Centre public d'aide sociale de Courcelles v Marie-Christine Lebon.
Date: 1987-06-18
12 HOWEVER, THE MEMBERS OF A WORKER' S FAMILY, WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 10 OF REGULATION NO 1612/68, QUALIFY ONLY INDIRECTLY FOR THE EQUAL TREATMENT ACCORDED TO THE WORKER HIMSELF BY ARTICLE 7 OF REGULATION NO 1612/68 . SOCIAL BENEFITS SUCH AS THE INCOME GUARANTEED TO OLD PEOPLE BY THE LEGISLATION OF A MEMBER STATE ( SEE THE JUDGMENT OF 12 JULY 1984 IN CASE 261/83 CASTELLI V ONPTS (( 1984 )) ECR 3199 ) OR GUARANTEEING IN GENERAL TERMS THE MINIMUM MEANS OF SUBSISTENCE OPERATE IN FAVOUR OF MEMBERS OF THE WORKER' S FAMILY ONLY IF SUCH BENEFITS MAY BE REGARDED AS A SOCIAL ADVANTAGE, WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 7 ( 2 ) OF REGULATION NO 1612/68, FOR THE WORKER HIMSELF .
13 IT FOLLOWS THAT, WHERE A WORKER WHO IS A NATIONAL OF ONE MEMBER STATE WAS EMPLOYED WITHIN THE TERRITORY OF ANOTHER MEMBER STATE AND EXERCISED THE RIGHT TO REMAIN THERE, HIS DESCENDANTS WHO HAVE REACHED THE AGE OF 21 AND ARE NO LONGER DEPENDENT ON HIM MAY NOT RELY ON THE RIGHT TO EQUAL TREATMENT GUARANTEED BY COMMUNITY LAW IN ORDER TO CLAIM A SOCIAL BENEFIT PROVIDED FOR BY THE LEGISLATION OF THE HOST MEMBER STATE AND GUARANTEEING IN GENERAL TERMS THE MINIMUM MEANS OF SUBSISTENCE . IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES, THAT BENEFIT DOES NOT CONSTITUTE FOR THE WORKER A SOCIAL ADVANTAGE WITHIN THE
MEANING OF ARTICLE 7 ( 2 ) OF REGULATION NO 1612/68, INASMUCH AS HE IS NO LONGER SUPPORTING HIS DESCENDANT .
20 IT MUST BE POINTED OUT, IN THE FIRST PLACE, THAT A CLAIM FOR THE GRANT OF THE MINIMEX SUBMITTED BY A MEMBER OF A MIGRANT WORKER' S FAMILY WHO IS DEPENDENT ON THE WORKER CANNOT AFFECT THE CLAIMANT' S STATUS AS A DEPENDENT MEMBER OF THE WORKER' S FAMILY . TO DECIDE OTHERWISE WOULD AMOUNT TO ACCEPTING THAT THE GRANT OF THE MINIMEX COULD RESULT IN THE CLAIMANT FORFEITING THE STATUS OF DEPENDENT MEMBER OF THE FAMILY AND CONSEQUENTLY JUSTIFY EITHER THE WITHDRAWAL OF THE MINIMEX ITSELF OR EVEN THE LOSS OF THE RIGHT OF RESIDENCE . SUCH A SOLUTION WOULD IN PRACTICE PRECLUDE A DEPENDENT MEMBER OF A WORKER' S FAMILY FROM CLAIMING THE MINIMEX AND WOULD, FOR THAT REASON, UNDERMINE THE EQUAL TREATMENT ACCORDED TO THE MIGRANT WORKER . THE STATUS OF DEPENDENT MEMBER OF A WORKER' S FAMILY SHOULD THEREFORE BE CONSIDERED INDEPENDENTLY OF THE GRANT OF THE MINIMEX .
21 IT MUST BE POINTED OUT, SECONDLY, THAT THE STATUS OF DEPENDENT
MEMBER OF A WORKER' S FAMILY DOES NOT PRESUPPOSE THE EXISTENCE OF A RIGHT TO MAINTENANCE EITHER . IF THAT WERE THE CASE, THE COMPOSITION OF THE FAMILY WOULD DEPEND ON NATIONAL LEGISLATION, WHICH VARIES FROM ONE STATE TO ANOTHER, AND THAT WOULD LEAD TO THE APPLICATION OF COMMUNITY LAW IN A MANNER THAT IS NOT UNIFORM .
22 ARTICLE 10 ( 1 ) AND ( 2 ) OF REGULATION NO 1612/68 MUST BE INTERPRETED AS MEANING THAT THE STATUS OF DEPENDENT MEMBER OF A WORKER' S FAMILY IS THE RESULT OF A FACTUAL SITUATION . THE PERSON HAVING THAT STATUS IS A MEMBER OF THE FAMILY WHO IS SUPPORTED BY THE WORKER AND THERE IS NO NEED TO DETERMINE THE REASONS FOR RECOURSE TO THE WORKER' S SUPPORT OR TO RAISE THE QUESTION WHETHER THE PERSON CONCERNED IS ABLE TO SUPPORT HIMSELF BY TAKING UP PAID EMPLOYMENT .
23 THAT INTERPRETATION IS DICTATED BY THE PRINCIPLE ACCORDING TO WHICH THE PROVISIONS ESTABLISHING THE FREE MOVEMENT OF WORKERS, WHICH CONSTITUTE ONE OF THE FOUNDATIONS OF THE COMMUNITY, MUST BE CONSTRUED BROADLY ( SEE, MOST RECENTLY, THE JUDGMENT OF 3 JUNE 1986 IN CASE 133/75 KEMPF (( 1986 )) ECR 1741 AT P . 1746 ). MOREOVER, IT CORRESPONDS TO THE WORDING OF THE PROVISION IN QUESTION, WHOSE GERMAN LANGUAGE VERSION (" UNTERHALT GEWAEHREN ") AND GREEK LANGUAGE VERSION ("**' **** ***********") ARE PARTICULARLY CLEAR IN THAT RESPECT .
26 IT MUST BE POINTED OUT THAT THE RIGHT TO EQUAL TREATMENT WITH REGARD TO SOCIAL AND TAX ADVANTAGES APPLIES ONLY TO WORKERS . THOSE WHO MOVE IN SEARCH OF EMPLOYMENT QUALIFY FOR EQUAL TREATMENT ONLY AS REGARDS ACCESS TO EMPLOYMENT IN ACCORDANCE WITH ARTICLE 48 OF THE EEC TREATY AND ARTICLES 2 AND 5 OF REGULATION NO 1612/68 .