Uk citizen Marrying and going to live in morocco

@LailaDe you can contact me i have same experience  and my wife is from moroCco

@LailaDe just be careful that because a lot of Moroccan want to marry foreigners To get out of Morocco and get there Visa.

I found out in time he was sleeping around in Morocco and looking for women all the time.

Moving to Morocco seems a red flag- unless he has his own business etc.

my wife has moved to the UK to be with me. she has only been here 6 months and already dislikes it- due to the weather mainly.

slowly it is warming on her.

transferring her qualifications over has been a pain!

I'm also looking into moving to Morrocco and living there. More like early retirement. Not sure if I will have a problem with paper work and Medical insurance or not. I'm more like to live in the North.

@LailaDe  To be honest, I would consider the following before moving to Morocco, since life is not always easy here:

- Is there enough monthly income to secure your life in Morocco, like a minimum of €1200€ to pay rent and live a normal life? Morocco is getting more expensive when it comes to housing,  clothing, medical care and groceries. Many foreigners think it’s cheap, but it’s not. That’s also the reason why locals, in most cases, live with their family members to financially support each other if they don’t earn enough.

- It’s not allowed for foreigners to work here for a company unless that company can prove why it really needs you and that they can’t find that qualification in a local person. But you could build up your own business or work from here officially as a freelancer and pay your taxes.

- Residency isn’t a big deal. If you can prove €10,000 in your bank account and how you secure your life (a minimum of 700€ monthly income, retirement for example) , plus an official rental contract or property document, there are different types of residence cards for retirement, property, business, marriage, etc. You would just need to go to the foreign police, which is located at the Wilaya in Marrakech, and they will give you a small paper with all necessary documents on it. The easiest way to get your residency is through marriage. Not much paperwork, and your husband has to write a small letter that he can take care of you, including his bank statements.

- If you own a business here or work as a freelancer, you can register with the CNSS, the government health insurance. It has improved over the last two years, and you can get up to 20% back for healthcare payments, with proof of receipts, of course. This also works well and quick. Here, you could also register your spouse and kids to be covered as well. If you don’t own a business, I would see the prices of good healthcare as a red flag because apart from normal visits and medication, which isn’t that expensive, a stay in a decent private hospital, surgeries, etc., can be super expensive.

So, in the end, it’s not impossible to live here; it’s only about income or savings.

All the best with your marriage and plans to live here!

@ExpatServicesMarrakech

thanks for your help on the income certificate thing, yh i think just under 3 months should be enough tbf.

Another thing i am looking to move to morocco (tetouan probably) in the next year or two. You mentioned €1200 minimum a month? Im sure you know your stuff as you live there yourself but that cant be possible as the locals earn about €300 or €400 a month on average some less, and they still manage to get by. I have stayed a month there before and tbh rent was about €150 to €250 a month for other expats. €1200 is double what people live on in some parts of europe.

Yes, that's the thing. Locals usually earn 300-400€ per month, but that doesn't allow them to live alone because normal housing costs a lot. Most of them live together with a spouse or other family members to share the costs. For officials, business owners, and people with a higher position, it's, of course, possible to pay more and live alone. I don’t assume that a foreigner comes to Morocco to live in an underdeveloped apartment where many very poor Moroccans still have to live.

In Marrakech, Essaouira, Casablanca, Tangier, and Rabat, the rental prices have gone very high in the last two years. For a descent and unfurnished two-room apartment, you'll now spend a minimum of 500€ monthly. For a furnished one, it's 600€ plus. Even the prices for the 400€ ones are vanishing. This can be a normal/good and sometimes even very beautiful place in a new building, nothing luxury. So the nicer and bigger someone wants it, the more expensive it gets.

And then we’re talking about groceries. If you don’t want to buy everything in the souks, you'll need to count on 50€ for a single person per week as well. This is what I also see with families. I, for example, spend 80-100€ a week for two people, and we're not living at high standards. But that’s what it costs when you mix the souks and bigger grocery shops.

So now let’s say you have 500€ rent and 300€ for groceries, including eating out from time to time. We already have 800€. And then you might need a doctor, some clothes, or other normal things. That's why the foreign policy has also changed the monthly income requirement for residency to 10,000€ capital in your bank account here in Morocco. Many foreigners couldn't afford to live here anymore, and the country already has enough poor locals.

To be secure and live a worry-free life, I always say 1200€ will be fine. Germany for example is cheaper now on groceries than Morocco.

@ExpatServicesMarrakech

Just a question so to apply for a residency visa through marriage do you have to have savings of £10000.00 or is something that one should earn? Sorry for my ignorance and how long does that visa application takes if you apply through the police at Wilaya?

@muzzichuzzi This is how it has worked for the past two years with applications for people not married to a Moroccan citizen:

You have to open a convertible bank account in Morocco and transfer 10,000€ (8,560£) to that account as proof that you can secure your living for some time.

Additionally, you have to show your income, whether through business, employment, retirement, etc. It should be a minimum of 700€ (600£) monthly. You also need to prove that you have set up automatic monthly bank transfers from your bank in the UK to Morocco. This can be a bit tricky, as not every country supports automatic transfers to third countries, but the authorities at the Wilaya will be familiar with this.

In total, you’ll need the following documents:

- Passport and valid stay in Morocco (not exceeding 90 days)

- Passport photos

- Rental contract or property documents in Morocco

- Address confirmation in Morocco from the Caids office

- Police reports from Morocco and the UK

- Proof of the 10,000€ deposit in the convertible Moroccan account

- Income proof

- Proof of the automated monthly bank transfer to your Moroccan bank account

Medical certificate

Each foreign document needs to be translated and legalized plus 1-2 copies, also all legalized in your Caids office

These are the basics, but they may ask for additional papers depending on your status.

If all documents are correct, you’ll receive a small receipt and won’t need to leave the country if your 90 days are over. After a maximum of 6 weeks, you can pick up your residence card.

🙏

@ExpatServicesMarrakech

As on my british passport I could stay maximum of 90 days as previously what I did to stay long was to take a quick flight to Spain and stay there for a night and then fly back the next morning and it worked fine.

@muzzichuzzi Yes, that's possible. You can stay a night somewhere, come back, and the 90 days start again.

@ExpatServicesMarrakech

Hi, I would like to know about poeple who are married to moroccan citizens, is the process all the same ?

@Maryeme Ben rais

I was married to morocaan all i could say just be siper careful if you know what i mean decision is yours

@Sandra Ruiz87

   Spot on advice. I did same and i that was my biggest mistake ever. I was used to get visa to uk ...sad. just be careful.

@hiddeneyeservices

Sorry, I'm  moroccan . But my husband is British n we're living in Uk at the moment. We're planing to move to Morocco. We would like to know the process as I'm new to this, don't have any idea where to start. But we could do with your help.

@Maryeme Ben raisange

    Sorry still my statement wil be same it wont change. I am sure you will admit that too. That morocaan do use people as ladder to leave moroco. Might be you are not doing this but mostly you guys do. At the same time congratulations for ur marriage i really wish long marriage for both of you