France to Reunite Binational Couples Separated by COVID-19 Border Closures

There are about 2,000 unmarried or unregistered binational couples separated due to the health crisis related to the coronavirus, reports Le Journal du Dimanche (JDD). These are sometimes engaged or about to be engaged couples. These Moroccan-French, Algerian-French, etc. couples, grouped under the "Love Is Not Tourism" collective, have asked to be treated like those who are married or in a civil partnership. Their wish is to be reunited again after months of separation due to Covid-19.

Their call has been heard. According to Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne, the Secretary of State in charge of the file, a "derogatory procedure" is about to be opened. Unmarried spouses will have to go to the consulate with "documents attesting to their joint activities, their identity documents, proof of residence in France for the French spouse, a round-trip travel ticket..." in order to obtain a visa, he specified. They are also required to provide evidence of a lasting emotional life.