EEA: Self-sufficiency and no CSI mixed with self-employment

[Helen88]

Hi everyone,
it would be great if I got some help on this. My situation: I arrived here almost 6 years ago as student for a few months, then lived self-sufficient for 2 years. I took up freelancing but had no income last tax year. So I paid NI in 2013, 2014 and will pay in 2016. Now I'm surprised about this CSI regulation that came into effect in July 2011 and so didn't exist when I arrived and now governmental body or the NHS issued anything on it. This catches me by surprise. On the NHS site it confirms EEA citizens can use their services no matter if they paid NI, taxes or not. The Home Office says this might be but it would be against EU treaty with UK. I know that the EU has launched infringement proceedings in April 2012 but I couldn't find anything on the outcome. I read also that the Home Office seem even to reject people who were self-sufficient before 2011 without CSI. I thought I'd be fine to apply for a permanent residence card and subsequently citizenship. Now it seems that I don't qualify.
First question, it seems those 5 years have to be continuous? That would mean I start from scratch as if I had just arrived in April this year when I took up a job again this tax year.
Is the registration certificate helpful at all (it just asks what you do now)?
Is there any chance to go against this CSI decision? I found one case dating back to end of 2011 where the claimant won but there were other cases.... so I suppose the US law practice of the precedent case does not apply?
Thanks for helping me out here.
Helen (German citizen)

[noajthan]

Access to NHS is nothing to do with fulfilling requirements under EU law to acquire PR.

CSI has been required as its part of EU law since (at least) 2006.
UK started enforcing the requirement for students in 2011.
Its always been enforced and required for self sufficient qualified persons.

An alternative to CSI may get you off the hook and save your bacon...
Do you have a foreign EHIC?
Are you covered by a parent's foreign health policy that extends to you in UK?
Is it possible you had a Union citizen sponsor (parent) who was exercising treaty rights in UK at same time as you were in UK?

Otherwise your PR clock for UK starts when you start exercising treaty rights in UK.

To be considered as a worker the work has to be shown to be genuine and effective (so patchy work from earlier years may not pass muster even before HO steps in and applies its PET/MET tests on top of EU law).

And yes, exercise of treaty rights has to be continuous (in one or more qualifying category of qualified person).

[Helen88]

Hi there,

thanks for the quick answer. Do you happen to know what the status of the infringement proceedings by the EU concerning the CSI matter is?

And could you please explain your phrase a little more:
To be considered as a worker the work has to be shown to be genuine and effective (so patchy work from earlier years may not pass muster even before HO steps in and applies its PET/MET tests on top of EU law).
PET/MET? What is it?

Thanks once again.

[secret.simon]

I'm surprised about this CSI regulation that came into effect in July 2011

Firstly, the CSI requirement has been there since the original 2006 Regulations and is even mentioned in the original EU Directive 2004/38/EC.

I know that the EU has launched infringement proceedings in April 2012 but I couldn't find anything on the outcome.

Do you happen to know what the status of the infringement proceedings by the EU concerning the CSI matter is?

The infringement proceedings seems to have ended at the stage of the EU Commission issuing a reasoned opinion in 2012.

There is a handy tool on the EU Commission website to search for the status of all infringement proceedings that they launch.

As an aside, the UK is almost at par with that most Europhile country, Belgium, and considerably better than Greece (EL) and Italy, when it comes to handling EU Commission initiated proceedings on infringements of EU law.

To research more, the Infringement Number is 20112054. Press releases on the EC Commission's website here and here.

The AIRE Centre has been arguing this issue with both the EU Commission and in cases in the UK courts. There is a document dated 2012 summarising their arguments. You may wish to contact them to discuss this point further. Keep us posted on these forums in case of updates.

[noajthan]

Hi there,

thanks for the quick answer. Do you happen to know what the status of the infringement proceedings by the EU concerning the CSI matter is?

And could you please explain your phrase a little more:
To be considered as a worker the work has to be shown to be genuine and effective (so patchy work from earlier years may not pass muster even before HO steps in and applies its PET/MET tests on top of EU law).
PET/MET? What is it?

Thanks once again.

Dig into qualified persons and genuine work here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/s ... _clean.pdf
- see for eg page 11+

PET: https://www.freemovement.org.uk/using-m ... ne-worker/