Rhiannon Morgan v Bezirksregierung Köln (C-11/06) and Iris Bucher v Landrat des Kreises Düren (C-12/06).
Date: 2007-10-23
22. It should be noted that, as German nationals, Ms Morgan and Ms Bucher enjoy the status of citizens of the Union under Article 17(1) EC and may therefore rely on the rights conferred on those having that status, including against their Member State of origin (see Case C‑192/05 Tas-Hagen and Tas  [2006] ECR I‑10451, paragraph 19).
23. The situations falling within the scope of Community law include those involving the exercise of the fundamental freedoms guaranteed by the EC Treaty, in particular those involving the freedom to move and reside within the territory of the Member States, as conferred by Article 18 EC (Case C-76/05 Schwarz and Gootjes‑Schwarz [2007] ECR I‑0000, paragraph 87, and the case‑law cited). In the main proceedings, the assistance at issue relates specifically to studies pursued in another Member State.
24. In this respect, it should first of all be pointed out that, although, as the German, Netherlands, Austri an, Swedish and United Kingdom Governments as well as the Commission have observed, the Member States are competent, under Article 149(1) EC, as regards the content of teaching and the organisation of their respective education systems, it is none the less the case that that competence must be exercised in compliance with Community law (see, to that effect, Case C‑308/89 di Leo  [1990] ECR I‑4185, paragraphs 14 and 15; Case C‑337/97 Meeusen  [1999] ECR I‑3289, paragraph 25; Case C‑147/03 Commission v Austria  [2005] ECR I‑5969, paragraphs 31 to 35, and Schwarz and Gootjes-Schwarz , paragraph 70) and, in particular, in compliance with the Treaty provisions on the freedom to move and reside within the territory of the Member States, as conferred by Article 18(1) EC (see, to that effect, Schwarz and Gootjes-Schwarz , paragraph 99).
25. Next, it should be recalled that national legislation which places certain nationals of the Member State concerned at a disadvantage simply because they have exercised their freedom to move and to reside in another Member State constitutes a restriction on the freedoms conferred by Article 18(1) EC on every citizen of the Union (see Case C‑406/04 De Cuyper  [2006] ECR I‑6947, paragraph 39; Tas Hagen and Tas , paragraph 31; and Schwarz and Gootjes-Schwarz , paragraph 93).
26. Indeed, the opportunities offered by the Treaty in relation to freedom of movement for citizens of the Union cannot be fully effective if a national of a Member State can be deterred from availing himself of them by obstacles placed in the way of his stay in another Member State by legislation of his State of origin penalising the mere fact that he has used those opportunities (see, to that effect, Case C‑224/98 D’Hoop  [2002] ECR I‑6191, paragraph 31; Case C‑224/02 Pusa  [2004] ECR I‑5763, paragraph 19; and Schwarz and Gootjes‑Schwarz , paragraph 89).
27. That consideration is particularly important in the field of education in view of the aims pursued by Article 3(1)(q) EC and the second indent of Article 149(2) EC, namely, inter alia, encouraging mobility of students and teachers (see D’Hoop , paragraph 32, and Commission v Austria , paragraph 44).
28. Consequently, where a Member State provides for a system of education or training grants which enables students to receive such grants if they pursue studies in another Member State, it must ensure that the detailed rules for the award of those grants do not create an unjustified restriction of the right to move and reside within the territory of the Member States (see, by analogy, as regards Article 39 EC, Case C‑109/04 Kranemann  [2005] ECR I‑2421, paragraph 27).
32. Contrary to what the German Government in effect contends, the restrictive effects created by the first-stage studies condition cannot be regarded as too uncertain or too insignificant, in particular for those whose financial resources are limited, to constitute a restriction on the freedom to move and reside within the territory of the Member States, as conferred by Article 18(1) EC.
33. Such a restriction can be justified in the light of Community law only if it is based on objective considerations of public interest independent of the nationality of the persons concerned and if it is proportionate to the legitimate objective pursued by the provisions of national law (see De Cuyper , paragraph 40; Tas-Hagen and Tas , paragraph 33; and Schwarz and Gootjes‑Schwarz , paragraph 94). It follows from the case-law of the Court that a measure is proportionate if, while appropriate for securing the attainment of the objective pursued, it does not go beyond what is necessary in order to attain that objective ( De Cuyper , paragraph 42).
36. There is no doubt that the objective of ensuring that students complete their courses in a short period of time, thus contributing in particular to the financial equilibrium of the education system of the Member State concerned, may constitute a legitimate aim in the context of the organisation of such a system. However, there is nothing before the Court to support the conclusion that the first‑stage studies condition is or could be appropriate, in itself, to ensure that the students concerned complete their courses. In addition, the imposition of that condition in the disputes before the referring court, to the extent that it may, in practice, bring about an increase in the overall duration of studies for which the assistance at issue in the main proceedings is awarded, appears to be inconsistent with that objective and, therefore, inappropriate for achieving it. Such a condition cannot therefore be regarded as proportionate to the objective pursued.
43. It is true that the Court has recognised that it may be legitimate for a Member State, in order to ensure that the grant of assistance to cover the maintenance costs of students from other Member States does not become an unreasonable burden which could have consequences for the overall level of assistance which may be granted by that State, to grant such assistance only to students who have demonstrated a certain degree of integration into the society of that State (Case C‑209/03 Bidar  [2005] ECR I‑2119, paragraphs 56 and 57).
44. In principle, if a risk of such an unreasonable burden exists, similar considerations may apply as regards the award by a Member State of education or training grants to students wishing to study in other Member States.
46. In those circumstances, it is apparent that the first-stage studies condition, in accordance with which higher education studies of at least one year must have been undertaken beforehand in the Member State of origin, is too general and exclusive in this respect. It unduly favours an element which is not necessarily representative of the degree of integration into the society of that Member State at the time the application for assistance is made. It thus goes beyond what is necessary to attain the objective pursued and cannot therefore be regarded as proportionate (see, by analogy, D’Hoop , paragraph 39).