PARAFE
French automated border gate for biometric passports
PARAFE (abbreviation of Passage Automatisé Rapide Aux Frontières Extérieures or automated fast-track crossing at external borders) is a passport verification and border control system deployed in France and operated by French border guards. PARAFE consists of automated self-service gates, located at certain French border checkpoints (in arrival and departure halls) and offer a faster alternative to manual checks at desks staffed by border guards. The gates use facial recognition technology to verify the user's identity against the data stored in the chip in their biometric passport.
PARAFE gates are available for travels from or to countries which are not signatory of the Schengen agreements.
Eligibility
Eligibility for entry and exit
At present, citizens of the following countries can use the PARAFE gates for both entering and exiting the Schengen area, provided that they are aged 18 years or over and hold valid biometric passports.
Andorra
Argentina
Australia
Chile
Canada
EU/EEA
Israel
Japan
Mexico
Monaco
New Zealand
Peru
San Marino
Singapore
South Korea
Switzerland
United Kingdom
United States
Prior to 30 March 2019, only EU/EEA and Swiss biometric passport holders could use the PARAFE gates. On 30 March 2019, eligibility was extended to Andorran, Monegasque and San Marinese biometric passport holders. On 31 December 2020, eligibility was further extended to Australian, Canadian, Japanese, New Zealand, Singaporean, South Korean and United States biometric passport holders, and continued for British passport holders after the end of the Brexit transition period.
On 30 June 2023, eligibility was further extended to Argentine, Chilean, Mexican, Israeli and Peruvian biometric passport holders.
Eligibility for entry only (minors)
Minors aged 12–17 who hold a valid biometric passport from the above table are also eligible to use the gates on arrival into Schengen territory, but not on departure because the French authorities have strict rules about unaccompanied minors leaving the country.
The public source identifies “PARAFE” as french automated border gate for biometric passports. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around PARAFE, French and automated.
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The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 23, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q16025154. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 2019, 2020 and 2023.
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This entry incorporates text from “PARAFE” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.