A Gard family mobilized to bring back their 91-year-old father stuck in Tunisia for 15 months

Ahmed M’Sallem et son épouse. Midi Libre

Une famille très soudée. Midi Libre

Ahmed M’Sallem had not seen that his residence permit was about to expire when he left for Tunisia in August 2023. His family has been trying to regularize his situation since then, without success.

In August 2023, Ahmed M’Sallem and his family went on holiday to Tunisia, the country of origin of Mr M’Sallem, who has lived in France since 1968 and in Beaucaire since the early 1980s. But Ahmed M’Sallem had not realised that his residence permit, issued in 2013, was due to expire on 7 September 2023. However, the family’s return to France was scheduled for 15 September.

“My father was unable to return in September 2023. My mother and one of my sisters stayed with him in Tunisia to try to regularise the situation as quickly as possible. The requested supporting documents were provided directly to the consulate in Tunisia. The application and fingerprinting were done on October 30th and we were then told to wait two weeks. The weeks turned into months: one, two then three… We called non-stop to find out how things were going. Finally in June 2024 my brother made the trip to go directly to the Consulate in Tunisia to ask for an answer. He was finally given a document that was dated April 26th (two months earlier), but which they never sent to us…” explains Saoucen, one of Ahmed M’Sallem’s daughters.

Relatives very worried about their father’s health

The response comes as a cold shower since it is a notification “of refusal of a long-stay visa in France” on the grounds that Mr. M'Sallem “does not have the right to reside in France”. A response that the family does not understand, Mr. M’Sallem having been living in France for decades without ever having had any problems; his children were all born in France.

Beyond the administrative problem, the situation also generates great distress within the family. Very close-knit, the members have been taking turns for 15 months to never leave Ahmed alone in Tunisia. “At 91, it is impossible for him to stay alone”continues her daughter. “My mother, who is 85, travels back and forth between France and Tunisia. When she is here, my sisters and brother go there, taking turns taking leave. It is more complicated for me because I have children still at school, but I go when I can“.

Travel and constant worry for their father that generate stress, fatigue, disorganization of everyone's family and professional lives, not to mention a significant financial cost.

No file in his name in Prefecture

As the delays dragged on, the family had called on a lawyer who had sent a letter with acknowledgment of receipt to the Gard Prefecture in March 2024:“The French consulate has requested authorisation from you to issue Mr M'Sallem a return visa” stressed the lawyer, who also drew the attention of the Prefecture to Mr M'Sallem's age and state of health. For her part, his daughter explained that she had made numerous requests to the Prefecture by email, telephone and by going there, to ask that it provide the consulate with this authorisation. “But I never managed to get an appointment. I was told that to get an appointment you needed a file and there was no file”

This is indeed what the Prefecture confirmed to the Defender of Rights, contacted by the family and then to Midi Libre: “ There is no file in the name of Mr. M’Sallem“. It specifies that Mr. M’Sallem“can submit a paper application for a residence permit to the Gard prefecture.”

Totally lost in these administrative twists and turns, Soucen only wants one thing today: to have someone to talk to to explain to the family how to get out of this. “In the meantime, we have decided to apply for a Visa D (for a stay of between 3 months and a year). We hope that the Prefecture and the Beaucaire town hall will be able to support our application.”

A last hope for the family, worried about their father's state of health. He had to be hospitalized for heart problems and can no longer benefit from the follow-up of his doctor in Beaucaire. Their pharmacist Saïd Ouhdouch also discovered the situation the family was experiencing when he no longer saw Mr. M’Sallem. “When I found out what was happening, it moved me terribly” emphasizes the Beaucaire pharmacist who is also trying to help the M’Sallems by raising awareness of their situation. Everyone is now hoping for a happy and quick outcome.

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