Madagascar - Short-stay visa for France refused

Are there any mods on the plane? We're getting off track here. The thread was started by a young woman asking for advice on getting a visa for France. You remember that, right? The topic was ruined by a pedantic argument that didn’t help anyone at all.

AdelineMada got perfectly reasonable answers, even if they weren’t what she was hoping for. Arlaud was also given information but chose to take the conversation to private messages pretty quickly. Now, if the moderator had to step in every time someone went off-topic, there’d be no forum about Madagascar left—and that would’ve happened a long time ago. He lets people express themselves freely, and I think that’s a good thing.

Yeah, I got clear answers to my questions, which is why I’ve been quiet. Thanks to everyone who helped me move forward with my thoughts. Best to you all...

😛

Keep hope, you never know—it's God who commands, and unfortunately, men after

If your good God existed, He would have allowed all the inhabitants of our planet to live decently everywhere in the world, and then there’d be no more visa problems🤪

Hi there, Last year you posted a message about Thailand. Did you know that you can access medical care there—paid, of course—but it’s just as good, if not better, than our French healthcare system? If you can’t get a visa for Europe, why not return to Thailand for your medical exams? Good luck!

Good evening, Last year you posted a message about Thailand. Did you know you can access medical care there—paid, of course—but just as good if not better than our French healthcare system? If you don’t get a visa for Europe, why not return to Thailand for your medical exams? Good luck!

The answer seems clear.

Adeline had "a family in FRANCE who were supposed to help her with medical exams."

That family is likely called "Social Security" and "Welfare."

In THAILAND, on the other hand, you have to "pay cash."

Nowadays, you can get - a lot of - medical exams done locally in MADAGASCAR.

This is probably what raised red flags for the French authorities when deciding whether to issue Adeline’s visa.

Hello Sir,

Sometimes you just need to READ BETWEEN THE LINES before jumping to obvious conclusions!! Have a nice day!

Hello Sir,

Sometimes you have to READ BETWEEN THE LINES before stating what you consider obvious details!! Have a good day!

And why wouldn’t what you call "obvious details" deserve to be stated?

I follow the principle of "calling a spade a spade."

People come, mainly from the Mediterranean basin and AFRICA, to FRANCE to take advantage of our social and medical systems—among other things, to get treatment without spending a single cent.

Because, legally, a hospital and a doctor cannot refuse to treat a patient.

In most Gulf countries, as well as in ASIA, they’ll ask for your credit card before you even sit in the doctor’s chair.

At the risk of leaving you to "die" at the hospital door.

from now on, we’ll have to "call a spade a spade". I know you deserve the medal for being the top helper of the auxilium... in the Mascarene Islands 😉

Hi there; my friend had the same issue. That refusal box shouldn’t even exist. The visa now depends entirely on the goodwill of one person. Corruption even exists at the French consulate, unfortunately. You also need connections there and to grease the wheels. I’m speaking from experience, and I might have to play the game myself to access the human rights France holds so dear... hang in there!

hi, your post suggests a certain bitterness....and I don’t think the refusal is just the result of one person—rather, it’s a file that raises doubts, even if it appears complete. It’s very difficult to "push through a SIPA" even if it seems unfair to you. France protects itself from visitors who don’t leave and end up costing money in deportation procedures. It’s a misunderstanding of the country to assume there’s a single truth behind every case.

Hi Adeline,

I hope you're doing well. Adeline, have you been to France for the first time, or is this your second trip back? Or has your problem already been resolved?

Have a great day.

Adeline, I just read about your situation. Normally, if you went to France and then returned within the specified timeframe, you should be able to get your visa without any problem to come back.

Hi everyone,

I’d like to ask for some advice, please. Here’s my situation: I’ve been in France for 18 months. In 2012, I applied for a 90-day tourist visa to join my French partner. One month after arriving in France, we decided to enter a civil partnership (PACS). After 3 months, my visa expired, and I stayed in an irregular situation. In 2013, the PACS was finalized (1 year minus 16 days later), and I applied for a residence permit. Four months after submitting my application, I received a refusal from the prefecture (OQTF with a 30-day voluntary departure deadline), stating that I needed to return to Madagascar to apply for a long-stay visa to come back and live with my partner. I stayed in France because I filed an administrative appeal with the tribunal (which is normal—I have the right to do so). The question I’m asking is: if, unfortunately, the tribunal rules the same way as the prefecture, how long do I have to wait before applying for a long-stay visa if I return to Madagascar? And is it possible for the French consulate in Madagascar to grant a long-stay visa to someone who is in a PACS with a French citizen? I’m so afraid the consulate won’t grant me a visa even though I’m in a PACS. If you have any ideas, please let me know—I’m all ears. Thanks in advance for your response!

Of course it's in France... so, as you said, you have rights! A French person in your country in an irregular situation would be deported by force, and you’d be clapping with both hands. When it comes to visas, being in a civil partnership (PACS) doesn’t grant any special rights. The court will almost certainly uphold the prefecture’s decision, and all this will have allowed you to live in France for two years in an irregular situation before being escorted to the border. Once you're back home, you should look into the legal procedures for entering France, because they do exist. It’s because of people like you, who don’t return at the end of a tourist visa, that your fellow citizens get their visas refused.

hi, yeah, one of the reasons for the systematic visa refusals for Malagasy people; and there are always "brainless" folks who justify it. If you visit someone’s home, there’s no rule saying they have to adopt you for life. Respecting the rules is a sign of politeness. It’s true that in Madagascar, the issue would’ve been resolved faster... *miala teo*... *mody*!!!

Good evening, Thanks anyway for your reply. I wanted to tell you that I was under the impression that civil partnership (PACS) grants the right to family private life after a year, which is why I didn’t leave. I saw the Valls circular on October 30, 2012. It’s not a big deal—I’m waiting for the court’s response to see if they’ll tell me to go back to Madagascar to get a long-stay visa. If so, I’ll go. And besides, do you think I’m the first Malagasy person to stay here without papers? Many have done it before me, and nothing was said. I didn’t mean to get upset about this—just venting a little.

Thanks again, and have a good evening.

hi there, I’m sure your situation isn’t great.... since you didn’t respect the length of your stay, there’s little chance you’ll get another opportunity... the only solution.... get pregnant, give birth in Madagascar.... your partner acknowledges the child at the French embassy and the Malagasy administration, and maybe then the door will open.

Hello JJcho, Thank you, and that’s very kind of you for your reply. It’s true what you say about my situation not being great, but it really depends on my luck with the TA. And about the idea you suggested, it’s not too complicated to do either. I see plenty of African women here with 2 or 4 kids because that way they get money from the French state, plus family housing benefits. They go to the RESTO DU COEUR to get fed, and they’re set for life because the French state pays for everything (IT’S A DISGRACE what they’re doing). But honestly, just look at the poverty in Madagascar. You know very well why there are so many kids on the streets begging for money, sleeping outside, with no food, not going to school—because we Malagasy people don’t think before having kids. If we have the means, if we can feed and raise them properly, then fine. You should never have a child carelessly. You should have a child to give them a good life and a solid future. Sorry, but I don’t agree with you on that point. I’m not trying to hide anything—I’m saying what I think, and I know what I’m talking about. Thanks again for your reply, and I wish you a lovely day.

"Is it possible that the French consul in Madagascar could issue a long-stay visa to someone in a civil partnership (PACS) with a French citizen?"

It’s possible if you could have applied for a residence permit before your 3-month tourist visa expired. But since that doesn’t seem to be the case here, you’ll first need to check whether the official regulations governing PACS allow someone in an irregular situation to obtain a residence permit—and that’s exactly what the administrative judge is looking into right now (there’s rarely any case law on this specific scenario).

Good evening, It’s not possible at all to get a residence permit with a civil partnership (PACS), even if I submitted my application before my tourist visa expired (within the 3-month window). Even for married couples, it doesn’t work, and for PACS, it’s way too complicated. Thanks for this answer.

Have a nice rest of your afternoon!

Good evening, It’s not possible at all to get a residence permit with a civil partnership (PACS), even if I submitted my application before my tourist visa expired after 3 months. Even for married people, it doesn’t work, and for PACS, it’s way too complicated. Thanks for this answer.

Have a nice afternoon.

France also has laws, and they must be respected. If you push your luck too much, it could end in deportation along with a ban from entering French territory for several years.

Hi there! Actually, according to both French and Malagasy law, if you want a long-stay visa or a residence permit, you need to arrive with a convertible visa first. They’ll never give you a favorable response in your situation. You should’ve applied at the French consulate in Tana for a convertible visa with the intention to marry, along with all the required paperwork if you’re married. For a civil partnership (PACS), it’s gonna be more complicated. Even if you get married now, the French state will ask you to return to Madagascar to get a convertible visa, bringing along your marriage banns publication, accommodation certificate, financial support documents, and quite a few other papers for your future husband. But since you’re currently residing in France irregularly, it’s gonna be really tough for you to avoid deportation—even if you’re in a civil partnership, it won’t change anything. They’ll tell you a tourist visa is non-convertible. And under both French and Malagasy legislation, just being in a relationship doesn’t give you the right to apply for a family reunification visa. I had some French friends in Madagascar who were teachers at the French high school—they had to get married at the town hall first so his partner (and they had a child together) could get a residence permit in Madagascar. If that’s the case even in Madagascar, it’s gonna be worse in France. Anyway, good luck!

Good evening, It's true that France has laws. That's why I'm trying to go to court. But if the court upholds the prefecture's decision, I'll have to return immediately. But I'm not worried about being banned from entering French territory, as you mentioned—I'm sure of it because I'm not a violent woman. In Madagascar or here, I never hurt anyone.

Have a good evening.

Good evening

Thanks for this information, and thanks again for your reply. Have a good evening.

Please, "HELP ME". Hello Adeline, my letter won’t be able to help you since it arrives more than a year too late. (The letter "KU" doesn’t work on my keyboard anymore, so those will be the only mistakes, sorry!) It’s actually you who could help me. That is, if you’ve found a solution to your problem. Yes, because I live in France and my Malagasy girlfriend has had the same issue as you. She applied for a tourist visa about two months ago to visit me for three weeks. She works in Diego and has her pay slips, a leave authorization from her boss for three weeks, a work resumption certificate for when she returns, my accommodation certificate, etc., etc. She’s been to the embassy several times to put together her file—it’s been complete since day one, but at the embassy, they’ve come up with every possible excuse. My handwritten accommodation certificate had to be redone, so I sent it by email. They wanted the original via Chronopost (60 €), so I sent the original. Then the EDF bills weren’t recent enough, so I resent the originals via Chronopost (another 60 €). Since the embassy kept making my girlfriend Nirina gather all these papers, I thought they were just being "nice" and that once the file was complete, there’d be no more issues. Then they said the bank account with a Visa card I’d opened for her wasn’t sufficiently funded (400 €), so I added another 500 €. Anyway, I’ll spare you the rest, but yesterday they refused the visa because we’re not married and there’s no marriage project. The thing is, marriage was never mentioned at any point—that’s the real problem. There’s something really unhealthy about all this. So, I know I couldn’t help you since I only learned about your story today and signed up for this forum, but maybe you could help me with your experience. Did you appeal the refusal, or do you have any advice for me? That’s my question, Miss AdelineMada, and I hope you’ve found a solution to your problem. Mr. PAPA Enrico To everyone, especially the regulars on the MADA forum whom I read every day. For once, I’m asking you not to argue and to try to help me with my problem.

I submitted a visa application for France a week ago to reunite with a family who was supposed to help me with medical exams in France and host me for a short-stay tourist visa. My file was put together with the help of my friends over two months, and we checked everything multiple times—nothing was missing, and everything was in order. Last Friday, I picked up a visa refusal from the embassy in Tana with the reason: your intention to leave the territory of the member states before the visa expires could not be established. Yet I had written a handwritten letter committing to return to the country.

I went to the embassy twice because the first time they couldn’t find my file, and the second time I still wasn’t registered in the computer. After a while, the person came back from another room with my passport and this refusal slip. I’m starting to wonder if my file was even reviewed. I’m completely desperate, and even though my French friends filed an appeal in Nantes, I have to leave Tana because my savings are running out fast. We have very little hope for the appeal in France since there must be hundreds of applications. So I’m open to any information or advice, but please "HELP ME".

Why should France accept every visit and stay request that actually poses a risk? Everyone knows how it works. Go live in Madagascar on your savings—young Malagasy women who marry *vazaha* can consider staying in Madagascar... Love knows no borders, right? But love is about *being*, not *having*!

I'm Malagasy and I've been married to a Frenchman since 2007. I've been living in France for almost 8 years now. We tried to apply for visas for my parents so they could visit us and explore France where I live. We explained to the embassy during our application that I especially take care of my mother-in-law, who has been disabled since 2012 following a stroke (she's permanently in a wheelchair). Since I'm very busy, we wanted to bring my parents over from time to time to visit us, but unfortunately, two applications in 2015 were both refused. Even though we have the means to accommodate them and we filled out all the necessary documents. What do you all think about this?§

First, it depends on whether it's a man or a woman coming to France and who will be hosting them—like an old *vaza* hosting a Malagasy woman. Indeed, the answer is often no in many cases, but more than 50% of applications are approved, and I know people who manage to get that famous visa to come to France. But you have to understand France’s perspective: the risk that the foreigner won’t leave is high, and a visa for France allows travel to all Schengen member states.

Indeed, the answer is no in many cases, but over 50% of requests are approved, and I know people who manage to get that famous visa to come to France.

The "unofficial" statistics—source: an employee at the Visa Service of the French Consulate General in TANANARIVE—suggest a 75.00% refusal rate.

I'm Malagasy and I've been married to a Frenchman since 2007. I've been living in France for almost 8 years now. We tried to apply for visas for my parents so they could visit us and see France where I live. We explained to the embassy when we applied that I especially take care of my mother-in-law, who has been disabled since 2012 after a stroke (she's in a wheelchair permanently). Since I'm very busy, we want my parents to come visit us from time to time. But unfortunately, two applications in 2015 were both refused. Even though we have the means to accommodate them and we filled out all the necessary documents. What do you think about all this?§

The repeated refusals for your parents' visa applications boil down to three words: "clear immigration risk".

regarding the resources to justify; I'm a student and I'm entitled to a grant as well as a return-to-work allowance (unemployment benefits from Pôle Emploi). Do you think this might be enough as justification?

Best regards,

Morgane

Even though this post is old, I confirm, it is FORBIDDEN to combine a grant and unemployment benefits!!!!!!!!

Hi,

It makes sense that the consulate refused your visa; France, like any other country, has no obligation to cover medical care for foreigners who don’t live in France and who have therefore never contributed to the French Social Security system, which is so expensive for us.

Thank you, ma'am, for your advice. So, even if we arrive there with a short-stay visa but plan to join a training program at an institution afterward, it still won’t be possible if our visa isn’t convertible—even if we go to court and prove we’re honest citizens who haven’t done anything wrong, and even if we show a clean criminal record or Bulletin No. 3 from Madagascar? Thanks in advance for your response

I’d really love to catch up with you—how are things going right now? What did you end up doing?

Because I’m about to leave to join my friend over there for a long-stay visa, but after that, I have an interview to get into a nursing assistant school within the first 3 months of my stay. I’m wondering if that’s doable if my visa can’t be converted.