Section 2: Judgement on the application to remain in the waiting zone

On pain of inadmissibility, the request must be reasoned, dated, signed and accompanied by any useful supporting documents, in particular a copy of the register provided for in the second paragraph of article L. 341-2.

The application is sent by any means to the court clerk’s office before the expiry of the time limits mentioned in articles L. 342-1 and L. 342-4.The clerk registers it and stamps it and any attachments with a stamp indicating the date and time of receipt.

The application and the documents attached to it are made available to the foreign national’s lawyer as soon as they arrive at the court registry. They may also be consulted there, before the opening of the proceedings, by the foreign national himself, assisted, if necessary, by an interpreter if he does not speak sufficient French.

As soon as the application is received, the court clerk will immediately notify by any means the authority that requested that the foreign national be kept in the waiting area, the departmental prefect or, in Paris, the police prefect, the public prosecutor, the foreign national and his or her lawyer, if any, of the day and time of the hearing set by the judge.

The administrative authority competent to propose to the judge that the hearing take place with the use of audiovisual telecommunication means, as provided for in article L. 342-7, is the departmental prefect and, in Paris, the police prefect.

At the hearing, the administrative authority that applied for the foreign national to be kept in the waiting area or its representative, at its request or that of the judge, is heard.The foreign national, unless he or she does not appear, although duly summoned, and, if applicable, his or her lawyer, are heard. The judge will appoint an interpreter if the foreign national does not sufficiently speak French.The public prosecutor…

The order of the liberty and custody judge is made within twenty-four hours of its referral or, where the needs of the investigation so require, within forty-eight hours thereof. It is notified on the spot to the parties present at the hearing, who acknowledge receipt. The judge orally informs the parties present of the time limit for appeal and the procedures for lodging an appeal. At the same time, he…

When an order puts an end to the holding in the waiting zone and the public prosecutor considers that he does not have to ask the first president of the court of appeal to declare the appeal suspensive, he returns the order to the magistrate who issued it, mentioning on it that he does not oppose its enforcement. The order to remain at the disposal of the court is then…