Are unmarried couples in Morocco legally allowed to stay together in 2023? The honest truth.

There’s a misconception that unmarried couples cannot stay in the same hotel room in Morocco, and it’s not actually true. We’re going to look at the legalities, why this is assumed, and how to get around this for unmarried couples in Morocco. So, can unmarried couples in Morocco stay in a hotel together?

The short answer is: yes! Kind of.

Let’s discuss.

The law: Penal Code 490

There are two main reasons people think unmarried couples in Morocco cannot stay together in hotels and the first reason is simply: religion. Morocco is an Islamic country. Some say it’s more liberal than others, but a liberal Islamic country is still an Islamic country. 99% of Moroccans are Muslim. Many people are quite conservative about things like premarital sex, especially in the smaller cities and villages.

The other main reason? The laws in Morocco. There is legislation that speaks directly to this issue, Penal Code 490:

Article 490: Every sexual relation between a man and a woman not bound by wedlock is a crime of corruption punished by imprisonment from a month up to a year.

Article 490

So yeah, that’s pretty serious.

But it’s also very loosely enforced. I’ve only heard of a handful of couples who were ever turned away for being unmarried, and none that actually got in trouble for being unmarried.

Hotels are responsible for what unmarried couples do in their hotels

I haven’t found legislation on this, but it’s the generally accepted understanding here in Morocco that property managers are responsible legally for what happens in their properties, and penal code 490 is cited as the reason they err to the side of caution and don’t allow unmarried couples to stay on their property.

Articles talk of “heavy fines” for property owners, but like many things in Morocco and many parts of the world, there doesn’t appear to be clear legislation around this, who imposes said “heavy fines” and how to find out exactly what these fines are. Unmarried couples in Morocco staying at hotels may make some people very nervous because the law is strict, but not clear.

That being said, hotels don’t want to have their riad or hotel shut down because some random people want to break the rules under their roof.

What they do want, however, is money. And tourism. And people staying at their establishments. And if every hotelier were to turn away every non-married couple, they would lose a lot of business.

Can unmarried couples share a hotel room in Morocco?

Foreigners get away with a lot in the Maghreb, sadly. Two unmarried foreigners will almost never, ever run into even a question regarding their marital status.

Two Moroccans? Unmarried Moroccan couples will likely get turned away way more than locals. It’s a bit hypocritical (okay, it’s a lot hypocritical). But again, foreigners get away with a lot more. That’s just Morocco. I don’t make the rules.

How about mixed unmarried couples, with a foreigner and a Moroccan? In my experience and the experience of my friends, it is a rarity that they have any issues. Another reality of Morocco is that unmarried Moroccan men with foreign women will have fewer problems with Moroccan women and foreign men. It’s not fair, but it’s just the reality.

How to rent a hotel for unmarried couples in Morocco

I’m not advocating breaking the law. I just have to say that. The legal system in Morocco is dicey and confusing and I do my level best to not break the laws. I haven’t been to Moroccan prison and want to keep it that way. My husband and I never actually stayed together before getting married, but we’ve also never shown a marriage contract or had to prove our marriage in any way. If we were or weren’t married, it would have been exactly the same.

Another thing I don’t do? Travel with our marriage contract! Who does that?! Should I also bring my birth certificate on vacation? This is how we handle it.

I’ll typically ask the hotel owner or Airbnb owner (even though we hate them) if they require proof of marriage. It’s that simple.

This accomplishes two things: implies that you are married (if you’re not), and asks what proof they require for their residents.

Why is this important? If they require a marriage certificate, you can avoid wasting everyone’s time or being turned away at the last minute. And the hotel gets plausible deniability. They don’t want to break the law, you don’t want to explicitly lie. Win-win. If a nosy neighbor calls the police, the hotel owner or Airbnb host can say they thought you were married. But again, this is extremely uncommon, and unmarried couples in Morocco will likely never experience this situation.

This is an actual conversation I had with an Airbnb owner.

It really is that simple. Many people overthink it and stress about it (like I did), but it’s not that deep. Just remember: your tourism money is important in Morocco. Tourism is the second largest industry in Morocco. Don’t stress yourself out, just ask beforehand

Unmarried couples in Morocco seem to be more accepted than in the past

Even just two years ago, when I first came to Morocco, almost every single Airbnb listing had some sort of warning about how they didn’t rent to unmarried couples. Now, you almost never see it. In fact, I looked through dozens and dozens of Moroccan listings and didn’t see it once. I’m not sure if people took it down because it was a terms of service violation, or people simply don’t care anymore. Either way, I feel like now more than ever, people who rent their establishments and homes literally don’t care.

Is it unsafe to rent a hotel room for unmarried couples in Morocco?

We’ve never had issues and we’ve stayed all over Morocco. I asked only one Airbnb host if they required marriage contracts for their residents and they said yes, so I simply kept looking. I would say 90-95% of places will not care nor ask for proof.

Some Airbnbs will indicate on their listing that they will not rent to unmarried couples. This is largely to prevent locals from engaging in illegal activity and prostitution on their property and as a legal precaution for the renter.

The only caveat will be in smaller cities or villages. If you plan to stay in a smaller city, the owners will likely be more conservative and the neighbors will likely be all up in your business. We’ve stayed in smaller cities and never had an issue, but I will say that an unmarried couple in Casablanca will definitely experience fewer issues than an unmarried couple in Beni Mellal, for example.

Conclusion

If you are unmarried, you will be taking a risk by breaking the laws of a foreign country. It would be a lie to say it is not a risk to stay in the same hotel room. But the reality is, money talks and an unmarried couple in Morocco is unlikely to experience any issues if they approach the owner in the right way.

What are your thoughts? Did you have a different experience as an unmarried couple in Morocco? Share below! 👇