Brief description:

Over the past years, the impact of migration on the social systems of the host Member States has received a lot of attention in the European Union's migration policy. In order to protect the national solidarity mechanisms against use thereof by immigrants, the EU has introduced in its migration law instruments a number of sufficient resources requirements as conditions for obtaining the right to reside. However, these provisions have led to much confusion and arbitrary applications across the Member States. This is not only due to the divergent and vague wording of the relevant provisions but also due to the incorrect or ambiguous transposition into the Member States' national legislation. This has led to numerous legal disputes about the application of these requirements and their compatibility with fundamental rights, both in national and European courts. This research aims at analysing the meaning of the sufficient resources conditions in the various EU legal instruments and at comparing their transposition into the Member States' law. Moreover, the research will develop proposals that should contribute to more legal certainty and to the conformity of these requirements with fundamental rights and general principles of law.

Methodology:

Keywords: Belgium, benefit tourism, Directive 2004/38/EC, EU citizenship, family reunification, free movement, Germany, Netherlands, non-discrimination, social benefits, social security, Solidarity, Income requirements, residence requirements, welfare state, non-economically active

Home University:

University of Antwerp

Faculty:

Government & Law

Supervisor: Herwig Verschueren

Added to catalogue on: 18-10-2018

Additional information: