France Housing Aid Cut: Moroccan Students Face New 2-Year Residency Rule

The highest court ruled in favor of the government this Thursday, considering that lawmakers pursued an “objective of general interest” by seeking to “control the growth of spending related” to social benefits. The Council members held that the principle of equality did not prevent the state from treating different situations differently, thereby confirming stricter access to assistance for non-EU nationals, including Moroccans.

On Bladi.net : France Cuts Housing Aid for Non-EU Students, Sparking University Access Concerns

This reform, which requires a minimum presence of two years on French territory, has sparked strong opposition from left-wing parties and student organizations. Critics of the law view it as an “excessive constraint” and a break with the principle of equal access to education. The Housing Foundation warns that the budgets of the students concerned will be reduced by “150 to 250 euros per month,” worsening hardship already marked by widespread reliance on food assistance.

On Bladi.net : At the Sorbonne, Moroccan students will have to pay ten times more

While upholding the article, the Constitutional Council issued an interpretive reservation. It emphasized that implementation of the law must remain consistent with the preamble to the Constitution, which guarantees everyone “adequate means of subsistence.” For constitutional law specialists, this decision does not represent a complete break with case law, but confirms a shift toward more restrictive nationality-based criteria, already applied to other benefits such as the RSA.