⚖️ Legal basis: Article R.3111-8 of the French Public Health Code requires that mandatory vaccinations are up to date for admission to any nursery, childminder, school, holiday camp or leisure centre. A 3-month provisional admission is possible, but must be regularised.
This rule applies regardless of your nationality. Foreign families living in France, including expatriates, are subject to the same vaccination requirements for their children.
How many mandatory vaccines in 2026?
It depends on your child's date of birth. The 2018 reform expanded the obligation from 3 to 11 vaccines. In 2023, two further vaccines (meningococcal ACWY and B) became mandatory for children born from 1 January 2023.
- ✓Diphtheria · Tetanus · Polio (DTP)Primary vaccination only mandatory
For children born before 2018, only the DTP primary vaccination was mandatory. All other vaccines are strongly recommended but cannot be required for nursery entry.
- ✓Diphtheria · Tetanus · PolioDoses at 2, 4 and 11 months
- ✓Whooping cough (pertussis)Included in the hexavalent vaccine
- ✓Haemophilus influenzae bIncluded in the hexavalent vaccine
- ✓Hepatitis BIncluded in the hexavalent vaccine
- ✓PneumococcusDoses at 2, 4 and 11 months
- ✓MMR (measles, mumps, rubella)Doses at 12 and 16–18 months
- ✓Meningococcal C1 dose at 5 months + booster at 12 months
- ✓Diphtheria · Tetanus · PolioDoses at 2, 4 and 11 months
- ✓Whooping cough, Haemophilus b, Hepatitis BIncluded in the hexavalent vaccine
- ✓PneumococcusDoses at 2, 4 and 11 months
- ✓MMRDoses at 12 and 16–18 months
- ✓🆕 Meningococcal ACWYDose at 6 months + booster at 12 months · Replaces C-only
- ✓🆕 Meningococcal BDoses at 3, 5 and 12 months
⚠️ Mandatory catch-up: If your child born after 1 January 2023 did not receive ACWY and B vaccines before age 2, a catch-up course is mandatory and reimbursed. Contact your doctor or pharmacist.
Documents to provide at the nursery or school
- Photocopy of the vaccination pages in the carnet de santé (the simplest option)
- Written attestation, dated and signed by a doctor or pharmacist
- Export from Mon espace santé (printed and signed)
- For medical contraindication: signed medical certificate
What if vaccinations are not up to date?
The law allows a provisional admission of 3 months to regularise the situation. After 3 months, the director can exclude the child if vaccination is still incomplete.
🔴 In France, persistent refusal of mandatory vaccination without medical contraindication can be reported to child protection services (ASE). The law is clear on this point.
If your child is behind on vaccinations, there is no need to start the entire schedule from scratch. Simply resume where the schedule left off and complete the missing doses for your child's current age.
Check in seconds if your child is up to date
Select your child's age in Vaxelia — the app compares their history against the HAS 2026 schedule and shows exactly what's missing. Useful before any nursery appointment.
📱 Download Vaxelia — FreeSources: Service-public.fr (verified 6 January 2026) · French Public Health Code art. R.3111-8 · Vaccination calendar 2026 (Ministry of Health, April 2026). This article is for information only and does not constitute medical advice.