French court orders state to pay Algerian national after permit delay

The Cergy-Pontoise Administrative Tribunal has ordered the French state to pay 1,000 euros to an Algerian national after a prolonged administrative deadlock regarding her residence permit application.

Following an online application for exceptional admission to stay submitted on August 14, 2024, the applicant faced over 18 months of administrative silence from the Hauts-de-Seine prefecture. Despite a complete dossier, the lack of an appointment prevented the official processing of her request and the issuance of a receipt, leaving her in a state of legal and administrative precariousness.

Represented by lawyer Fayçal Megherbi, the applicant utilized the ‘référé-mesures utiles’ legal procedure on March 11, 2026, to compel the administration to act. The court eventually mandated that the prefecture grant an appointment, which was subsequently scheduled for May 20, 2026.