Environmental sticker France: Purchase the Crit'Air anti-pollution vehicle sticker before you go on holiday

Are you going on holiday to France by car, motorbike or motorhome? Or are you planning to visit Paris or another major city or drive along the route du soleil? Make sure you purchase the Crit’Air anti-pollution vehicle sticker in time. Even if you are going to a holiday park in the Dordogne, the Poitou-Charentes or Languedoc and you are driving on the motorway past Lille or Paris, you will need the Crit'Air vignette. It is important that you are aware of the rules surrounding the Crit’Air sticker. If you drive without a sticker, whilst it is necessary on the road you are driving on, you can expect a fine of about € 68, whilst Crit’Air sticker only costs a couple of euros. Below, we inform you about various topics and rules of the anti-pollution vehicle sticker. You cannot buy the Crit’Air sticker at the RAC, VAB, ANWB or ADAC or at a gas station, you apply and order the sticker online.

Our parks in France Our homes in France

Milieusticker Frankrijk 1 Crit'air vakantie Dordogne Provence Parijs Bordeaux Marseille Lyon Toulous

What is the Crit'Air anti-pollution vehicle sticker?

It is important for the French government to combat air pollution. Especially in the big cities such as Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse and Bordeaux, the air is polluted by traffic. The government has classified vehicles according to pollutant emissions. There are six categories, from fully electric (0/green) to the most polluting vehicles (5/grey). Each category has a specific colour sticker. This anti-pollution vehicle sticker indicates how environmentally friendly your car is according to French standards. The category and colour of the sticker are automatically determined based on your license plate. This license plate check looks at specific characteristics, such as CO₂ emissions and the Euro standard.

Milieusticker Frankrijk 4 Crit'air vignet milieuzone vakantie Dordogne Provence Parijs.jpg

The Crit’Air anti-pollution vehicle sticker is specific to France. It is sometimes wrongly called the RAC vignette for France or RAC environmental sticker of France. It must be stuck on the window of your car if you want to enter a city which is a permanent or temporary environmental zone. The environmental requirements may vary from city to city, when entering you will see signs indicating which categories have access and which do not. These signs can also establish between driving during the day or night. For example, older diesels (from before 2011) and petrol cars (from before 2006) are no longer allowed to enter Paris on weekdays. The Crit’Air sticker is valid indefinitely. It is linked to the vehicle and only needs to be replaced if it is no longer legible or if the vehicle undergoes a modification that affects the emission class.

Crit’Air anti-pollution vehicle sticker France: the colours and their meaning

The French environmental sticker (Crit'Air) comes in 6 different colours, each linked to a specific category of vehicles based on type, emissions and age. The colour indicates how environmentally friendly your car is: green is the cleanest, grey the least clean. This environmental sticker must be clearly visible on your car. Cars from before 1997 and motorcycles from before 2000 are not eligible for a sticker and are not allowed to enter environmental zones in France. When there is smog or if an area has stricter local rules, vehicles with a lower category (red, grey) may be banned. People with a European disabled parking card can always enter the environmental zones of France, even if their vehicle would normally be banned due to its age or emissions. The vehicle must have a Crit’Air sticker and the disability card must be clearly visible on the dashboard.

Category	Color	Passenger cars and two-wheelers
- 0 -	Green	Fully electric or hydrogen-powered vehicles. Most environmentally friendly, access to all environmental zones France
- 1 -	Purple	LPG and hybrids Euro 5/6 petrol cars, from 2011 Euro 4/5 two-wheelers Very clean, access to most areas
- 2 -	Yellow	Euro 4 petrol cars, 2006–2010 Euro 5/6 diesel cars, from 2011 Euro 2/3 two-wheelers, 2007-2016 Access to many, but not all, zones
- 3 -	Orange	Euro 2/3 petrol cars, 1997–2005 Euro 4 diesel cars 2006–2010 Euro 2/3 two-wheelers, 2004–2006 Limited access, especially in smog
- 4 -	Red	Euro 3 diesel cars, 2001–2005 Two-wheelers that do not meet 2000–2004 Access to few zones, often banned in case of pollution
- 5 -	Grey	Euro 2 diesel cars, 1997–2000 Most polluting, banned almost everywhere

Environmental zones in France

People often think that a French vignette is only needed when driving in the centre of big cities or that a Crit’Air sticker is only needed in Paris. This is not the case, smaller municipalities are increasingly introducing a temporary environmental zone, especially during periods of smog. It is therefore wise to always buy a French anti-pollution vehicle stickerwhen on holiday in France. You can apply for a Crit'Air vignette for only a couple of euros, which ensures that you can explore France without any worries.

The Crit’Air sticker is required to enter certain zones or city centres classified as a low emission zone (Zone à Faibles Emissions mobilité, ZFE-m). There are two types of emission zones:

Permanent environmental zone (ZCR: Zone à Circulation Restreinte). Most large French city centers have a permanent environmental zone. This means that you always need an environmental sticker to enter the city with your car. These zones can be found, for example, in Paris, Lyon, Lille and Grenoble.
Temporary environmental zone (ZPA: Zone de Protection de l'Air). In addition to the permanent zones, France also has temporary environmental zones. These are only applicable when the air quality drops below a certain level or in extreme weather. Unlike the permanent zones - which are mainly in force in cities - these temporary zones can cover an entire municipality or department.

Stricter rules in 2025

The anti-pollution vehicle sticker of France is mandatory on all roads within the Paris ring road, the Périphérique, and in the area up to the A86, the second ring around Paris. The obligation applies on weekdays between 8:00 and 20:00. The sticker is not mandatory on weekends and public holidays. From 1 January 2025, environmental zones (ZFE – Zone à Faibles Émissions) will be mandatory in all French cities with more than 150,000 inhabitants. A valid anti-pollution vehicle sticker (Crit'Air) is required in these zones.

The following cities have over 150,000 inhabitants: Amiens, Angers, Annecy, Avignon, Bayonne, Béthune, Bordeaux, Brest, Caen, Chambéry, Clermont-Ferrand, Dijon, Douai-Lens, Duinkerke, Grenoble, Le Havre, Le Mans, Lille, Limoges, Lyon, Marseilles-Aix-de-Provence, Metz, Montpellier, Mulhouse, Nancy, Nantes, Nice, Nîmes, Orléans, Paris, Pau, Perpignan, Reims, Rennes, Rouen, Saint-Denis, Saint-Etienne, Saint-Nazaire, Strasbourg, Toulon, Toulouse, Tours, Valenciennes.

5 major cities on this list have even stricter entry requirements for the most polluting vehicles (Crit'Air sticker in category 3 and higher = diesels from before 2011, petrol cars from before 2006). These are Paris, Lyon, Strasbourg, Montpellier and Grenoble. The exact rules vary, but in Paris, throughout Greater Paris, up to the A86 motorway, vehicles in Crit'Air groups 3 to 5 are prohibited from driving on weekdays between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.

Milieusticker Frankrijk 3 Crit'air vakantie Dordogne Provence Parijs Bordeaux Marseille Lyon gendarm

Crit’Air anti-pollution vehicle sticker France: Make sure you stick it in a clearly visible spot!

It is important that you place the Crit’Air sticker in the right place seen as the French authorities are very strict on this. An incorrectly placed sticker can result in fines, even if you have the correct sticker. The Crit’Air anti-pollution vehicle stickermust be placed on the inside, on the right side (passenger side) of your windscreen. Check that the windscreen is clean and dry so that the environmental sticker does not come off and the unique number on the sticker is visible. This number is checked during environmental inspections. The sticker remains valid as long as it is legible. If the sticker does come off, you can apply for a new environmental sticker from France. Keep a photo of the sticker and its number as proof.

Milieusticker Frankrijk 5b Crit'air vignet milieuzone vakantie Dordogne Provence Parijs.jpg

Crit’Air needed for rental car or electric car?

If you come to France by plane and rent a car, this rental car must also have a Crit’Air sticker. The rental company almost always provides this sticker if the car is registered in France. To avoid unnecessary fines, it is wise to check this before you drive to your holiday home in France. If you have rented a rental car in another country, you will need to apply for a Crit’Air sticker by yourself. Electric cars must also have a French anti-polluting vehicle sticker. Although they do not emit harmful particulate matter and are automatically given the green sticker, electric cars must be able to demonstrate that they meetthe environmental requirements when entering environmental zones in France.

Milieusticker Frankrijk 6 Crit'air vakantie Dordogne Provence Parijs Bordeaux Marseille Lyon gendarm

Driving in an environmental zone without an environmental sticker France

The French authorities carry out regular checks, especially upon entering the environmental zones. If your car does not have a Crit’Air sticker when entering an environmental zone, you will be fined approximately € 68. Have you ordered the French environmental sticker (Crit'Air) but not received it in time before you go on holiday to France? No problem, you can still legally drive in environmental zones if you can show a valid proof of purchase. After buying a Crit’Air sticker, you will receive a digital invoice or a document with an image of your ordered sticker within 24 hours. Print it out and put it behind your windshield. The French police can now see that you have purchased the Crit’Air sticker, even if the physical sticker is still on its way.

Buy the Crit'Air anti-pollution vehicle sticker when planning to drive in France

The Crit’Air sticker you need during your holiday in France can only be purchased online, so not at a gas station or in a store either in France or abroad. You cannot buy this sticker in stores such as the RAC, ANWB, the VAB or the ADAC. The Crit’Air sticker can only be purchased online, in one of the following 2 ways:

On the French government website. This is the cheapest way to purchase a sticker, but is sometimes experienced as difficult. The costs are approx. € 4.91 including shipping and you can only pay by credit card or PayPal. The sticker will be sent by post within 2 to 4 weeks.
Through various mediation sites. This is slightly more expensive but easier, especially if you don't have a credit card. The costs are between € 15 - € 20. Payment can be made by credit card, PayPal, Ideal, Bancontact or Klarna. The Crit’Air sticker is sent from France, but you will receive an invoice with a digital coupon shortly after purchase. This coupon serves as temporary proof that you have ordered the vignette and may be placed visibly behind the windscreen until the physical sticker arrives.

It is wise to buy the sticker a few weeks before departure. When applying for the Crit’Air sticker, you will need information on the registration certificate, make sure you have this proof ready.

Summary Crit’Air sticker France

Crit’Air sticker mandatory?	Yes, in cities with a population of 150,000 or more On ring roads such as the Périphérique of Paris Temporary environmental zones
Validity?	Unlimited, if legible
Which vehicles?	All, including foreign and electric cars
Not allowed?	In environmental zones, cars from before 1997 and motorcycles from before 2000
Where to buy?	Only online through government or intermediaries
Payment to the government?	Creditcard and Paypal
Payment intermediaries?	Creditcard, Paypal, Ideal, Bancontact, Klarna
Cost?	Between €4.91 and €20
Fine?	€ 68 if missing or misplaced
Where to stick?	Inside the lower right windscreen
Delivery?	Between 2 and 4 weeks

Book your holiday to France