Do hunters in France have to have eye sight tests after a certain age? Can they hunt up to any age?

Reader question: I live in a rural area where hunting is popular and I noticed that many of the hunters are quite old. Do hunters in France have to take eyesight tests or medical checks after a certain age, or can they carry on hunting at any age?

Hunters in France can keep going for as long as they like. French law sets no maximum age, and there are no compulsory eye tests or regular medical checks after the licence is obtained.

What the rules say

Would-be hunters must provide a medical certificate stating their physical and mental health is compatible with holding a firearm to enrol for the licence exam. After that, the licence is held for life, with no regular medical check.

The certificate does not have to include a specific vision test. Current regulations do not require specific eyesight tests as part of the medical examination.

Each season, hunters must have their licence ‘validated’ through their departmental hunting federation. The law bars people with a medical condition or disability that makes hunting dangerous from validation, and applicants must declare they are not in that situation. A false declaration makes the validation void, and the prefect can ask for a medical certificate if in any doubt.

In practice, that means a hunter signs a declaration rather than seeing a doctor.

The one recurring requirement is not medical. A law introduced in October 2020 a compulsory ten-yearly safety refresher. Existing licence holders have until 5 October 2030, and those who do not complete it will not be able to validate their licence. The course is free and is not an exam. It covers safety rules, not eyesight or health.

You can see more about the rules and regulations surrounding hunting season in our previous article.

Deaths at record low

According to the national biodiversity office OFB, the 2025-26 season saw 92 hunting accidents, four of them fatal, and the number of accidents has fallen by 49% in 20 years. Three of the four deaths were self-inflicted accidents, in which the hunter was their own victim.

That follows a previous season, when hunting deaths in France nearly doubled to 11, all of them hunters, with five self-inflicted. 

Debate over hunting safety is also continuing among the public. The issue has resurfaced after the death of a 90-year-old hunter in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence. He died after a fall of about five metres during a hunt on September 13 in Saint-Paul-sur-Ubaye. No shot was fired, and nothing suggested his age or health played a part. 

Animal protection association FUTUR has nonetheless called for a ban on hunting from age 80 and a compulsory annual medical examination from age 70, covering eyesight, hearing, mobility and cognitive function. 

Read also: 8 out of 10 people in France want hunting banned at weekend