Putting an end to cross-border social security fraud and abuse

Cross-border social security fraud and abuse are certainly not new phenomena. What is clear, however, is that these problems have been dealt with in a politically negligent manner for many years. This is probably because everyone agreed that the problem was too complex to solve and that it touches on two core principles of the European Union about which criticism is effectively not allowed. Cross-border coordination of social security is based on the fundamental principle of ‘mutual trust’ between the Member States, which means that we assume that Member States do not cheat each other and do not bend the rules to give themselves an unfair advantage. This fundamental principle of mutual trust between Member States has also been repeatedly confirmed by the European Court of Justice. In addition, the rules of cross-border coordination are based on the principle of the ‘state of residence’, also called the state of origin. For example, the state of residence determines the employment relationship between employer and employee (or the latter’s self-employed status), who pays the social security contributions (employer or employee), the percentage of the social security contribution, and the method of calculation, and unilaterally issues official documents (the by now well-known A1 certificate). As a host Member State, you cannot change much about this. In fact, as a host state you are not allowed to question the rules and practices of a state of residence since there is mutual trust between Member States.