Spanish consulate employees have been issuing a number of forged visas to Moroccans for money, according to a recent report from Schengenvisa News.
“Spanish consulate employees, as well as the intermediaries” have been forging 90 day schengen visas for entry into Spain in exchange for what police estimate to be amounts of up to 15,000 euros, the report states.
The police have suggested that the intermediaries were in charge of falsifying documents, including bank statements and work contracts. The documents were then handed to the consulate workers.
The fraudulent visas were short-stay visas and there is no information on whether they were used multiple times to re-enter the Schengen area.
While there is also no information on the number of visas that were issued in this manner, the outlet reported that Moroccan authorities believe the number to be “quite considerable.”
In 2022, 25% of visa applications from Moroccans were rejected by Spain, a 4% rise from 2019. The increased rejection rate could explain the increased number of fraudulent visas, as well as this specific instance of forgery.
In recent years, more and more Moroccans have been rejected visas for the Schengen area with most rejections coming from France and Spain who together make up 85% of all rejections and are also the two most applied to countries.
Notably, relations recently soured between France and Morocco as a result of the European country cutting the number of approved visas for Moroccans in half after declaring that the country, along with Tunisia and Algeria failed to repatriate its citizens who failed to obtain visas.
Nasser Bourita, Morocco’s foreign minister described the decision as “unjustified,” while Moroccan citizens protested what they called unjust treatment at visa processing facilities and embassies.
Despite an announcement from the French foreign minister Catherine Colonna to end restrictions on Moroccan visas and bring the bilateral relations back to normal, much of the damage has already been done. In 2022 there were 160,000 visa applications to France with 50,000 being rejected.
With over 700,000 people of Moroccan origin living in France, the visa restrictions also prevented many Moroccans from visiting their relatives.
Read Also: Morocco Has Africa’s 2nd Highest Expenditure on Rejected Schengen Visa Applications
