Citizens’ Rights Directive

Scope

The directive applies to any EEA citizen that is moving to and living in an EEA state other than his own (the exclusion is based on the principle of non-interference with purely national issues). However, it also applies when a European citizen is moving back to his home country after staying abroad, as defined in the case of Surinder Singh. For dual citizens with two EEA nationalities the directive can apply in any EEA state. Temporary limitations are in place for the new member states of the EU.

To be fully covered by the European right of free movement, the EEA citizen needs to exercise one of the four treaty rights:

These rights are named after the Treaty of Rome, which defines the freedom of movement for workers. They have been extended over time, and are mainly of historical significance by now, since being self-sufficient has been added to the list. As long as a citizen has sufficient money or income not to rely on public funds and holds comprehensive health insurance, he/she exercises one or more treaty rights. If no treaty right is exercised, the right of free movement is limited to three months.

Family members are also covered by the right of free movement, but only as a dependent of the EEA citizen. The right is limited to the EEA state in which the EEA citizen is exercising treaty rights. In certain cases (e.g. divorce after at least 3 years of marriage where 1 year must have been spent in the host member state), the family member can retain the right of residence. A family member is defined as:

There is a second category of extended family members, which can be included at the discretion of national legislation. It covers dependent relatives (especially siblings), dependent household members and unmarried/unregistered partners in a "durable relationship".

Status

The right of free movement is granted automatically when the requirements are fulfilled, and it is not subject to an administrative act. However, member states may require the EEA citizen and family members to register with the relevant authorities. The relevant documentations are:

Permanent residence is acquired automatically after exercising treaty rights for 5 years, with absences of normally less than 6 months a year, a single absence less than 12 months in certain circumstances (birth, severe sickness, etc.), or longer for military services. Permanent residence removes any restrictions that are in place concerning access to public funds (such as unemployment benefits, a state pension etc.), although some of these restrictions are already lifted after a period of 3 months. Permanent residence is only lost after an absence of 2 years.

All applications covered by the directive are free, or require at most a moderate fee similar to comparable national documents.

Austria

In Austria, the directive is transposed into national law mainly via the Niederlassungs- und Aufenthaltsgesetz (regarding residence) and the Fremdenpolizeigesetz (regarding entrance). The applications are handled locally at the Magistrat or Bezirkshauptmannschaft (except in Styria where the Landeshauptmann takes direct responsibility). A credit card sized plastic card (costing about €57 in 2010) is issued to document one's right.

Germany

In Germany, the directive is transposed into national law via the Freizügigkeitsgesetz/EU, which could be translated as freedom of movement law/EU. Wikipedia has a short German article on it. Not all mandatory sections of the Directive are included in the Freizügigkeitsgesetz/EU. The applications are handled locally, together with the mandatory registration of residence.

Iceland and Norway

The EEA countries have had to implement this directive in full. In Norway this was implemented by changing the Alien Law (Norwegian: utlendingsloven), which entered into force on 1. Jan 2010.

Italy

In Italy the directive has been implemented into Italian legislation with Legislative Decree n. 30 of February 6, 2007 The applications are handled by the "Comune" of the city where the applicant takes his or her residence.

Ireland

In Ireland, the Directive is transposed into the European Communities (Free Movement of Persons) (No. 2) Regulations 2006 amended by SI 310 of 2008 in reaction to the Metock case and amended by SI 146 of 2011 allowing visa free entrance with a residence card issued by another EEA member state.

The non-EEA family members of Irish citizens resident in Ireland are not normally issued EU Family Residency Cards (called Stamp 4 EU FAM) unless the Irish citizen and family members previously lived together in another EU state.

The Netherlands

Applications are submitted locally at the municipality ("gemeente" in Dutch) together with the mandatory registration of residence, but they are processed centrally at the "Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst" (IND—Immigration and Naturalisation Service). There is a charge (€53 in 2015) associated with the application.

The family members of Dutch citizens who are and have always been resident in the Netherlands are not permitted to hold EU Family Residency Cards, because EU nationals who have always lived in the country of their nationality are not exercising EU treaty rights and are therefore not considered EU citizens under Dutch law for the purposes of the Directive.

Sweden

In Sweden the directive has been implemented through changes in several laws, like the Alien Act (SFS 2005:71), and the Aliens Decree (SFS 2006:97). Until 2015 Sweden did not follow the directive fully, as the national identity card was not accepted when a Swedish citizen left Sweden for a non-Schengen EU member state, like the UK. The passport act (SFS 1978:302) required a passport.

Switzerland

Switzerland is not part of the EU or EEA, but has bilateral agreements with the EU in several fields, including free movement of people. There is an agreement, which contains the same principles as the directive. This includes:

for citizens of EU, EEA and Switzerland in all these countries.

Switzerland has had to adopt amendments when the directive was updated or new member countries were added.

United Kingdom

In the UK, the directive is transposed into the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations 2006 amended by SI 2009/1117 and amended by SI 2011/1247. The implementation is reasonably complete and accurate although non-EEA family members require an entrance clearance (called EEA Family Permit) to enter the UK even if they are in possession of a 5-year residence card of another EEA member state, in breach of the Directive. The UK law recognises same-sex relationships, and it also has a clause for unmarried/unregistered partners. Applications are currently £65:00 + £19.20 for submitting biometric information and an additional £65 per dependant.

As from the 6 April 2015 the UK Apply this directive in full accordance with the European Law for Non-EU/EEA/Swiss citizen family members. Entering the UK as the holder of an Article 10 residence card