Spain fines woman 33000 euros Morocco travel social benefits

The bill is extremely steep for this recipient of a disability pension. The Superior Court of Justice of Catalonia validated the retroactive cancellation of her allowances since June 2018, forcing her to repay exactly 32,857.20 euros. The main reason for this radical sanction lies in her repeated absences from Spanish territory. According to judicial documents relayed by the specialized platform Iberley, the plaintiff spent 680 days abroad, mainly in Morocco, over several fiscal years. She far exceeded the legal threshold set at 90 days per year, accumulating for example 260 days of absence in 2020 and 149 in 2021. Before the magistrates, the argument of being stranded in Morocco due to Covid-19 health restrictions was dismissed, as authorities had maintained operational repatriation corridors during that period.

On Bladi.net : Retiree Travels to Morocco Without Notice, Ordered to Pay Heavy Fine

To this geographical distance is added a surge in her household finances, totally incompatible with the payment of a non-contributory public allowance. In 2021, the family’s resources, despite being reduced to three members, reached 73,291.08 euros, shattering the authorized limit set at around 33,835 euros. This spectacular increase is explained notably by the receipt of another pension from one of her daughters. For her part, the defendant was receiving approximately 640 euros monthly in Spain, combined with a small annuity of 96.68 euros paid directly from Morocco.