European Union battles social benefit hunters
Decide for yourselves
The EU is restricting so-called social tourism - attempts by natives of poorer union countries to live off benefits paid out in Western European countries. This week, the European Court of Justice ruled that the parliaments of EU countries have the right to independently determine the size and structure of state social benefits, including those paid to non-residents. The court's decision stated that the verdict will allow combating the exploitation of social assistance systems by those Europeans who prefer not to work but to live on benefits.
According to the judicial ruling, this will not contradict the principle of freedom of movement in the EU, reports the Financial Times. The court ruling emphasizes that the decision applies to 'economically inactive' migrants who move to other countries solely for social assistance, not in search of work. The verdict concerns only those types of benefits that any citizen can receive, regardless of whether they have ever made contributions to the social insurance system of the host country.
No skills, education, or knowledge of German
The reason for the precedent-setting decision was the case of Romanian citizen Elisabeta Dano and her son, whom German authorities denied monthly payments of the Hartz IV benefit - for low-income individuals not entitled to regular unemployment benefits.
The current Hartz IV amount is 391 euros. Dano was denied unemployed status and the corresponding benefit because she 'is not actively seeking work,' has no confirmed professional skills, secondary or higher education, and does not speak German.
The right of Union citizens and their family members to move and reside freely within the territory of member states is regulated by Directive 2004/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004. EU citizens automatically obtain resident status throughout the Union for three months, but they are not entitled to social benefits during this period.
'If the period exceeds three months, an EU citizen has the right to reside in the territory of another member state if they have sufficient resources not to become a burden on the social assistance system of the host member state during their stay, as well as full health insurance in the host member state. In this case, the residence of the Romanian citizen in Germany contradicted this provision,' explained Vsevolod Sazonov, Doctor of Law, Chairman of the Bar Association 'Sazonov and Partners,' to Gazeta.Ru. To obtain insurance, Dano needed to demonstrate at least some financial 'safety cushion' and prospects for finding a job.
German authorities had long planned a series of measures against abuses in the social policy sphere, and the court decision essentially removes the remaining questions on this topic. Now EU citizens will be obliged to leave German territory if within six months of entering Germany they have not found work and cannot support themselves from other means.
Britain expels idlers
Getting rid of expenses for able-bodied citizens living on benefits was proposed, in particular, by Denmark, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. Prime Minister of the latter, David Cameron, previously repeatedly spoke about the need to curb 'benefit tourism' by non-residents from less affluent Eastern European countries, as they were abusing the opportunities of the British social sphere and taking too many jobs in Britain.
In addition, he expressed concerns about the possibility of receiving two insurances in two different countries. However, Cameron also wanted to reconsider the conditions of the EU's existence and insisted on changing national laws on social policy, which is now unlikely, since each state is granted the right to independently decide whether to deprive migrants of benefits.
Support for this initiative also came from Catherine Bearder, a Member of the European Parliament from the Liberal Democratic Party of the United Kingdom. 'Liberal Democrats are clear that the freedom to live, work, and study on the continent should not mean the freedom to demand. To prevent benefit tourism and abuse of the system, certain safeguards must be put in place,' The Guardian quotes her as saying.
Taxes and benefits
Not everyone is united in the fight against dependents. For example, EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion László Andor considers the problem of 'benefit tourism' a myth, while political journalist Norbert Mappes-Niediek writes in his column that restricting freedom of movement 'could be dynamite placed under the foundations of European society.'
This opinion is also supported by scientists from the German Institute for Employment Research, who consider fears of mass migration of the needy unfounded. According to their calculations, tax contributions from EU migrants in 2001–2011 consistently exceeded spending on their benefits.
Highly skilled migrants from the European Union brought £20 billion to the British economy over 10 years, writes The Independent citing a new study by University College London (UCL). It notes that such EU citizens paid the United Kingdom 64% more in taxes than they received back in benefits. Meanwhile, since 2000, the likelihood of receiving state benefits and tax credits for migrants who came to the United Kingdom is 43% lower than for those born in Britain.
In Germany, migrants from Bulgaria and Romania are offsetting losses through pension contributions. They gained the right to free movement within the EU at the beginning of 2014, and by September the statistical office recorded an increase of 32,000 migrants from Bulgaria compared to the previous year (175,000 Bulgarians entered Germany in total over 9 months), while 82,000 more Romanian citizens arrived (338,000 in total). Currently, 4.2 million non-residents of the country receive social benefits in Germany.
However, only a small part of the entire EU population enjoys free movement – about 0.3%. Official statistics do not know how many of them are exactly 'social tourists'.
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Ideliya AYZYATULOVA.
"Gazeta.ru"