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Morocco (MA)

Morocco is a gateway between Europe and Africa — a kingdom of extraordinary diversity combining ancient imperial cities (Marrakech, Fez, Meknes, Rabat), dramatic Atlas Mountain ranges, Sahara Desert dunes, Atlantic and Mediterranean coastlines, and a growing cosmopolitan expat scene.

Capital: Rabat
Region: Africa
Language: Arabic
Currency: MAD (DH)
Cost of living: Very affordable (index 35)
Emergency: 15
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Scam Warnings

Common scams targeting expats in Morocco.

Morocco is generally safe for expatriates and tourists, but several well-documented scams target foreigners — particularly in the medinas of Marrakech, Fez, and Tangier. Digital fraud is rising sharply: Bank Al-Maghrib issued multiple public warnings in 2025 about online fraud and fake investment platforms using AI-generated content. A 2025 Visa study found 44% of Moroccans had experienced digital payment fraud. Being aware of common patterns reduces risk significantly. The vast majority of Moroccans are genuinely hospitable — these scams represent a small minority. Emergency numbers: Police 19, Ambulance/SAMU 15, Gendarmerie 177.

Faux Guides (Fake Tour Guides) in Medinas

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In the medinas of Fez, Marrakech, and Tangier, "friendly locals" approach foreigners with offers to help, show them around, or guide them to a specific destination. The guide accompanies the visitor for 15–60 minutes, then demands payment (100–500 MAD or more) and refuses to leave until paid. The route is typically designed to pass through carpet shops, leather tanneries, or argan cooperatives where a commission is earned on any purchases made.

How to spot it
  • - Unsolicited offer to help from a young man near a medina entrance or major landmark
  • - Claim to be a student who "just wants to practise English or French"
  • - Offers directions to your destination without being asked
  • - Follows alongside you despite your clear refusal
  • - Route consistently leads toward shops rather than your stated destination
What to do: Say "Non merci" (No thank you) firmly and keep walking. If a guide has already accompanied you, agree a price BEFORE the tour begins — never after. Use licensed official guides (Guides officiels de tourisme — gold or green badge) arranged through your hotel, riad, or a licensed tour agency.

Carpet and Craft Shop Pressure Tactics

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Being led — by a guide, paid or unpaid, or by a "friendly" local — to a "cousin's shop" or "family cooperative." Once inside, tea is offered and a high-pressure sales pitch for carpets, leather goods, or handicrafts follows. Prices quoted are typically 5–10× fair market value. The social obligation created by accepted tea and extended hospitality creates significant psychological pressure to buy.

How to spot it
  • - Any guide who takes you somewhere unplanned without prior agreement
  • - Tea offered before you have agreed to look at products
  • - Salesperson refusing to accept a polite refusal
  • - Prices never shown upfront — quoted only after extended viewing
  • - Staff locking or partially blocking the exit during the sales pitch
What to do: It is perfectly acceptable to drink the tea and leave without buying. Say firmly: "Je regarde seulement, merci" (I'm just looking, thank you). For craft shopping without pressure: visit Ensemble Artisanal (state-run craft shops with fixed, transparent prices) in any major city.

Fake Plainclothes Police (Fausse Police)

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Individuals claiming to be plainclothes police officers approach tourists, show fake or real-looking badges, and demand to inspect passports and wallets "for a routine drug or currency check." The goal is to steal cash, credit cards, or extract a "fine" to avoid supposed legal consequences. Operates in tourist-dense areas of Marrakech, Tangier, and Casablanca.

How to spot it
  • - Real Moroccan Police Nationale officers are uniformed or arrive in marked vehicles
  • - Genuine plainclothes intelligence officers (BNPJ, DGST) do not conduct random street tourist checks
  • - Insistence on examining your cash or wallet rather than just your passport
  • - Offer to resolve the "issue" at an unofficial location rather than a commissariat
  • - Second person nearby acting as distraction or lookout
What to do: Request to be taken to the nearest police station (commissariat) or ask them to call the police on 19 in front of you. Say: "Emmenez-moi au commissariat" (Take me to the police station). Genuine officers will not object. Call 19 yourself if you feel unsafe. Do not hand over your passport or wallet to anyone on the street.

Taxi Overcharging (Taxis Sans Compteur)

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Petit taxis in Moroccan cities should always use the meter (compteur). Grand taxis and airport transfers use agreed fixed route prices. Unscrupulous drivers — particularly at airports, train stations, and tourist areas — claim the meter is broken, quote exorbitant prices, or start driving before any destination or price is agreed.

How to spot it
  • - "Mon compteur est en panne" (My meter is broken) — a very common refusal
  • - Price quoted for a standard route that is significantly higher than the metered rate
  • - Driver starts driving before you have agreed on a destination or price
  • - Airport or station taxis that approach you aggressively offering rides
What to do: Use Yassir or Careem apps for transparent, metered pricing in major cities. For petit taxis: insist on the meter before getting in ("Compteur, s'il vous plaît"). For airport arrivals: use the official taxi queue with the fixed tariff board posted — verify the price from the board before entering the vehicle.

Online Rental Property Fraud

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Fraudulent listings on Mubawab.ma, Avito.ma, and social media groups show apartments and riads at below-market prices. The landlord is always "working abroad" (in France, the UK, or the Gulf). Advance deposits (caution) are requested via bank transfer, Western Union, Wafacash, or crypto before any viewing or contract. The landlord disappears once money is sent.

How to spot it
  • - Rent price significantly below comparable properties for the area
  • - Landlord unavailable to show the property or meet in person
  • - Requests for advance payment before a signed contract or in-person viewing
  • - Photos look professional or stock-like and do not match typical Moroccan interiors
  • - Urgency: "many interested applicants, I need a decision today"
  • - Reverse image search of photos returns results from other property websites
What to do: Never pay any deposit without: (1) viewing the property in person, (2) meeting the landlord and seeing their CIN (national identity card), and (3) verifying ownership via the Titre Foncier (land registry document). Use established agences immobilières for verified listings.

Digital Banking and Investment Fraud

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Bank Al-Maghrib issued multiple public warnings in 2025 about digital fraud targeting Moroccan bank customers via SMS and phone, and specifically about fake investment platforms fraudulently using Bank Al-Maghrib's name and its governor's image (apparently generated by AI). A 2025 Visa study found 44% of Moroccans have experienced digital payment fraud. Fake forex and crypto platforms targeting the expat community in Marrakech and Casablanca have also been documented by BNPJ.

How to spot it
  • - SMS or phone call claiming your CIH, Attijariwafa, or BMCE account has been suspended
  • - Investment platform using Bank Al-Maghrib or ACAPS branding without verifiable registration
  • - Returns guaranteed at unrealistically high rates (real investments never guarantee returns)
  • - Approached at social settings (golf clubs, expat events, business lunches) with investment opportunities
  • - Platform accessible only via a private link and not listed at ACAPS (acaps.ma) or BAM (bkam.ma)
What to do: Never click banking links in SMS messages. Navigate to your bank's official app directly. Verify any financial adviser registration at ACAPS (acaps.ma). Report fraud immediately to your bank and to Bank Al-Maghrib fraud monitoring (bkam.ma). File a criminal complaint with BNPJ or the DGSN cybercrime unit (DGSSI: dgssi.gov.ma).

Motorbike Bag Snatching (Tirage de Sac)

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Two-rider motorbikes snatch bags, phones, and jewellery from pedestrians on pavements — particularly in Casablanca medina, Marrakech's busy streets near Jemaa el-Fna, and Tangier port areas. The motorbike accelerates before any reaction is possible. This is one of the most reported crimes against tourists in Morocco.

How to spot it
  • - Slow-moving motorbike with two riders alongside the pavement near pedestrians
  • - Visible phones, handbags worn on the street side, or dangling necklaces
  • - Narrow streets and medina alleys where motorbikes can approach and exit quickly
What to do: Walk with bags on the building side of the pavement, not the street side. Keep phones in pockets when not in use. Use a crossbody bag worn in front. Avoid using phones while walking in busy urban streets. Report to police (19) and obtain an attestation de dépôt de plainte (official crime report) for insurance purposes.

Jemaa el-Fna Performers and "Free" Experience Scam

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In Marrakech's main square, snake charmers, monkey handlers, henna artists, and water sellers offer what appears to be a free experience or photo, then demand aggressive payment. Amounts can reach 100–500+ MAD for a single photo or brief interaction. Henna artists may apply tattoos without consent. Black henna poses documented allergy risks.

How to spot it
  • - Any performer who initiates contact or approaches you directly
  • - Being handed an animal, item, or having henna begun without your explicit request
  • - No price stated before the experience or interaction begins
What to do: Agree ALL prices before any experience, photo, or service — ask "Combien?" (How much?) first. Only proceed if comfortable with the agreed price. Avoid black henna — it contains paraphenylenediamine (PPD) and causes severe allergic reactions in many people. Use only natural orange henna.

Restaurant Touting (Démarchage Agressif)

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In Jemaa el-Fna and tourist areas, restaurant staff physically grab tourists by the arm, thrust menus in their faces, and sometimes crowd around to prevent free passage. Once seated, prices can be well above normal for tourist-facing locations and quality may be poor.

How to spot it
  • - Physical contact on your arm or shoulder from restaurant staff
  • - Multiple workers shouting simultaneously from different directions
  • - No prices visible before you sit
  • - Persistent following despite a clear "Non merci"
What to do: Walk confidently past all touting. It is acceptable to say "Non merci" without stopping or explaining. Choose restaurants inside the medina away from the main tourist square, where local families eat — better quality, lower prices, no touting. Ask your riad for neighbourhood recommendations.

Counterfeit Medications from Street Stalls

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Counterfeit or substandard medications are sold from unlicensed stalls in some souks and tourist areas — particularly fake antimalarials, antibiotics, and lifestyle drugs. These may contain no active ingredient or the wrong dosage, with potentially serious health consequences.

How to spot it
  • - Medications sold outside a licensed pharmacy (identified by the green crescent/croissant vert sign)
  • - Significantly lower prices than a pharmacy
  • - No official packaging, no batch number, or no expiry date
  • - Vendor unable to provide a receipt
What to do: Buy all medications exclusively from licensed pharmacies displaying the official green crescent sign. All pharmacies in Morocco are licensed and inspected by the Ministère de la Santé. Never buy medications from street stalls or souks.

Reporting

Where to report: Police Nationale: 19 (urban areas — verified). SAMU Ambulance: 15 (verified). Royal Gendarmerie: 177 (rural areas, highways). Civil Protection/Fire: 150. European Emergency: 112. Cybercrime: DGSSI (Direction Générale de la Sécurité des Systèmes d'Information) — incident reporting at dgssi.gov.ma. DGSN (Direction Générale de la Sûreté Nationale) for criminal fraud: dgsn.ma. Consumer protection: Direction de la Protection du Consommateur (under Ministry of Commerce) — 0801000017. Financial fraud: BNPJ (Brigade Nationale de la Police Judiciaire) at your city's commissariat central.

Consumer helpline: 0801000017 (Direction de la Protection du Consommateur — toll-free consumer helpline). Bank Al-Maghrib banking fraud: bkam.ma. ACAPS (insurance and financial regulation): acaps.ma. Police: 19. SAMU: 15.