MOROCCO: Govt imposes online entry permit rule for African
Morocco, struggling with an influx of African migrants seeking passage to nearby Europe, on Thursday imposed a new rule requiring such travelers to fill out an online travel form for approval at least 96 hours before leaving home. The procedure on a website carrying the Moroccan Foreign Ministry logo applies to a range of African […]
FILE PHOTO: African migrants seated in their hiding place in the Moroccan mountains near the port city of Tangier, Morocco September 6, 2018. REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal/File Photo
Morocco, struggling with an influx of African migrants seeking passage to nearby Europe, on Thursday imposed a new rule requiring such travelers to fill out an online travel form for approval at least 96 hours before leaving home.
The procedure on a website carrying the Moroccan Foreign Ministry logo applies to a range of African countries whose citizens currently can enter Morocco without visas, except for Algeria and Tunisia.
The North African country has been grappling with a surge in migrants, arriving mainly on flights into Casablanca.
The new procedure “aims to facilitate passenger traffic … It will help Moroccan authorities know in advance the identity of travelers before boarding (planes),” reads a document issued by Morocco’s embassy in Mali and seen by Reuters.
In Africa, Morocco offers visa-free entry to the nationals of Algeria, Tunisia, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Guinea Conakry, Congo Brazzaville, Gabon and Ivory Coast.