Switzerland Refuses to Count This Moroccan Woman’s Salary and Expels Her Family: Court Annuls Everything

The Moroccan national, born in 1967, lives with her Spanish husband and their grandniece, a Moroccan national born in 2018 for whom they are the legal guardians. All three arrived in Switzerland in November 2022 and applied for residence permits in the canton of Vaud.

The husband, a retiree, received a Spanish pension of approximately 2,000 euros per month. His wife, for her part, held several part-time jobs.

However, the Vaud Population Service considered that the husband’s sole resources were insufficient to support three people. It refused to take his wife’s salaries into account on the grounds that she was Moroccan and did not have an independent right of residence under the agreement between Switzerland and the European Union.

On Bladi.net : article 123319

In August 2024, the authorities therefore rejected all three applications and gave the family until September 13 to leave Switzerland. After an unsuccessful initial challenge, a new departure deadline was set for December 4.

The Moroccan woman’s salary should have been counted

The family brought the case before the Cantonal Court, submitting the wife’s employment contracts, certificates and pay slips. In its ruling of March 5, 2025, the Administrative and Public Law Court held that the Population Service’s reasoning was contrary to the law.

To determine whether a European citizen and their family have sufficient financial means, the origin of their resources is not decisive. The money may come from the spouse or even from a third party. The sole objective is to verify that the family is not at risk of depending on Swiss public finances.

The wife’s Moroccan nationality therefore did not justify disregarding her income. The court noted that the authorities had numerous documents attesting to her professional activity but had not examined them.

On Bladi.net : article 123370

The refusal of the permits and the departure order are annulled. The case is sent back to the Population Service, which will have to recalculate the household’s resources by including the Moroccan woman’s salaries. The family is also awarded 500 Swiss francs for its legal costs.