Switzerland Refuses to Count This Moroccan Woman’s Salary and Expels Her Family: Court Annuls Everything
A Moroccan woman working in Switzerland saw her salary excluded from the calculation of her household’s resources. The authorities then refused the requested residence permits and ordered the entire family to leave. The court has now annulled that decision.
The Moroccan national, born in 1967, lives with her Spanish husband and their great-niece, a Moroccan national born in 2018 for whom they are the legal guardians. All three arrived in Switzerland in November 2022 and applied for residence permits in the canton of Vaud.
The husband, who is retired, received a Spanish pension of approximately 2,000 euros per month. His wife, for her part, held several part-time jobs.
However, the Vaud Population Service considered that the husband’s resources alone were insufficient to support three people. It refused to take his wife’s salaries into account on the grounds that she was Moroccan and did not have an independent right of residence based on the agreement between Switzerland and the European Union.
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In August 2024, the authorities therefore rejected all three applications and gave the family until 13 September to leave Switzerland. After an unsuccessful initial challenge, a new departure deadline was set for 4 December.
The Moroccan woman’s salary had to be counted
The family brought the case before the Cantonal Court, submitting the wife’s employment contracts, certificates and pay slips. In its ruling of 5 March 2025, the Administrative and Public Law Court found the Population Service’s reasoning contrary to the law.
To determine whether a European citizen and their family have sufficient financial means, the source of their resources is not decisive. The money may come from the spouse or even from a third party. The sole objective is to verify that the family is not at risk of depending on Swiss public funds.
The wife’s Moroccan nationality therefore did not justify disregarding her income. The court noted that the authorities had numerous documents attesting to her professional activity but had not examined them.
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The refusal of the permits and the departure order are annulled. The case is sent back to the Population Service, which will have to recalculate the household’s resources by including the Moroccan woman’s salaries. The family will also receive 500 Swiss francs for its legal costs.