Another French Parliamentary Report Wants to Abrogate the 1968 Agreement

Charles Rodwell, a member of French President Emmanuel Macron’s party, said that unilaterally denouncing the 1968 immigration agreement between Algeria and France would mean a return to the Evian Accords signed on March 18, 1962, something France does not wish to see happen. He emphasised the French side’s commitment to ending the special status of Algerians under this agreement.

Unilaterally revoking the 1968 agreement would exacerbate the migration phenomenon at a time when French authorities are seeking to curb it. The collapse of the agreement would force both countries to resort to the Evian Accords, which enshrine the free movement of people between the two countries, something France fears and does not want to return to, Rodwell said.

The French are insisting on reviewing the 1968 agreement by all means. This insistence comes in the context of an unprecedented political and diplomatic crisis. Meanwhile, Algeria rejects any review, basing its position on objective facts, such as the fact that the agreement has been reviewed three times, at the insistence of the French side, in 1985, 1994, and 2001. These reviews stripped the accord of many of the privileges enjoyed by Algerians before the three phases of modification, including visa-free travel to France, as was the case before 1985.

On Thursday, October 23, 2025, in an interview with Sud Radio, Charles Rodwell explained that Algeria refuses to review the agreement. He expressed his fear that France’s resort to unilateral action would lead to a violent decision by Algeria, as happened with the 2013 agreement regulating the movement of holders of diplomatic passports. Its suspension by the French side led to its final revocation by the Algerian side.

Charles Rodwell and Mathieu Lefèvre, two members of the Renaissance party founded by the French president in 2017, presented a report to the French National Assembly (the lower house of the French parliament) more than a week ago on the 1968 agreement. They attempted to present it as causing huge losses to the French treasury, amounting to at least €2 billion annually, in an attempt to mobilise public opinion and pressurise the French government to review the agreement.

Charles Rodwell stated that the report concludes that it seeks an alternative legal framework for Algerians under the 1968 Convention, after its revision, that would end the consideration of dual Algerian and French nationals as French citizens. This exception, he said, remains exclusive to Algerians.

The MP, who is affiliated with President Macron’s camp, also advocated for “regulating immigration for work purposes, and limiting immigration to family reunification and medical treatment,” noting that work visas represent only 10% of the number of visas granted to Algerians. He also expressed his disapproval of the privilege that allows Algerians to obtain ten-year residency with a marriage certificate, unlike other nationalities, who must wait three years.

Rodwell also revealed some of the side effects of the 1968 agreement, which he said does not serve a specific group of Algerians: talents. He said that France grants talent visas that include all other nationalities except Algerians, as this type of visa does not exist in the 1968 agreement. Here, he emphasises the French administration’s efforts to attract rare Algerian talents through this approach.

To date, the French president has refused to review the 1968 treaty, despite pressure from the right and the far right, which this time has even reached his own camp.