Judgment — ECLI:EU:C:2007:325
Date: 2007-06-07
Language of the case: Dutch
Court formation: Third Chamber
Based on: Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (1957)
Subject matter: Free movement of workers
Concepts: Procedural guarantees;Restrictions justified on grounds of public policy, public security or public health
Procedure: Action for failure to fulfil obligations - successful
Origin: Netherlands

Summary of the Judgment 1. Freedom of movement for persons – Exceptions – Decisions on the control of aliens – Substantive and procedural safeguards – Scope ratione personae (Council Directive 64/221) 2. Freedom of movement for persons – Exceptions – Grounds of public policy (Council Directive 64/221) 1. An interpretation to the effect that the provisions of Directive 64/221 on the co-ordination of special measures concerning the movement and residence of foreign nationals which are justified on grounds of public policy, public security or public health apply only to citizens of the Union who are lawfully resident on the territory of the host Member State is not consistent with Community law. The safeguards provided by Directive 64/221 call for a broad interpretation as regards the persons to whom they apply. Member States must take all steps to ensure that the safeguard of the provisions of the directive is available to any national of another Member State who is subject to a decision ordering expulsion. To exclude from the benefit of those substantive and procedural safeguards citizens of the Union who are not lawfully resident on the territory of the host Member State would deprive those safeguards of their essential effectiveness. (see paras 35, 37) 2. A Member State which applies to citizens of the Union not Directive 64/221 on the co-ordination of special measures concerning the movement and residence of foreign nationals which are justified on grounds of public policy, public security or public health but general legislation relating to foreign nationals which makes it possible to establish a systematic and automatic connection between a criminal conviction and a measure ordering expulsion fails to fulfil its obligations under Directive 64/221. A previous criminal conviction can be taken into account only in so far as the circumstances which gave rise to that conviction are evidence of personal conduct constituting a present threat to the requirements of public policy. Reliance by a national authority on the concept of public policy presupposes, in any event, the existence, in addition to the perturbation of the social order which any infringement of the law involves, of a genuine and sufficiently serious threat to one of the fundamental interests of society. Community law also precludes provisions of national law based on a presumption that nationals of other Member States who have received a particular sentence for specific offences must be expelled. (see paras 41, 43-44, 51, operative part)