FRANCE – New Visa Process for Olympic Games 2024 Volunteers

June 6, 2024


By: Clara Excler and Soo Gurtcheff-Smit

With less than two months remaining before the start of the 2024 Olympic Games, excitement is rising and Paris is in the final stages of preparations. To make the event a success, approximately 45,000 volunteers (30,000 for the Olympics and 15,000 for the Paralympics) will be working behind the scenes.

Twenty percent of these volunteers are foreign nationals representing 150 countries. To support the arrival of these volunteers, an additional visa procedure has been put in place for this category of applicants.

As we previously highlighted in our White Paper, consulates and visa application centers distinguish between three categories of Olympics-related applicants and respective processes: 1. Members of the Olympic Family accredited from the 2024 Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (OCOG), 2) Persons invited by the OCOG, and 3) Supporters. This new fourth category of applicants will cover Volunteers and further details are provided below:

Who qualifies?

Volunteers invited by the OCOG.

What documentation do they require to in order to travel?

Applicants require an Ordinary Schengen visa and “Volunteer Attestation Letter”.

What is the application process?

The ordinary Schengen visa application process applies, with a few distinctions:

  • Applicants must still complete a visa application on the France-Visas website.
  • When requesting an appointment, applicants should proceed via the standard system, but choose the visa type: “Work” project > “Sporting Event”. The visa type differs from one country to another, depending on the external visa centre.
  • Unlike the category “Person invited by the OCOG” or “Member of the Olympic Family”, there will be no priority access or fee exemption. Volunteer applicants will have to pay for the visa and any applicable service fee.
  • Applicants must surrender their passport, into which a standard Schengen visa will be inserted.

If you are unsure about your entry requirements, if you need assistance in applying for entry into France for the Olympic Games, or if you have questions about non-Olympic travel to France in the upcoming months, please contact Newland Chase today.