American and British tourists will pay more to visit the Louvre - what about visa and residency card holders?

Non-European tourists visiting the Louvre museum will need to pay an additional tariff from 2026 onwards, French President Emmanuel Macron announced yesterday (January 28).

It is part of sweeping reforms for the most visited museum in the world, which is facing extensive restoration works estimated to cost up to €900 million. 

Only ‘a very small part” of this sum will be directly financed by the state, a spokesperson of the president said after a press conference at the museum. The rest, they said, will come from increased ticket prices, a fundraising drive and other measures.

The rate, which is not yet known, will apply to all visitors from outside the EU from January 1, 2026. 

All EU nationals as well as French residency and visa holders should be exempt from the fees providing they can prove their residency.

Currently, some museums provide free entrance to residents of the local area/commune where it is based.

Read more: Do foreign people living in France get free entry to museums?

Currently, a standard ticket for people of all nationalities costs €22, apart from on the first Friday of the month when entry is free (except in July and August). 

Other monuments and museums in France may follow suit, with Culture Minister Rachia Dati previously announcing she was in favour of such a measure for non-EU visitors to various tourist sites in France, including Notre-Dame cathedral.

Read more: Minister wants €5 entrance fee for Notre-Dame visitors

New grand entrance and own room for the Mona Lisa

The president announced a raft of other changes to the museum, including an extension to the building dedicated to housing Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa (La Joconde in French), the primary attraction for visitors. 

This will separate the painting from much of the rest of the museum, giving more space to visitors wanting to see just the painting, as well as improving visitor flow through other areas.

A new ‘grand entrance’ will also be constructed to relieve congestion near the current main entrance under the pyramid.

Space under the pyramid currently receives around twice as many visitors as it was intended for, leading to humid and uncomfortable conditions, particularly in the summer.

The project is being dubbed the Nouvelle Renaissance du Louvre, and is based on the success of recent renovations to Notre-Dame cathedral. The works should be finished no later than 2031.

It is hoped that the improvements could increase the number of visitors to the museum per year to 12 million, as opposed to nine currently.