Moroccan Man’s Naturalization Delayed Two Years After He Housed Wife in France Illegally
A Moroccan national had his naturalization application deferred for two years for housing his wife while she was in France illegally. He cited medical reasons and his wife’s subsequent regularization of her status. The Nantes Administrative Court upheld the decision on September 17, 2026.
The man, born in 1989, presented a medical certificate dated January 21, 2022, to support his case. The document stated that his mental health required the presence of another person with him. He hoped this would explain why he had taken in his wife, who was then in France illegally.
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According to the ruling, his wife arrived in France on August 15, 2021, with a short-stay visa issued by the Polish authorities. The couple married on December 4 of that year. The woman remained with her husband until July 15, 2022, when she left for Russia. Her immigration status was regularized as of August 23, 2022, another point the man raised.
The prefecture nevertheless took into account the assistance he had provided to his wife in remaining in France illegally. On March 25, 2024, it deferred his naturalization application for two years. The interior minister upheld the measure on May 31. The Moroccan man challenged the decision in court.
The court noted that the ministry may take an applicant’s conduct into account when considering a naturalization application. In another case heard in Nantes, a Moroccan man had his deferral overturned because the alleged acts were too old. Here, the judges found that the medical circumstances and the regularization of his wife’s status were not sufficient to justify housing her.
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The appeal was rejected on September 17, 2026, according to the Nantes Administrative Court ruling. The deferral imposed in March 2024 was for two years: that period had already elapsed by the time the judges issued their decision.
