France tightens visa requirements, Moroccan companies suffocating
Maximum tension on the roads. Since October, international transport professionals have been facing a wave of visa refusals from the French consulate. A sudden tightening that is paralyzing activity and threatening trade with Europe.
The situation is becoming untenable for truck drivers. While they were used to obtaining their visas without any problems to circulate in the Schengen area, they are now facing an administrative wall. Despite complete files and a scrupulous respect for the rules of stay in the past, refusals are multiplying.
This blockage comes at the worst time. In the midst of a peak in commercial activity between Morocco and the European Union, the extreme slowness in processing applications is completely disrupting schedules. Contracts are being canceled and deliveries postponed, due to a lack of drivers authorized to cross the Mediterranean.
Threatened trade exchanges
Mustapha Chaoune, Secretary General of the Democratic Organization of Transport and Logistics, cited by Hespress, is sounding the alarm. He denounces "unjustified" refusals that place Moroccan companies in an impossible position vis-à-vis their European partners.
The economic consequences are heavy. In addition to the direct financial losses linked to the immobilization of trucks, it is the reputation of the entire sector that is at stake. The reliability of national carriers is undermined by these diplomatic constraints that exceed them.
Faced with the impasse, the unions are calling on the French Embassy in Rabat to intervene urgently to streamline the procedures. Without a rapid return to normal, years of trusted trade relations risk being durably weakened.
