Morocco # English board

Hello,

I have been gone from Morocco for 20 years. A few years back, I changed my name to an American one. My Moroccan ID and passport have been expired for many years, and I have never registered with the embassy.
I might have to pay a visit to morocco in the next year or so, can I go there with a US passport? any issues concerning the name change? how about the ID deal? I heard that they will ask for it at the Moroccan airport! Has anyone dealt with anything like this? Please help!

my step brother got a closer situation years ago, the best way is to contact the moroccan embassy in your area, and renew your moroccan passport.
when back to morocco they may ask you few questions but nothing bad.
that's all i know, wish it helps
by the way welcome back to home country, you'll be amazed by the changes
good luck

well , if you changed your name to an american name what is the point of getting a moroccan passport with your original name it just going to cause you problems , because if i understood you have a moroccan name and an american name so if you take with you 2 ID with 2 different names you will be in trouble
in my opinion take your american passport that will be enough and just say you american 100% if they wish to check your american passport is legal let them do , i visited morocco with just my british passport i have a british surname and my driving licence no body stopped me or asked me a question as long as your papers are legal dont give a damm about those burocrates

20 years it is a long time a3la slamtek and enjoy your trip to Morocco and the reunion with families and friends

Hi JTP

Moroccco is different to other countries, when it comes to citisenchip.
when you are born Moroccan, what ever nationality you gonna get later on in your life, morocan will always be there. "is like JALBA"

in your case you don´t need Maroccan Pass cause you already have one "American". so you just need Maroccan ID.

you can get that at the Morocan ambassy In USA. the question with the name has nothing to do with your entry to Morocco. familly name is important but to be Mohammed or Jack wont change a thing for the Moroccan police.

I have friends with european name, in both there pass and there ID, and were answered Mokhtar and Jilali in morocco.

is Normal some coustum will make comment on that but cant do u any thing cause is not illegal.

PS: If you are regretting having american name, you can always ask for Moroccan pass and ID with your Moroccan name, and use it in your entry and exit to morocco. USE your american pass in out from usa, but make a transit to other country ..that will be the best way.

You will need a morocan ID : carte d'identité nationale that you can obtain at the moroccan embassy,

Hey there,

You most diffinetely need a moroccan ID, believe me i do it every year and i am also an american citizen for many years, its usually when you leaving morocco that it becomes a problem, arriving its not a problem.
If you were born in morocco, once you are there all the law apply on you regardeless if you are american citizen, they don't care about that the law is the law.
You don't need a moroccan passport more than you need a moroccan ID, and if you use a moroccan passport for your trip, you need to provide a green card or a visa when you leaving and we all know that once you become a citizen you give away ur green card.
Another thing you need to know about our moroccan embassy, you can extend and renew a passport there express even but an Id it takes a longtime since it can only be done in morocco they don't renew them here in the state.
The best things to do is call the embassy and start the process for your Id, they will give you a receipt that you filed for one and thats what you use in morocco, my brother just did samething and he had no problems what so ever.
If you have any further questions on this matter don't hesitate to contact me, i have been through this road before.
Good luck, you would love it there you would want to go every year...it will be a culture choc for you in the begining but its all good.
Bye.

jtp20039

Enjoy your time in Morocco & please feed back how did you find Morocco after 20 years,i had a friend who returned after 14 years & it was very interesting , i find out things everytime i go back & its a constant change

You can get in and out with your american passeport. However the control can last hours. If you provide the number of yout old ID, you will save time.Their computer can react faster if number are provided. If you provide a new ID, then you will feel like a normal human being.Good luck

Hello,

I want to thank all those who took the time to read and answer my request for help. I am still hesitant to renew my Moroccan papers for a few different reasons. Can I even do that after so many years? As for not disclosing my origin once at the Moroccan Airport to avoid having to submit a Moroccan ID card, the US passport shows the place of birth. Will that trigger more scrutiny by the customs folks? Can they force me to tell them? When I think of this, I wonder if I should just forget about going there!
In regard to the length of time away from the motherland, I am not sure how I will react to life there! I fear that I won't fit in. I keep hearing that life is quite different from the early 80s when I lived there. I have had little contact with people there, so not really sure what to expect.
Thanks, Joseph

Some of the answers are confusing. Here's my experience of crossing the Moroccan border with a foreign passport.

At the police control, they gave me a hard time claiming I remain Moroccan citizen for life. Only the king can revoke my Moroccan citizenship.
I had no Moroccan ID, my carte nationale was up for renewal too.
After some screaming and shouting, the head of airport police took me to his office where things were explained and arranged. I must add, no money was handed.
But then your problem is the name change.
If any problems when you get to the Moroccan border, just explain you changed your name for practical reasons (living in the us with an arab name is not ideal) and your Moroccan papers are up for renewal.
And as someone said above, leaving Morocco is no problem at all.
Just keep in mind that you remain Moroccan whatever the foreign passport you hold. Just try to be low key as some of the men in uniform are real bastards.
Have a great time in your home country and I hope the changes won't be too rough.

Hi Bengi,

So, what you are saying is that they had the right to harass you because you hold a foreign passport? Does that seem right? Is there a law that says one has to have a Moroccan ID? if not, can one refuse to submit to such treatment? Is it just best that I stay away? I tend to want to think that I have some basic rights! But maybe I have forgotten how bad things were or could be with the local/airport authorities over there!
At any rate, thanks for your input. I am glad that I didn't just hop on a plane without investigating the matter first. I will have to take all these risks into consideration before I decide whether or not it is worth the effort!

Joseph

Hi

Moroccan police had to give you hard time, what do you expect. that is the beauty of Morocco.

As soon as you get out of the airport everything will be forgotten, and you can start enjoying your stay in Morocco.

Police will may be harass you may be not, but they can never refuse you the right to get in and out. just they like to make you remember of there way of beeing Moroccan.

Don´t be scare, we have all foreign passport we get in and out with no problem. just get an ID and your problem is solved.


Beleive me after 20 years, you are missing a lot to know about your country. there is no country in these planete that can remplace that..... food, noise, your bodies, family, places where you grow up, man don´t let that go.

About your right as far as you have never committe any crime in Morocco, they can´t do u a thing. they just have may be to shake you little bit for forgetting about them for the last 20 years good luck

Quote
jtp20039
Hi Bengi,

So, what you are saying is that they had the right to harass you because you hold a foreign passport? Does that seem right? Is there a law that says one has to have a Moroccan ID? if not, can one refuse to submit to such treatment? Is it just best that I stay away? I tend to want to think that I have some basic rights! But maybe I have forgotten how bad things were or could be with the local/airport authorities over there!
At any rate, thanks for your input. I am glad that I didn't just hop on a plane without investigating the matter first. I will have to take all these risks into consideration before I decide whether or not it is worth the effort!

Joseph

You'll be all right, as Aziz_dk said; they can't refuse entry/exit.
If any inconveniency; it'll just take you a little more time to go through police and customs but Morocco is yours and nobody can take it away from you except the king.
Don't get angry as things might go slowly and things will turn up fine.
Don't come up with your constitutional rights, most cops don't even know about them.

Quote
You'll be all right, as Aziz_dk said; they can't refuse entry/exit.

do what those men told you, morocco is your birth contrey and nobodey will ever take that from you,so be brave man ,we all waite for others to comeback home just like you,

if your back,plz dont think of going back to usa it's not worthing that much, have no fer you will fit in,no douth.

Just to clarify, I love my life in the USA and have no plans to relocate! The plan is to visit there for a couple of weeks and come back home to America.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/17/2007 08:47 by jtp20039.

Quote
jtp20039
Just to clarify, I love my life in the USA and have no plans to relocate! The plan is to visit there for a couple of weeks and come back home to America.

sure you do love your life there,you mean you wont stay in morocco ,and you will visit it for a couple of weeks and goback to usa,,well i m so sad an other one who dose'nt want to live in the bled.that's not fair at all.

Fair? Can you elaborate?

dont you mess living in morocco,more , u have familly here,all your roots are in morocco your passt and the future for ur childrens,the land where you would like your grave to be,cause somme day you will have to die too sorry to be that rude,i can't see anyone in usa coming to your grave where it' says rest in peace cause you will not.

i can't say no more cause there is nothing to say elss.

Hmmm, those are a lot of assumptions and generalizations. Perhaps they are your plans, but remember that we are all different, and our priorities/choices are quite different too! Maybe I want to be buried here! Maybe I want to be cremated! You have no idea what my views and personal choices are. No offense intended when I say that you are off base!

souado, i'm sorry but rude is the least you can say about your comment!! i find you totally inconsiderate and insensitive! how can you say to someone you don't know that he'll end up alone and that no one will visit his grave??? you are entitled to your own opinions but so are people and everyone has the freedom of choosing the place where they want to live and be buried!

Joseph, I really don't think you should be worried about your trip to Morocco. As everyone said above, your American passeport is enough to get in, i don't really think you need a Morocca ID. I know you are concerned about the place of birth showing on the passport but then many people are born in a country and move with their families when they are very young, you could just make up any story, its not like they'll contact the intelligence to check up on your history. My fear is that if you get a new Moroccan ID with your new name, it might trigger their curiosity and they might give you a hard time, nothing bad but they might just harrass you with questions in the airport. How about you call the Moroccan embassy and explain your issue to someone just to get an opinion?
I'm sure you'll enjoy yourself when you go back. Don't worry about having a cultural shock, 20 years is long but not long enough to forget everything you've seen and known in Morocco. You'll find that many things are still like you left them and it'll do you good to relive your old memories. As for the rest, well it's like any modern city, nothing shocking really. Think of all those tourists who go to Morocco for the first time, they always go with the idea of finding camels, sand and people living in tents but once there, they realise they had a completely wrong idea but that doesn't prevent them from falling in love with the country

Wow, finally someone who is not here to judge or shoot from the hip. Thank you Minniemouse for your input. I appreciate your support and answers to my original questions. I do find it, not just on this site, curious that people quickly become judgmental when asked about these sorts of things. Especially with the name change and length of time away from the "Bled", most become very defensive. As if for some reason I needed their consent to change my name or my life for that matter. At any rate, thank you. I can tell from your post that you have lived here for a while, and that you are well integrated into this wonderful culture.
Joseph

I've been here for 6 years, i don't know if that's long enough but I don't think my opinions are too much influenced by the environment where i live. I believe these things get acquired from early age, I have always respected other's opinions and choices, especially when i don't know these people and their decisions do not affect me in any way. You came here to seek our advice and support and I hadn't replied before because I don't know much information but after i read souado's comments, i just felt really angry and couldn't help replying although you have handled that better than

Only 6 years! I am impressed with your language skills. In most cases, the choice of words and the writing patterns indicate whether the thought process is done in a different language then translated to English. Well done Minnimouse!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/18/2007 11:43 by jtp20039.

I know what you mean, luckily i don't suffer from that syndrome

I love the language and used to attend theatre classes when i was younger, that has certainly helped me although i used to speak with a strong yankee accent back then but once i moved to England, it was all gone and replaced with a britsh posh accent, just like the queen!! (lol only kidding, that would be awful

Thanks for complimenting me.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/19/2007 10:36 by Minniemouse.

You might face a cultural chock after two decades away. I really felt out of context when I landed in Casablanca on a sunny morning back in '98, that was after spending 6 years in Finland.
As others have already suggested do not worry too much about the formalities at the airport. Instead try to focus on how this trip will enhance your spirituality...good luck!

well guys,i was sure that you will not inderstand,simply cause you dont really accept the meaning of my words,the thing is not about life or death,open your eyes guys and give a second thauth.
and to be franck with you ,i'm happy to see that my lines even miss inderstood made you angry ,that's a good sign for me that you still kept somme of our moroccan fever,whiche you will need ,when comming back inchalla in morocco.

ps:what i wrote,the comment that made you were actully,the words of a man who used to be a friend of my familly,he lived somewhere called bayon new jersy;that man is dead now and we buried him in rabat .

My point Souado is that you sound judgmental, you moralize and you generalize (example: when you decide that I am angry). That is not a very acceptable way to debate or argue with someone you don't know. There are no standards or rules to follow when it comes to where one wants to live or die. It is all a matter of personal choices. Just like debating the existence of an afterlife, monotheism, or even the validity of any religion. All opinions are true; even “no opinions” are in fact true ones. If you are at all philosophically inclined, you will understand what I mean.

Virtual_perosn, thank you for your reassuring words. I had no idea this would turn into a philosophical discussion. I have a feeling that I will receive more criticism.

i' m not critising you at all,and i agree with you when you say ,that it's not a philosophical subject,and i'm not trying to have any kind of judgmental view .

anyway this is your home land and for me it's quite important for you to keep having contacts in morocco.

You still don't get my point. You don't get to decide where one's home is, what they identify with, nor do you get to declare what is important to you concerning other people (people you don't know might I add). You know nothing about me. By my standards, you should remain neutral and refrain from entitling yourself to making assumptions that are quite incorrect. I will no longer address this with you. If you don't get it by now, I am not sure that you ever will.