Case C-467/02

Inan Cetinkaya

v

Land Baden-Württemberg

(Reference for a preliminary ruling from the Verwaltungsgericht Stuttgart)

(EEC-Turkey Association Agreement – Freedom of movement for workers – Articles 7, first paragraph, and 14(1) of Decision No 1/80 of the Association Council – Right of residence of the child of a Turkish worker after he has attained his majority – Conditions of an expulsion order – Criminal convictions)

Summary of the Judgment

1. International agreements – EEC-Turkey Association Agreement – Association Council set up by the EEC-Turkey Association Agreement – Decision No 1/80 – Family reunification – Members of the family of a Turkish worker duly registered as belonging to the labour force of a Member State – Definition – Child born and having always lived in the host Member State – Included

(Decision No 1/80 of the EEC-Turkey Association Council, Art. 7, first paragraph)

2. International agreements – EEC-Turkey Association Agreement – Association Council set up by the EEC-Turkey Association Agreement – Decision No 1/80 – Family reunification – Members of the family of a Turkish worker duly registered as belonging to the labour force of a Member State – Limitation of rights on the ground of prolonged absence from the labour force after the imposition of a custodial sentence followed by a course of detoxification – Not permissible

(Decision No 1/80 of the EEC-Turkey Association Council, Arts 7, first paragraph, and 14)

3. International agreements – EEC-Turkey Association Agreement – Association Council set up by the EEC-Turkey Association Agreement – Decision No 1/80 – Limitations of rights on the grounds of public order, public security and public health – Failure to take into consideration factual matters which occurred after the final decision of the competent authorities and which no longer justify a limitation of rights – Not permissible

(Decision No 1/80 of the EEC-Turkey Association Agreement, Art. 14(1))

1. The first paragraph of Article 7 of Decision No 1/80 of the EEC-Turkey Association Council must be interpreted as applying to a person who has attained his majority and is the child of a Turkish worker duly registered as belonging to the labour force of the host Member State, even though that person was born in and has always resided in the host State.

The fact that that person, consequently, has not been authorised to join the worker in question within the meaning of the abovementioned provision has no effect on its application.

The requirement that family members obtain authorisation to join the Turkish worker is intended to exclude from the scope of that provision those who have entered and reside in the host Member State in breach of that Member State’s legislation. It cannot validly be raised as against a member of that family who, as in the case before the national court, was born and has always lived in that Member State and who therefore did not need authorisation to join the worker.

(see paras 19, 22-23, 34, operative part 1)

2. The rights which the first paragraph of Article 7 of Decision No 1/80 of the EEC-Turkey Association Council confers on members of the family of a Turkish worker who fulfils the minimum residence condition may be limited only on the basis of Article 14 of Decision No 1/80, namely on grounds of public policy, public security or public health, or because the person concerned has left the host State for a significant length of time without legitimate reason.

It follows that the first paragraph of Article 7 of Decision No 1/80 precludes the rights conferred by that provision on a Turkish national from being limited after the imposition of a custodial sentence followed by a course of detoxification, on the ground of prolonged absence from the labour force.

(see paras 38-39, operative part 2)

3. Article 14 of Decision No 1/80 of the EEC-Turkey Association Council, which authorises limitations on the rights conferred by that decision justified on the grounds of public policy, public security or public health, precludes national courts, when reviewing the lawfulness of the expulsion of a Turkish national, from not taking into consideration factual matters which occurred after the final decision of the competent authorities and which no longer justify a limitation of the rights of the person concerned within the meaning of that provision.

(see para. 48, operative part 3)