Country driving guide · 2026
Everything UK and EU drivers need before crossing the border into France: 6 legal requirements + 5 other things worth knowing.
Required
Recommended
Good to know
Tick before you go
6 legal must-haves. Print it, tick them off, throw it in the glovebox.
High-vis vest within reach
The driver must have a reflective vest they can reach without getting out (so not in the boot), and put it on before leaving the car after a breakdown. Not having one can mean a €135 fine. One for each passenger is sensible but not required.
Warning triangle
One triangle in the car at all times. A breakdown without a triangle is a €135 fine.
Headlight beam-benders
Right-hand-drive cars need beam-deflectors stuck on the headlights so dipped beams don't dazzle oncoming drivers. Halfords and Amazon sell £5 kits.
Crit'Air sticker for major cities
Paris, Lyon, Lille, Toulouse, Strasbourg, Marseille, Grenoble all have ZFE (low-emission zones). You MUST display a Crit'Air sticker: order online, €5, takes 4 weeks. Driving without one in a ZFE is a €68 fine.
Source: Order Crit'Air →Pet travel: Animal Health Certificate
GB pets need an AHC from a vet within 10 days of entry into France. Valid for 4 months of onward EU travel and re-entry to GB. Pre-Brexit pet passports issued in GB are no longer accepted.
Source: gov.uk: AHC for EU travel →Crit'Air fines + expanding ZFE zones
Driving in a ZFE without a Crit'Air sticker or with a non-eligible class is a €68 fine (up to €450 if unpaid). ZFE coverage now includes most cities over 150k people.
Source: Official ZFE map →The driver must have a reflective vest they can reach without getting out (so not in the boot), and put it on before leaving the car after a breakdown. Not having one can mean a €135 fine. One for each passenger is sensible but not required.
One triangle in the car at all times. A breakdown without a triangle is a €135 fine.
Right-hand-drive cars need beam-deflectors stuck on the headlights so dipped beams don't dazzle oncoming drivers. Halfords and Amazon sell £5 kits.
Carrying an unused NF-approved breathalyzer was required until 2020: now optional. AA still recommends carrying one for self-testing the morning after.
Paris, Lyon, Lille, Toulouse, Strasbourg, Marseille, Grenoble all have ZFE (low-emission zones). You MUST display a Crit'Air sticker: order online, €5, takes 4 weeks. Driving without one in a ZFE is a €68 fine.
Order Crit'AirDriving in a ZFE without a Crit'Air sticker or with a non-eligible class is a €68 fine (up to €450 if unpaid). ZFE coverage now includes most cities over 150k people.
Official ZFE mapFrench autoroutes are tolled: pay by ticket (grab at entry, pay at exit) or by tag (Liber-T tag works across France, Spain, Portugal, Italy). Budget ~£0.08/km.
Drive on the right. In rural areas, traffic from your right has priority unless signed otherwise, including at unmarked junctions. Watch for the yellow diamond sign which gives you priority.
Mobile and fixed cameras everywhere. Radar detectors are illegal: even apps that warn of specific camera locations (Waze gets around this with 'driver-reported' framing). Average-speed enforcement on autoroutes.
From France, per person: 18 L still wine + 4 L spirits + 200 cigarettes or 250g tobacco + £390 of other goods. Anything above must be declared at the UK border.
gov.uk: customs allowanceGB pets need an AHC from a vet within 10 days of entry into France. Valid for 4 months of onward EU travel and re-entry to GB. Pre-Brexit pet passports issued in GB are no longer accepted.
gov.uk: AHC for EU travelWe'll build the itinerary, estimate fuel + tolls, and show EV chargers along the route, and this checklist appears automatically on every trip that crosses into France.
Start planning →You drive on the right. Figures checked against each country's own road authority and toll operators, last updated Sept 2026.
| Motorway | 130 km/h (80 mph) |
| Dual carriageway | 110 km/h (70 mph) |
| Other roads outside towns | 80 km/h (50 mph) |
| Towns | 50 km/h (30 mph) |
National defaults for cars; signs on the road always win. Source: Legifrance, Code de la route R413-2 / R413-3 / R413-4.
Autoroute à péage.
Petrol about €2.07 a litre, diesel about €2.21 (Aug 2026).
Places to add to your France road trip.
Indicative budget
A back-of-the-envelope estimate for a typical petrol car at 40 UK mpg, with 800 km of motorway driving. Real fuel prices move monthly: treat this as a ballpark.
Fuel
€131
~70.6 L · 1,000 km @ 40 mpg
Tolls
€80
800 km of motorways
Vignette
—
Not required
Total estimate
€211
1,000 km road trip
Don't get caught out
Paris, Lyon, Lille, Toulouse, Strasbourg, Marseille, Grenoble all have ZFE (low-emission zones). You MUST display a Crit'Air sticker: order online, €5, takes 4 weeks. Driving without one in a ZFE is a €68 fine.
Order Crit'Air →Driving in a ZFE without a Crit'Air sticker or with a non-eligible class is a €68 fine (up to €450 if unpaid). ZFE coverage now includes most cities over 150k people.
Official ZFE map →On the way home
Customs allowance back to the UK
From France, per person: 18 L still wine + 4 L spirits + 200 cigarettes or 250g tobacco + £390 of other goods. Anything above must be declared at the UK border.
gov.uk: customs allowance →