Freedom of Movement in EU - Essay Example

Signed in 1992, the Maastricht Treaty provides that European citizenship confers on every European citizen a fundamental and personal right to move and reside freely without reference to an economic activity. The Treaty also provides for additional active and passive voting rights in European and local elections. Diplomatic and consular protection is also enhanced by giving the right to EU citizens to ask for the help of any Member State represented in a third Country if his/her own Member State is not represented there.

Treaty of Amsterdam enforced on May 1999, extended the citizens rights and obligations by introducing a clause allowing EU institutions to take measures against discrimination on the grounds of sex, racial or ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation. It reinforced the free movement of people by integrating the Schengen Convention into the Treaty. This also affirmed the commitment of each Member State to raise the quality and free access to education at national level to the highest level of knowledge possible with, in particular, the view to tackling unemployment.

In 2001, the Treaty of Nice was sign facilitating legislation related to free movement and residence by introducing qualified majority for the decision-making in the European Council. The legal basis for the Freedom of movement for persons in the European Union is:Article 14 (7a) ECT: establishing the internal market, which includes the free movement of persons.Article 18 (8a) ECT: Union citizens have the right to move and reside freely within the territory of the Member States.Article 61 (73i) et seq: new Title IV, 'Visas, asylum, immigration and other policies related to free movement of persons'.

The objectives for the Freedom of movement for persons and the abolition of controls at internal frontiers form part of the internal market in which it is not possible for internal frontiers to exist or for individuals to be hampered in their movements.Since its inception, the concept of the free movement of persons has changed in meaning so that while the first provisions on the subject referred merely to the free movement individuals considered as economic agents, either as employees or providers of services, it has gradually widened to take on a more general meaning connected with the idea of Union citizenship, independent of any economic activity or distinctions of nationality.

This currently applies to nationals of third countries as abolition of control at internal borders allows people movements that could no longer be checked for nationality. The freedom of movement applies to goods, persons, services and capital, the so-called "four freedoms" but specifically under