The idea of European integrations is old and dates back to 20th century when European politicians were thinking of an efficient cooperation within European countries. The breakthrough came along with the “Schuman plan” that was presented on May 9 1950 by Robert Schuman and afterwards supported by Konrad Adenauer. The idea was developed by Jean Monnet, a French politician. But he wasn´t the only one with the thought of united Europe. Important politicians from other European countries like de Gasperi, Spinelli, Spaak, Bech etc., as an aftermath of disasters caused by WWII, wanted a strong unified Europe. We call them “founding fathers”.
Nowadays, European Union unites 28 states. One of the unique features of the EU is a Single Market which is represented by 4 freedoms. These are:
1. Free movement of goods
2. Free movement of services
3. Free movement of capital
4. Free movement of persons
What are the benefits, where am I [https://www.where-am-i.me/] as the EU citizen in these freedoms? What are the main objectives of each freedom?
Free movement of goods
In general, free movement of goods is valid for industrial, agricultural and fishing products / of course, there are some exceptions like for example military goods). The basis of this freedom is the customs union which means the abolition of tariffs and quantitative restrictions on the import of goods between member states and, in addition, a setting of a common customs policy towards third countries.
The objectives mainly are:
• The abolition of customs duties and quantitative restrictions on trade
• The prohibition of measures having equivalent effect
• Reinforcement of the principle of mutual recognition
• The elimination of physical and technical barriers
• Promoting standardization and harmonization
Within the freedom, the EU follows 2 principles:
1. principle of mutual property recognition = "principle of cassis de Dijon"
2. principle of harmonization of technical standards
Free movement of services
At first, we have to explain what services are. Definition of services can be found in the Treaty of the EU (Article 57). Thanks to it, under the term services we understand all acts provided for remuneration, given that they don´t fall under free movement of goods, capital and persons. Here, it is important to mention that EU member states have service and information-oriented economies. In 2017, services represented 65% of GDP and 70% of jobs in the EU. The free movement of services concerns the self-employed, the liberal professions or legal persons and also their husbands / wives and children.
The main objectives are:
• To achieve implementation of the Services Directive, thereby completing the single market for services.
• Increase trade in commercial services by 45% and foreign direct investment by 25%, which could lead to an increase in GDP of between 0.5% and 1.5% (according to the Commission)
• Guarantee the quality of services provided to citizens (in parallel with the guarantee of the quality of goods)
Free movement of capital
Free movement of the capital is the most recent freedom. It exists since the creation of the EU which was on January 1 1993.
Basic principle regarding the Article 63 of the Treaty is that all restrictions on the movement of capital and payments between the Member States themselves, and between the Member States and third countries, are prohibited. The free movement of capital doesn´t only concern Member States, but also third countries. This freedom is a condition for the creation of economic and monetary union.
The main objectives are:
• To contribute to economic growth through optimal allocation of capital
• To help establish the role of the EU as a global player
Free movement of persons
The most controversial and complicated freedom to agree on is undoubtedly free movement of persons. The reason why is the political importance of the national labour market.
The free movement of people concerns workers and entrepreneurs and their families, and also companies, therefore the labour market, but does not concern tourists or students.
Target groups are:
• EU citizens who move to another EU country to find employment
• EU citizens working in another EU country
• EU citizens returning to live in their country of origin after working abroad
• The family members of these people
Also applies to legal persons (companies) thanks to which there is a freedom to transfer parts of the company or to create subsidiaries in another EU country and to transfer the company's headquarters to another EU country.