Pushing out the Poor: Unstable Income and Termination of Residence

Access of non-EU nationals to the labour market of EU Member States is based on selection matching skills needs. EU nationals have a right under EU law to reside in other EU Member States on condition that they either are student or economically active, or do have ‘sufficient resources’. This chapter examines whether the differences in framework are also visible on the ground. It looks at the changing practice of monitoring ‘sufficient resources’. During the economic crisis, several Member States increased the threshold for ‘sufficient resources’ and introduced stricter enforcement of the financial conditions. At the same time, the percentage of flexible and temporary labour contracts on the labour market increased, making it harder to fulfil these financial conditions. This chapter analyses how the combination of stricter rules, economic crisis, and flexible contracts may impact on termination of residence of, presumably, less wealthy EU citizens. It argues that the distinction made at EU level between intra-EU mobility and labour migration from outside the EU is not an appropriate starting point to look at the complexities of movement of workers in and to the EU.