The French government has defended a decision to ask unvaccinated people who want to eat in restaurants or take long-distance trips to undertake tests for Covid-19.
President Emmanuel Macron announced the tougher measure on Monday, along with mandatory vaccinations for healthcare and retirement home workers, prompting a surge in bookings for the shot.
Critics accused the president of discriminating against sceptics or those who will not be fully vaccinated before the rules come into effect.
Others say the government is effectively imposing general vaccination by stealth. The French word for dictatorship, #Dictature, was trending on Twitter.
“There isn’t any vaccine obligation. This is maximum inducement,” government spokesman Gabriel Attal said.
“I have a hard time understanding, in a country where 11 vaccines are already mandatory ... that this could be seen as a dictatorship.”
After a year of studying the vaccines, “the time of doubting is long past”, he said.
The rules will be relaxed for teenagers who have only been offered vaccines since mid-June.
“Making summer hell is out of the question,” Mr Attal said.
The Delta variant is now causing the majority of the 4,000 to 5,000 new cases per day in France.
That figure could jump to 35,000 by August without new containment measures, the Pasteur Institute said on Monday.
Mr Macron’s speech sparked a record surge in vaccine bookings. More than 1.7 million people – most aged under 35 – had made appointments as of Tuesday afternoon, according to the head of the Doctolib reservation site.
Prime Minister Jean Castex announced on Twitter on Tuesday that a record 792,000 jabs had been administered in the most recent 24-hour reporting period.
“This momentum needs to grow and continue in the coming weeks,” he said.
From July 21, proof of vaccination or a negative test will be needed to visit theatres, cinemas and amusement parks.
From August, anyone wanting to dine out or drink at a bar, take a long-distance train or visit a shopping centre will need to have the health pass.
Free Covid tests will end in September to further encourage vaccination, Mr Macron said in his speech, watched by 22 million people.
He also announced mandatory Covid-19 vaccination for healthcare staff, retirement home workers and others working with vulnerable people from September, in line with similar moves in Greece, Italy and Britain.
Three quarters (76 per cent) of French people support the required vaccines for health workers as well as the travel restrictions, according to a survey by polling company Elabe on Tuesday. It found 58 per cent backed the restaurant rule.
But cinema owners and restaurateurs said they worried the rules will force many patrons to stay away just as they are emerging from months of pandemic closures.
“We’re not the police. Lots of my clients are not vaccinated. If they have to have a test and wait 48 hours to have a beer, they’re not going to come,” one Paris restaurant owner told AFP.
Jocelyn Bouyssy, the head of the CGR Cinemas group, told Franceinfo radio he was “very angry” about the health pass, which would be difficult to implement and dissuade people from going out to watch a film.
“We’re like lambs being led to the slaughter,” he said.
But Health Minister Olivier Veran insisted that the health pass was “not a punishment, it’s not blackmail.”
He said the choice was between accepting the new measures, which primarily affect the unvaccinated, or heading for a fourth lockdown, which would hit the whole country.
“We want to avoid a lockdown at all costs,” he told BFM television.
About 35.5 million people – slightly more than half of France’s population – have received at least one vaccine dose so far.
At the start of the pandemic, France had some of the highest levels of vaccine scepticism in the developed world.
Countries recognising Palestine
France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The biog
Name: Salem Alkarbi
Age: 32
Favourite Al Wasl player: Alexandre Oliveira
First started supporting Al Wasl: 7
Biggest rival: Al Nasr
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
How Beautiful this world is!
The Bio
Name: Lynn Davison
Profession: History teacher at Al Yasmina Academy, Abu Dhabi
Children: She has one son, Casey, 28
Hometown: Pontefract, West Yorkshire in the UK
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite Author: CJ Sansom
Favourite holiday destination: Bali
Favourite food: A Sunday roast
Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
The biog
Name: Dhabia Khalifa AlQubaisi
Age: 23
How she spends spare time: Playing with cats at the clinic and feeding them
Inspiration: My father. He’s a hard working man who has been through a lot to provide us with everything we need
Favourite book: Attitude, emotions and the psychology of cats by Dr Nicholes Dodman
Favourit film: 101 Dalmatians - it remind me of my childhood and began my love of dogs
Word of advice: By being patient, good things will come and by staying positive you’ll have the will to continue to love what you're doing
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