
13.03.2022 | Bh Adviser | Morocco
Work and house permits are essential for any foreign worker in Morocco. Without these reliable documents, simple techniques consisting of beginning a nearby financial institution account in dirhams or purchasing a vehicle are impossible.
In exercise, the method of acquiring those files may be tough for overseas companies wishing to recruit or ship an overseas worker to Morocco.

Expatriation and secondment
Expatriation typically refers to employees despatched on lengthy-term projects overseas when they now do not benefit from the social security system in their home country.
In practice, the expatriate’s notoriety ends in the termination or suspension of the employment courting with the foreign corporation. The expatriate is then taken into consideration an employee of the Moroccan organization and is, consequently, in trouble with the Moroccan social safety device, in particular the Caisse Nationale de Sécurité Sociale (CNSS).
Secondment
The secondment process is characterized by a short stay abroad and by the maintenance of the employment relationship with the foreign company of origin.
The particularity of this procedure is that the employee is considered as still being a member of the foreign company’s staff. It allows the employee to continue benefiting from the social security system of the country of origin while exempting him/her from contributing to the social security system of the host country (provided that a social security agreement exists between both countries).
Morocco has signed and ratified bilateral social security agreements with a total of 16 countries, among them France, Belgium, Germany, and Spain.
Work permit or foreign employment agreement (FEC)
Please notice that the prerequisite for obtaining a piece permit in Morocco is the existence of a criminal entity running in Morocco (Company or Branch) to which the overseas worker may be connected.
Indeed, an overseas organization wishing to hire an overseas worker in Morocco must first create an enterprise or a branch in Morocco.
It is that this nearby entity as a way must initiate the process of obtaining a piece allow from the Moroccan Ministry of Employment before the foreign worker can begin working in Morocco.
As for the procedure itself, Article 516 of the Labor Code stipulates that “any employer who desires to recruit a foreign worker need to attain permission from the authorities authority in the rate of exertions. This authorization is granted in the shape of a visa on the employment contract. The date of the visa is the date on which the employment contract takes effect”.
The painting’s permit takes the form of a visa on a form known as “Foreign Work Contract”. In practice, this visa is granted for a period of 1 to 3 years (within the case of secondment of tea years).
Since June 2017, visa programs are processed thru a web platform of the Ministry referred to as Teacher. The time to gain this visa is 1 week to 10 days.
In addition, the process for acquiring the paintings visa differs depending on whether or not it’s far a secondment or an expatriation, with seconded employees being exempt from producing a certificate of interest issued through the National Agency for the Promotion of Employment and Skills (ANAPEC).
Indeed, any company wishing to rent an overseas worker ought to attain authorization from ANAPEC besides for a positive quantity of profiles along with enterprise managers, Tunisian, Algerian or Senegalese citizens or personnel of corporations having obtained the reputation of CFC, …).
For this purpose, it’s miles recommended to use the method of secondment to ship a foreign worker to Morocco.
The permanent residence card
Once the work permit is issued, an application for a residence card is filed at the police office of the employee’s place of residence. The employee must be present at this stage.
A receipt is then delivered within a week to ten days and serves as a provisional residence permit. This document allows the opening of a bank account in dirhams or the purchasing of a personal car.
The final residence permit is then issued within three months and is valid for one year, which is renewable.
Some realistic recommendation
- It may sound obvious, but you must not send a foreign employee to Morocco before you have
- obtained a work permit. The host company is not immune from an impromptu visit from the labour inspectorate. In addition, it is also possible that the foreign employee could be prohibited from entering the country if the border authorities find that he or she is residing in Morocco (although he or she must never stay for more than three continuous months) without a residence permit.
- It is advisable to carry out a preliminary study on the legal and tax regime applicable to
- the expatriate before his installation in Morocco to avoid possible tax or legal problems.
- You must renew the employee's residence permit before it reaches its deadline in order not to
- to violate Moroccan regulations.
- It is preferable to be assisted by a professional when preparing and submitting the documents to
- avoid any delays or complications with the local authorities.
- Make sure that the required documents for both procedures are carefully compiled to
- avoid back and forth with the authorities.
- Official documents required by the police (birth certificate, criminal record, etc.)
- must be no older than three months at the time of submission. You should be careful to provide the administration with recent information to avoid having to ask for them again in the country of origin.