Thousands of foreign residents in France face administrative limbo and loss of social rights due to processing delays
via SeneNews3 min read
Thousands of long-term foreign residents in France are finding themselves undocumented, losing jobs, housing, and social benefits due to administrative failures that delay the issuance of their residence permits. Marie, an individual from West Africa who has lived in France for over a decade with her three children, lost her job in the hotel industry in Marseille and all social assistance after her 10-year residence permit renewal application, submitted in autumn 2025, received no response. She now faces food insecurity for her family and has resorted to administrative justice, with a hearing scheduled for June 11. The Defender of Rights' 2025 report highlights that "thousands of people" annually become undocumented due to "saturation of prefectural services" and "dysfunctions" of ANEF, the main online platform for permit applications since 2020, even when applicants diligently complete all required steps. In early May, the Council of State urged the government to rectify ANEF's dysfunctions, particularly regarding the erratic issuance of receipts confirming application submission. With 930,000 pending applications, the Ministry of Interior in April unveiled a "global plan" to reduce processing times, prioritizing the "fight against rights disruptions" and promising recruitments. Simon Imbert-Vier, an activist with Cimade for 29 years, attributes delays to staff shortages and the "enormous complexification of case processing." Marseille lawyer Ana茂s Leonhardt notes that agent
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