, Granville and Brest are running a 2 tier system where you can check in and out using either the form, or you can ask to have the full EES. Saint Malo currently will only provide EES.

Remember, you cannot mix the types of entry and exit. If you check into St Malo using EES, you have to check out of a Port of Entry using EES. The main Ports of Entry around the Channel Islands are

• Cherbourg
• Granville
• Saint Malo
• Saint Brieuc (the douane is 2 miles from the port)
• Roscoff
• Brest

There is also now a site where you can check the number of days you are still allowed to stay on the territory of European countries using the EES through the EES online tool, which you can find: https://travel-europe.europa.eu/ees/check-how-long-you-can-stay . This site appears to be official.

If you use the Protocol (and not EES) to check in, then you can move between French marinas without checking in and out at each one. You only need to check out at the last marina when you leave France. Note: This a French National Protocol and if you wish to travel to another country, even if it is within the Schengen area, then you need to ensure you have been checked in using the EES system.

National Protocol

Keith Martin, our main contact in France has today reported “Following discussions with the French Customs Authorities and the French Border Police (PAF), it has been decided that the existing Protocol covering arrivals and departures from French marinas will remain in place at least until the end of 2026. You will be notified should there be any changes in the meantime to this decision.”

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The French government departments EES is now live (EU’s Entry/Exit System) . This means non-EU nationals will have fingerprints and photos taken at borders for short stays, replacing the stamping of Passports.

The first time you arrive in the Schengen area, (First Time Registration) you will have the full biometrics (facial image and fingerprints) in order to create your EES file. On subsequent arrivals or departures, our understanding is that facial recognition will normally be used.

Please also note your passport must:

• have a ‘date of issue’ less than 10 years before the date you arrive – if you renewed your passport before 1 October 2018, it may have a date of issue that is more than 10 years ago, making it invalid for entry to the Schengen area.
• have an ‘expiry date’ at least 3 months after the date you plan to leave the Schengen area (the expiry date does not need to be within 10 years of the date of issue)

At present there is no change to the protocol.

Visitors to Saint Malo (a Port of Entry) on their boat on 15th April 2026 confirmed that on arrival at the Douane office, fingerprints and photos were taken of people who were not on the EES system and facial recognition used for the people who were already on the system. This replaced the stamping of the passport.

Until notified otherwise, we continue to work under the existing Protocol for non Port of Entry marinas.

The special protocols should remain for the marinas (send the form in by email) in 2026. You still cannot mix the two i.e. you can’t arrive at a PPF and leave at a non PPF marina. There is talk of the non PPF marinas typing the details from your form into the EES, which makes sense, but this is to be confirmed.

Pets

On 22nd April 2026, the rules for pets from the Channel Islands into the EU have changed. I can only refer you to the official information.

https://www.gov.uk/taking-your-pet-abroad/travelling-to-an-eu-country

Granville / Normandy

I asked Granville Douane what their arrangements are following the introduction of EES.

I have today (29th April 2026) received the following response (translated).

“The old document you attached is still valid. They can still submit their forms without going to the immigration office at the ferry terminal.

Regional Directorate of Customs and Indirect Taxes of Caen
External Customs Surveillance Brigade of Granville”

2024 announcements and forms

This is the press release on the French National Protocol in 2024

Communiqué press_english version

Thank you to the French authorities as well as the ports and marina officials who worked so hard to introduce these new rules.

The PPF they refer to are the official Ports of Entry. The new rules are for non-PF marinas. In the past, you had to go to a PPF marina first (with a few exceptions) and now that has all changed for the better.

This is the form that needs to be completed. I am not sure it is the final version of the form but is the one that Treguier kindly provided. I suggest you contact the marina you will be visiting for their version of the form.

Word version (.docx file) 

Word version (open .odt file) 

PDF version (may not be editable for some users) 

https://digimapmarinas.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Annexe-1-Formulaire-declaratif.pdf

PDF version (I had done some work to turn it into a form, not sure how well it will work) 

https://digimapmarinas.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Annexe-1-Formulaire-declaratif-editable.pdf

Please email marinas@digimap.gg with any updates that would be useful to fellow boaters, including photos.

Question: Which are the marinas under this new arrangement?

Answer: This is the list of the marinas