82 posts
Ukraine-Moldova race to EU visa-free regime
This will probably make boring reading, but for those with some stamina to go through typically unreadable, but important, EU-speak here is a comparison of how Ukraine and Moldova perform on their way towards a visa-free regime with the EU. The asses...
More Europe Manifesto for free travel
As I mentioned yesterday, a group of Spanish eurobloggers has launched an appeal for More Europe, in order to overcome the impending catastrophe in the eurozone and the wider European Union. You can join the appeal on the More Europe blog and you ca...
Schengen Wars: Bulgaria and Romania are victims of populism
Image Source: Bogartier Bulgaria and Romania, two of the latest members of the European family, have been denied accession to the Schengen Area despite the fact that they satisfy all the necessary criteria. The denial comes from the side of two...
How to lose support for EU free movement and alienate people
The European Commission just made it a lot more difficult to defend free movement in Europe. Free movement and open borders (two separate but related EU issues) are very difficult things to sell to the public, witness the Bombardier row (which had co...
Very Good Proposal on Schengen
The Commission has put forward a proposal for improving the institutional framework of the Schengen area. First, the Commission proposes a strengthening of the Schengen evaluation mechanism. Announced and unannounced monitoring visits to a given Memb...
Ever-more distant union
The European Commission rules that Spain can keep out Romanian workers...
Free movement: the third European crisis?
Fellow Brussels Blogger Peter Spiegel gives a comprehensive account in today’s paper of how European integration is not just slowing down, it appears to be unravelling. His argument is that the two most visible achievements of the European Union
Driving more nails into the Schengen coffin
It’s not France and Italy this time, but Denmark, driving more nails into the coffin of Schengen, Europe’s border free system, at least in spirit. Danish Finance Minister Claus Hjort Frederiksen, as reported by BBC, said: We have reached...
The elusive European public
The Schengen Agreement guaranteeing freedom of movement is at risk of being watered down. Any such move would be a lot more controversial if the EU ever found its constituency. From my perch here in Ireland it is interesting to watch anger at the Eu...
Concrete benefits to EU citizens on the move
After the general press release available in 22 EU languages and mentioned in the previous blog post, we turn to how the European Commission presented its reform package for citizens' rights in more detail (only in English): European Commission adopt...
Improving cross-border rights for EU citizens
A month ago, Michel Barnier and Viviane Reding chose to join forces to launch reforms in order to improve the internal market and citizens' rights. The joint press release from the European Commission offers an overview (and it is available in 22 EU...
Freedom of movement and of residence in EU Charter & sundry notes
The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union does not bring the citizens of the EU new rights, but it is a handy compilation of freedoms and rights from a number of sources. More specifically the rights based on EU citizenship are summaris...
EU citizenship: Rapid reaction to Lamassoure’s report?
What happened to Alain Lamassoure’s report The citizen and the application of community law during the French presidency of the Council of the European Union during the latter half of 2008? Perhaps it was not entirely fair to start looking for conc...
Towards a citizens’ EU? Lamassoure report and French presidency
The free movement of persons is a fine principle, but in his 2008 report Alain Lamassoure MEP described the problems mobile EU citizens faced in real life with regard to cross-border healthcare, social security, the recognition of diplomas and profes...
EU citizens and European law – Introduction by Alain Lamassoure MEP
One of the better moves of the French president Nicolas Sarkozy ahead of France’s presidency of the Council of the European Union was to ask Alain Lamassoure MEP to make some practical proposals for improving the effective application of Community...
France gets off scot-free for its Roma deportations as Commission drops legal threat
It appears as if France has got off scot-free (at least for the time being) with its deportations of its Roma population during the summer. Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding, who led the verbal counter-attack, has today indicated that the Commissio...
France Will Eventually Comply with EU Law on the Free Movement of People
In what should sound as a happy end to a very unpleasant episode of EU history, France has agreed to insert certain provisions of Directive 2004/38/EC into national law texts. That is a welcome development, but I remain quite interested … Conti...
Standing on the threshold of Europe – Participative Video in Paris and Warsaw
Standing on the threshold of Europe is a transnational project that promotes understanding and combating exclusion against migrants and populations identified as migrants in the countries No related posts.
France ain’t close to Schengen
Well, once more I have to say: Hooray for Schengen! I love visiting a friend in Madrid, seeing Paris for a Weekend, and going to Lublin for a wedding. Thanks to anyone who has been fighting for the freedom of movement in the EU. I really mean this. B...
Where shall I go on my holidays?
Or more to the point, where shall I go to work?The EU's pollster Eurobarometer has produced a new survey on the Freedom of Movement (otherwise known as uncontrollable borders).If you look at Page 32 we have a graph titledQ 13 In which country(ies) wo...
The London plan
I loose track who I’ve told and who has just heard earlier stages of the plan… so here’s an explanation about my imminent move to London. Essentially for the last 6 months I have been wondering whether to move. After 3 years ba...
Two Individual Lectures in EU Law
I finally have put up links to the videos of my two recent lectures in EU Law. The first one was held on 19 April 2010, and was about Free Movement of Persons: http://media.tlu.ee/archive/index.php/Streamed2010/RIO7007/RIO7007-19apr10 The second one...
Freedom to travel: Schengen long-stay visas
Third-country nationals legally residing in the Schengen area on the basis of a long-stay visa have been unable to travel to other member states during their stay or to transit through the territories of other (EU) member states when returning to the...
Better Protection for Temporary Workers
Regulations for temporary and agency workers emanating from the European Union were laid before the British Parliament last week. This is an important piece of legislation which protects some of the most vulnerable members of our workforce. Because o...
The Blockade of the Greek Border Crossings Breaches EU Law
The blockade of the Bulgarian – Greek border crossings by Greek farmers is in stark violation of EU law. The blockade infringes the right of European citizens to move freely within the territory of the Member states (art. 21 TFEU) and hinders the f...
Free, to travel, at last
BELGRADE — After nearly 18 years, the citizens of Serbia, Macedonia, and Montenegro are free to travel to European Union Schengen area countries without visas. A decision by the Council of Ministers of the European Union on November 30 opened t...
Mavi Boncuk: EU and “ahde vefa” [pacta sunt servanda]
EU and “ahde vefa” The recommendation adopted by the European Commission on July 15 2009 allows the citizens of Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia with biometric passports to enter the Schengen area visa-free from January 2010 Mavi Boncuk &...
BNP Mayor calls for deportation of Irish/EU nationals who fail to secure employment in UK.
A BNP Mayor has called for the deportation of Irish/EU nationals who fail to secure employment in Britain, and called for a review of social welfare payments to non-British nationals, given the current economic crisis. The mayor insisted that he...
Free movement of trains in the EU
Train travel is my most favourite after biking. Obviously, the two means of transportation are different in nature and present their own pros and cons according to distance, speed, energy consumption, safety, etc. I do not mean to talk about these he...
Caselaw on Free Movement of Goods
The EC Commission has published a magnificent compendium of the case law of the Court of Justice on the free movement of goods. You can download it in pdf here. Of course, it is very descriptive and contains little or...
Free movement of Persons, Directive 2004/38 and Guidelines on Transposition
The Commission adopted guidelines to help ensure better transposition and application of Directive 2004/38/EC on the right of EU citizens and their families to move and reside freely. We noted a while back we noted the Commission's report on the...
EU free movement: Tax exemptions for personal property
Here is information for those who move to another EU member state. A new codified Directive has been published on tax exemptions for personal property: Council Directive 2009/55/EC of 25 May 2009 on tax exemptions applicable to the permanent introdu...
Should the "new" finally be allowed to work in the whole EU?
May 1 is approaching. This is not only the 5th anniversary of Poland and other countries in the EU. It is also the deadline for "old" EU members to lift work restrictions for "new" EU citizens. Well, almost.After May 1 only th...
BBC’s free movement of EU labour map
The question of intra-EU free movement of persons is important for millions of EU citizens, especially those from the new member states. The BBC offers a first aid kit for those who need information on existing restrictions. The public service broadc...
EU customs: Economic Operators Registration and Identification number (EORI)
This eliminates one strip of red tape for importers of goods into the European Union: A lower level implementing Commission Regulation has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) 17.4.2009 L 98/3, and it is set to enter in...
Blame abuse of EU law for ‘British jobs’ dispute - not exploited continental workers
As workers at the Lindsey Oil Refinery continue to brave the freezing conditions, the debate over foreign workers and ‘British [...]...
Immobility
The dispute about Italian and Portuguese workers having jobs at a power station in Lincolnshire highlights the issue of labour mobility within the EU. One of the fundamental principles of the EU is that of the free movement of workers. The single m...
UK keep ban on Bulgarian and Romanian workers
From the Sofia News Agency The UK cabinet has accepted the recommendation of the Migration...
Statewatch alert: EU Council curbing free movement?
A press release by Statewatch sounds the alarm concerning the very principles the European Community (European Union) is built on. Rolling back free movement of persons endangers a fundamental principle and trying to forestall more open legislative p...
Switzerland joins Schengen area
According to a href="http://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/international/Schengen-Schweiz-Reisen;art123,2671233"German news sources/a, EU ministers of the interior have decided that Switzerland will be the next country to join the Schengen area.br /br /...
