France offers up to €3,500 to migrants to return home

A decree published this Thursday in the Official Journal formalizes this revaluation. The ceiling of the lump-sum allowance is increased from €1,200 to €2,200 for the nationalities most represented among the candidates for the Channel crossing who are subject to an obligation to leave French territory (OQTF). The amount can even reach an increased ceiling of €3,500, compared to €2,500 previously.

This measure also applies to foreign nationals readmitted to France under the so-called "one for one" bilateral agreement signed this summer with the British authorities. This pact provides for the return to France of migrants who have arrived by small boats in the United Kingdom, in exchange for the reception of people in France.

More than a thousand Maghrebians beneficiaries in 2024

The French Office for Immigration and Integration (Ofii) had distributed 6,908 such aids in 2024. While Georgians and Albanians were the main beneficiaries, nationals of the three Maghreb countries (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia) represented about a thousand cases.

To make the system more attractive, the allocation rules have been relaxed. The payment no longer depends on the date of notification of the OQTF, thus eliminating the degressive nature that existed until then. This initiative attempts to address the ineffectiveness of the current schemes, as more than 39,000 people have successfully crossed to the English coast since January 1.