The role and limits of European social security coordination in guaranteeing migrants social benefits

This article examines whether the EU social security coordination Regulations 883/2004 and 987/2009 contribute or fail to contribute to the EU policy objective of guaranteeing adequate social protection and fighting against poverty as set by Article 9 TFEU. Even if this coordination system does not directly interfere with the social protection systems of the Member States, it plays an important role in preventing persons who use the right to free movement within the EU from ending up in a situation in which they would lose entitlement to social benefits because of their migration. In analysing this issue I will concentrate on the role of the underlying general principles of this coordination, more specifically, on the rules for the determination of the applicable legislation, the principle of equal treatment, the export of benefits and the aggregation of periods. I will also elaborate on a number of examples where this coordination system fails to prevent the loss of entitlement to social benefits, such as the position of workers in non-standard forms of work, the limited rights of economically inactive migrants, the recent introduction of waiting periods for newcomers, and situations in which the migrants risk falling between two stools. I will conclude with the notion of fairness.