France’s decree published in the Journal officiel on Saturday 14 November does not ban doctors from practising aesthetic medicine. Instead, it makes that work a supplementary activity subject to defined entry conditions and a progressive time limit. Doctors will need to have practised fully for five years in their original specialty and complete mandatory qualifying training before taking it up.
Aesthetic medicine will then be progressively capped at 30% of a practitioner’s medical activity. The remaining 70% must be devoted to care and activities connected to the doctor’s original specialty. The rule applies across medical specialties, including dermatology, and covers self-employed and salaried doctors, whether or not they are contracted with France’s health insurance system.
That combination matters. Rather than treating aesthetic practice as an unrestricted commercial extension of a medical qualification, the decree links it to prior clinical experience, specific training and a limit on how much professional time it may take. The Health Ministry says the framework is intended to improve patient safety and training quality while preserving medical time for care in a context where access to doctors remains difficult.
The Ordre des médecins, working with the relevant regional health agency, will check qualifications, experience and the conditions for the supplementary authorisation. Its national council welcomed the decree as a major advance for regulating a growing activity and protecting patients.
The ministry says implementation will be progressive. The supplied reporting does not set out the full implementation date, transition arrangements, training curriculum, or enforcement and penalties for the 30% cap. Those details will shape how strongly the decree changes day-to-day practice. Its direction, however, is clear: aesthetic medicine may remain part of a doctor’s work, but it is not meant to displace the core specialty on which that doctor’s medical qualification rests.
Sources
- franceinfo Tous titres · Source date: 2026-11-14
Independent editorial content. WUA is not affiliated with any political party. 2026-11-14