His contract ran until September 30, but this Moroccan seasonal worker remains under an OQTF

He arrived in France on November 24, 2021, with a long-stay visa bearing the designation “seasonal worker.” This Moroccan, born in Tizi Ouasli, worked as a farm laborer. He had since obtained a multi-year residence permit, valid until March 10, 2026.

However, his employer had him sign an amendment on May 11 extending his contract until September 30, 2026. This document did not prevent his arrest on July 28, when his residence permit had expired.

The very next day, the prefect of Vaucluse notified him of an obligation to leave French territory without delay, together with a one-year re-entry ban. The prefect also designated Morocco as the country of destination and placed the worker under house arrest in Cavaillon.

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Before the court, the Moroccan seasonal worker submitted his contracts and pay slips to demonstrate the continuity of his professional activity. He also maintained that he had complied with the rule limiting the presence in France of “seasonal worker” residence-permit holders to six months per year.

The prefect had not properly checked his movements using his current passport. The court also acknowledged an error on this point: the administration had relied on an old passport to conclude that he had not left France.

However, this error was not enough to annul the removal measure. In its ruling issued on August 14, 2026, the Administrative Court of Nîmes held that the other grounds cited by the prefecture were sufficient on their own to justify the OQTF.

An amendment that was not sufficient

On the date of his arrest, the Moroccan’s residence permit had been expired for more than four months, and no renewal application was under consideration. Above all, the amendment extending his employment until September 30 had not been approved by the competent authorities of the Ministry of Labor.

For the judges, this agreement concluded with the employer therefore did not constitute a duly authorized employment contract. The effective continuation of his agricultural activity could not, by itself, regularize his stay. A situation that illustrates how the expiration of a residence document can immediately jeopardize employment, even when the relationship with the company continues.

The court also upheld the refusal to grant him a voluntary departure period. During his interview, the worker had stated that he would not agree to leave France if a removal measure were taken against him. This statement was considered to reveal a risk that he would evade the OQTF.

The one-year re-entry ban and his entry in the Schengen Information System were also upheld. The court found no particular humanitarian circumstances that could justify setting aside the measure.

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The Moroccan national finally argued that he had worked as a seasonal worker for four years and was professionally integrated. However, he was single, with no children or dependents in France. His parents and sister still reside in Morocco, and he had not demonstrated that he had sufficiently longstanding and close personal ties in France.

His appeal was therefore dismissed. Neither his years spent working on French farms, nor his pay slips, nor the amendment valid until the end of September made up for the expiration of his residence permit and the absence of administrative approval for his new contract.