13. Movement and residence of EU citizens
A5-0207/2000
European Parliament resolution on the report from the Commission to the Council and the Eur-
opean Parliament on the implementation of Directives 90/364/EEC, 90/365/EEC and 93/96/EEC
(right of residence) and on the communication from the Commission to the Council and the Eur-opean Parliament on the special measures concerning the movement and residence of citizens ofthe Union which are justified on grounds of public policy, public security or public health
(COM(1999) 127, COM(1999) 372 /dash C5-0177/1999, C5-0178/1999 /dash 1999/2157(COS))
The European Parliament,
zdash having regard to the report and the communication from the Commission (COM(1999) 127,
COM(1999) 372 zdash C5-0177/1999, C5-0178/1999),
zdash having regard, in particular, to Articles 14, 17, 18 and 39 of the EC Treaty,zdash having regard to the report of the High Level Group on free movement of persons submitted to the
Commission on 18 March 1997 (the Simone Veil report),
zdash having regard to the second report from the Commission on citizenship of the Union of 17 June
1997,
zdash having regard to the Green Paper on supplementary pensions in the single market (COM(1997) 283),zdash having regard to the 1997-1998 report of ECAS (European Citizens Action Service),zdash having regard to the Commission communication: Action plan for free movement of workers
(COM(1997) 586 zdash C4-0650/1997), and to its resolution of 16 July 1998 thereon(
1),
zdash having regard to Rule 47(1) of its Rules of Procedure,zdash having regard to the report of the Committee on Citizens’ Freedoms and Rights, Justice and Home
Affairs and the opinions of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market, the Committeeon Employment and Social Affairs, the Committee on Culture, Youth, Education, the Media and Sport
and the Committee on Petitions (A5-0207/2000),
A. having regard to Article 14, concerning free movement of persons, and Articles 17 and 18 of the
EC Treaty concerning European citizenship, which entails the right to move and to reside freelythroughout the territory of the European Union,
B. whereas however the Commission report and the case law of the Court of Justice of the European
Communities (CJEC) indicate that European citizens of all categories still face numerous obstacles tothe exercise of their right of movement and residence,
C. whereas non-EU citizens legally resident in the Union are excluded from the right to free movement
and establishment,
D. whereas the implementation of Directives 90/364/EEC, 90/365/EEC and 93/96/EEC on the right of
residence of students and retired people is still highly unsatisfactory, as the people concerned suffer
on account of the slowness and administrative cost of the procedures for obtaining residence permitsand are required to renew these documents, often without justification,
E. whereas in order to obtain residence permits, retired people are required to demonstrate that they
have adequate resources, which it is often difficult for them to do, while this criterion is furthermore
assessed differently in different Member States and without reference to their real situation, andwhereas therefore the existing legislation needs to be revised without delay,
(1) OJ C 292, 21.9.1998, p. 145.7.5.2001 EN C 135/189 Official Journal of the European Communities
Wednesday 6 September 2000
F. whereas certain categories of workers, particularly those in ‘atypical’ employment or employment of
very brief duration, part-time workers, temporary workers, seasonal workers and unemployed migrantworkers, often encounter major difficulties of residence in the host country because of the formalitiesfor renewal of their permits associated with the production of evidence of adequate resources,
G. whereas in general the right of movement and residence, which is a major aspect of European citizen-
ship (which itself is a fundamental right which cannot be reserved solely for citizens of the Member
States), should wherever possible be viewed without reference to the economic considerations whichcurrently impede its full exercise,
H. whereas millions of third country nationals are residing legally within the EU,
I. whereas moreover migrant workers are penalised in that they suffer the pecuniary consequences of the
inadequate harmonisation of pension systems,
J. having regard to the unacceptable violations of the right of residence which are still too often com-
mitted by the Member States, which misinterpret the concept of ‘public policy’ and fail to respect the
objectives laid down by Directive 64/221/EEC and the case law of the CJEC in this field,
K. whereas the full exercise of the right of free movement and residence not only corresponds to the very
implementation of the principle of European citizenship but also, by facilitating the mobility of stu-
dents and workers, promotes dynamism and economic competitiveness,
L. whereas 50years after the Treaty of Rome for the first time laid down the principle of free movement
of persons, this right is still impeded or even ignored, which makes it necessary to promote genuine
European citizenship,
M. whereas therefore the Commission and Council ought to do everything in their power to impart real
meaning to European citizenship and to the ‘European area of freedom’,
1. Welcomes the report, but calls on the Commission to explain the delay in submitting a report on the
implementation of Directive 93/96/EEC to the Council and Parliament;
2. Notes that the report does not deal with the obstacles faced by workers to the exercise of their right
of movement and residence, and covers the situation of third-country nationals only to the extent that theyare members of the family of a European citizen;
3. Stresses the need, on the basis of a complete overhaul of the existing rules, to adopt a framework
directive to organise and guarantee the unimpeded exercise of freedom of movement and residence;
4. Calls on the Member States and the Commission, when implementing this framework directive, to
adopt the necessary measures to render the exercise of European citizenship far more effective for thevarious categories of persons concerned, by putting an end to the existing inequalities of treatment;
5. Considers, in this context, that the introduction for all applicants of a residence permit valid for one
year would be a first step in this direction;
6. Deplores, in a ‘European area of freedom’, the abusive use by Member States of public policy as
grounds for expulsions; considers it essential, therefore, for Member States to endeavour to ensure thatthey improve their coordination of the interpretation of the concept of public policy, particularly in thecontext of the Schengen agreements;
7. Urges the Commission to ensure that the legal remedies provided by Directive 64/221/EEC are not
undermined in any way, and that any person covered by this Directive is not deprived of his or her rightsof defence and assistance or representation;C 135/190 EN 7.5.2001 Official Journal of the European Communities
Wednesday 6 September 2000
8. Takes the view that systematic or automatic linkage between criminal conviction and deportation is a
breach of Community law and the principle of non-discrimination; points out that each and every depor-tation must be accounted for in terms of the present danger to public order and safety, and carefully
assessed in the light of the personal circumstances of the person concerned and the need to protect family
life;
9. Believes that citizenship of the Union must be interpreted in a broad sense; is therefore of the opi-
nion that third-country subjects who are born in the country of residence or have lived there since child-
hood, are long-term residents with cultural, social and family links in the country of residence or who areminors should not be deported;
10. Takes the view that the Schengen Information System must comply with Community law, more
specifically,
zdash in applying the provisions of Directive 64/221/EEC, which expressly states that personal data concern-
ing a measure that comes under the scope of the directive, and is no longer valid or has beenrepealed, may not be preserved and that such data may not be included in Community lists or auto-
matically passed on, and that refusing to grant access to the Schengen area to persons who are Union
citizens, or who have become so, on the basis of registration in the SIS is in conflict with Communitylaw;
zdash in applying Directive 95/46/EC, which expressly states that personal data obtained for specified, expli-
citly defined and justified purposes may not be used in a way that is incompatible with such purposes;
calls on the Commission to exercise its responsibility as guardian of the Treaties and take steps to put an
end to these infringements of Community law;
11. Regrets that the Council takes no notice of the communications from the Committee on Petitions
concerning serious breaches of Community law on the part of the authorities of the Member States, whichreveals a negative attitude on the part of the Council towards the right of petition of European citizens,and calls on the Council to pay the necessary attention to the rights of Union citizens;
Movement and residence of students
12. Calls on Member States:
zdash to ensure, with regard to the right of residence of students, that their national administrations strictly
apply the current provisions of Directive 93/96/EEC (enrolment at a recognised institution, a simplestatement of adequate means, health insurance cover) to the exclusion of all other conditions;
zdash to limit in so far as possible the formalities relating to the renewal of residence permits and to con-
sider issuing these documents free of charge;
zdash to ensure that all students are able to apply for a work permit in the country in which they are
studying in order to finance their studies;
zdash not to make financial assistance to students subject to nationality conditions;
13. Calls upon the Commission to study:
zdash ways of widening the scope of the Directive to embrace trainees and volunteer workers;zdash problems in connection with the recognition of diplomas in certain professions;
14. Takes note of the Commission’s intention to extend the scope of Directive 93/96/EEC on students’
right of residence to all educational establishments, and to examine how to create more clarity on thescope of students’ right of residence, giving special attention to the administrative problems which traineesand participants in voluntary projects encounter, and whether it is possible to make the first issuing and
renewal of residence permits for students free of charge; calls on the Commission to submit appropriate
amendments to the directive to Parliament and the Council;7.5.2001 EN C 135/191 Official Journal of the European Communities
Wednesday 6 September 2000
Movement and residence of retired people
15. Welcomes the Commission proposals to the effect that the existing directives should be so revised
as to:
zdash simplify and render as flexible as possible the procedures for providing evidence of adequate means
for retired people;
zdash take account of the impact on the validity of residence permits of the increasingly common practice of
living alternately in the host country and the country of origin in the course of a single year;
Movement and residence of migrant workers
16. Calls on Member States to facilitate to the maximum the granting and renewal of residence permits
for migrant workers, particularly temporary, part- time or seasonal workers, by granting them a five-year
residence permit if they have held jobs for more than 12 months during a period of a residence in the host
country exceeding 18 months;
17. Calls on host Member States moreover to allow unemployed workers:
zdash to extend their right of residence for the period during which they are entitled to draw unemployment
benefit in the country concerned
zdash to renew their residence permit automatically for periods of at least six months while they are genu-
inely seeking employment;
18. Calls on the Council, in this respect, to resume without further delay its consideration of the three
proposals by the Commission on this subject designed to improve the free movement of workers and theirfamilies within the Community (COM(1998) 394)(
1);
Status of migrant workers under employment legislation
19. Calls on Member States to carry out the improvement and modernisation essential for social protec-
tion in the EU so as to halt the penalisation of migrant workers and posted workers arising from:
zdash non-recognition of certain pension schemes between Member States and difficulties of transferring
acquired rights;
zdash the restrictive character of the conditions imposed for the acquisition of supplementary pension rights
(long periods during which no pension is payable);
zdash fiscal problems associated with the acquisition of pension rights in numerous Member States;zdash difficulties relating to the transfer of early retirement benefits paid from a certain age to workers who
are not employed in any form;
Family status in the host country
20. Considers that family reunification must be simplified and facilitated, as it is a vital factor making
for integration in the host country; calls on the Commission and Member States, when revising legislationon this subject, to decide:
zdash that the spouse of a resident student or retired person or, if the law of the Member State concerned
treats the situation of unmarried couples as married couples, the unmarried partner with whom theperson reuniting the family has a lasting relationship should have a genuine autonomous right of
residence conferred upon them on the same terms, as regards resources, as upon the resident student
or retired person;
zdash that in the event of divorce or decease of the person who obtained the residence permit, members of
his or her family should have the right to take up or continue to undertake employment or self-
employment;
(1) OJ C 344, 12.11.1998, pp. 9, 12 and 16.C 135/192 EN 7.5.2001 Official Journal of the European Communities
Wednesday 6 September 2000
zdash that the previous provisions should also apply, on the same terms, to members of the family of a
Community national originating in a third country and, in general, that visa formalities should beeased or abolished;
Economic, social and cultural context of the right of residence of migrants
21. Considers that the practical exercise of the right of movement and residence presupposes a thor-
ough improvement of the social context (equality of treatment with regard to social and fiscal advantages,greater transparency of the employment market, a greater role for the EURES network), the educationalcontext (access to education and training) and the cultural context (language learning) of migrants and
their families; draws attention once more to its request for the introduction of a border impact assessment
(the Europe test), to measure the impact of new or amending legislation concerning tax and social securitypolicy on the situation of workers and their families who work in a Member State other than the one in
which they live;
22. Considers that steps should be taken to allow the free movement of legally resident third country
nationals who have lived within the EU for a period of five years or more;
23. Observes likewise that the European citizens concerned are inadequately informed as to their rights
and the means of redress open to them, and that this situation should be remedied, particularly by means
of better training of the national administrative staff concerned and information campaigns; calls explicitlyfor a continuation of the support for the initiatives of NGOs concerning complaint procedures in respect
of free movement, legal support for complaint procedures and cataloguing the most frequent complaints,
with guarantees of the financial resources required;
24. Urges the Commission to speed up its internal procedures so as to stop more quickly the breaches
of Community law;
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25. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the governments of the Member
States and the Commission.7.5.2001 EN C 135/193 Official Journal of the European Communities
Wednesday 6 September 2000