Visa Backlog Halts Moroccan Travel to France Until 2020

The company TLS Contact in charge of scheduling appointments is facing a multitude of problems regarding the number of applications, which is up 50% compared to previous years, and the lack of staff deemed "insufficient to be able to process visa applications within a reasonable time", reports Le 360.

The Consul General of France in Rabat, Florence Causse-Tissier, admitted that the problem is growing, and pointed an accusing finger at "certain agencies, intermediaries who intervene by snatching a share of the appointment dates".

For M’Jid El Guerrab, deputy of French nationals established in Morocco, the situation is "untenable and absurd". "It is abnormal and incomprehensible," he criticized, "because visa issuance procedures have been outsourced." The Franco-Moroccan deputy proposes that a mission from the Quai d’Orsay come to investigate on the ground.

For its part, the French embassy has assured the restoration of a "normal and regular" visa appointment service.

In total, some 2,000 visas have been issued in Morocco, making the Kingdom one of the most important countries to which French visas are provided.