France on Thursday said it would show "tolerance" for Britons hoping to transit the country to reach homes elsewhere in the European Union, after a surprise clampdown caused disappointment and chaos for thousands of travellers, reports RFI.
Under tougher Covid rules that came into force this week, non-resident Britons can no longer drive through France -- only those with a primary French residence will be allowed in.
Many Britons take the Channel Tunnel from England to France, using Eurotunnel's Shuttle service, to take cars from the UK to their homes in other EU countries.
But over the holidays many returned to Britain to visit family and friends without knowing that France was planning the tougher rules on non-residents.
But with Britain no longer part of the EU, it is considered a "third country" whose citizens are subject to the same rules as those of other nations outside the bloc.