EU rules on coordination of social security systems
Coordination amongst EU countries ensures that EU citizens can transfer their social security rights when moving and working within Europe.
Priorities and principles
The rules on social security coordination look to ensure that citizens shall not be disadvantaged by the fact of working or living in another member state.
The EU rules on social security coordination apply to:
- sickness, maternity and equivalent paternity benefits
- old-age pensions, pre-retirement and invalidity benefits
- survivors’ benefits and death grants
- unemployment benefits
- family benefits
- benefits in respect of accidents at work and occupational diseases
The EU has rules to coordinate the interaction between national social security systems. All countries are free to decide who is subject to compulsory insurance under their legislation, which benefits are granted and under what conditions.
Social security coordination rules prevent a person from being left without protection, or having double coverage in a cross-border situation.
The main priorities include:
- contributes to social fairness and a deeper and fairer internal market
- clear, fair and enforceable rules are essential to facilitate labour mobility
- facilitates the free movement of workers as one of the key pillars of the internal market, while reinforcing the tools for national authorities to fight abuse or fraud
EU social security rules are based on four principles:
- one country only: citizens are covered by the legislation of one country at a time so they only pay contributions in one country
- equal treatment: citizens have the same rights and obligations as the nationals of the country where they are covered
- aggregation: when citizens claim a benefit, their previous periods of insurance, work or residence in other countries are taken into account if necessary
- exportability: citizens entitled to a cash benefit from one country, may generally receive it even if they are living in a different country
Main adjustments proposed
The current EU's social security coordination rules have been in force since 1 May 2010. However, the labour market and society are constantly evolving, as are national social security systems and the case-law of the court.
Therefore, targeted adjustments are needed to ensure that the rules are fair, simpler to apply and easier to enforce.
With a view to modernising and simplifying existing rules, as well as to guarantee a fair burden sharing of social security costs between member states, the European Commission presented a proposal to revise the coordination rules in December 2016.
The main objective of the review is to continue the modernisation of the EU social security coordination rules by:
- further facilitating the exercise of citizens' rights
- ensuring legal clarity
- ensuring a fair and equitable distribution of the financial burden
- promoting administrative simplicity and enforceability of the rules
The regulation focuses on several important areas in which the following rules would be introduced:
Unemployment benefits
EU citizens would be able to export their unemployment benefits to countries other than their country of residence for a minimum of 6 months.
A specific rule is introduced for frontier workers who will be able to export their unemployment benefits for up to 15 months, unless the period of entitlement is shorter.
The competent state in the area of social security for this category of workers will become the state of professional activity after 6 months of employment, self-employment or insurance.
Applicable legislation for sent workers
Employed and self-employed workers would be subject to 3 months of prior affiliation to the social security system of their member state of origin, before they can be sent to work in another member state.
The maximum duration of affiliation to the sending member state's social security system is kept at 24 months. A minimum of 2 months of interruption period is foreseen for both employed and self-employed persons between any two periods of 24 months.
Family benefits
The proposal codifies the Wiering judgement (C-347/12) and thus clarifies the difference between family benefits in cash, primarily intended to replace income not earned due to child-raising, and all other family benefits.
Access by economically inactive mobile citizens to certain social benefits
In order to ensure more legal clarity, the proposal contains a list of relevant Court of Justice case-law and provides that in line with the national laws or practices, mobile citizens should not be prevented from contributing to sickness coverage schemes.
Long-term care benefits
The regulation would introduce a definition of long-term care benefits and further clarifies in the sickness chapter the elements of the relevant process.
Revision of current rules
On 22 April 2026, the Council reached a provisional agreement with the European Parliament on updated rules on the coordination of national social security systems. The revision aims to modernise the rules, making them clearer, fairer and simpler to enforce.
Member-state ambassadors to the EU endorsed the provisional agreement on 29 April 2026.
The provisional agreement still needs to be endorsed by the European Parliament. It will then formally be adopted by both institutions following legal-linguistic revision.
- Council and Parliament strike provisional deal on social security coordination (press release, 22 April 2026)
- Social security coordination: EU member states’ representatives confirm provisional agreement (29 April 2026, press release)
Previous negotiations
The proposed legal basis for the revision is Article 48 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which requires that the European Parliament and the Council act in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure.
The Council coordinates member states' views on the new proposal. The Council started examining the proposal in January 2017 and ministers held debates on several occasions on the proposal.
The Council reached two partial negotiating positions ('general approach') in October and December 2017 on the following chapters of the proposal:
- access by economically inactive mobile citizens to certain social benefits
- applicable legislation for posted and sent workers and persons working in two or more member states
- long-term care benefits
- family benefits
On 21 June 2018, the Council agreed its complete negotiating position. On the basis of this mandate, the Council presidency started negotiations with the European Parliament once the latter has adopted its position.
- Coordination of social security systems: Council agrees general approach (press release, 21/06/2018)
- The ordinary legislative procedure (background information)
Background
For many years, the EU has had a framework for the coordination of member states' social security systems in order to facilitate labour mobility. The coordination of social security systems within the EU aims at ensuring that each EU citizen and third country national residing in the EU has fair access to social security regardless, of the country in which the citizen lives.
Since then, EU social security coordination law has evolved in line with the deepening of European integration, as well as following the EU's enlargement.
Currently, coordination rules are set out in regulation (EC) 883/2004 and its implementing regulation (EC) 987/2009.
This draft legislation amends regulations 883/2004 and 987/2009 on coordination of social security systems. The revision aims to:
- clarify the circumstances in which member states can limit access to social benefits claimed by economically inactive EU mobile citizens
- establish a coherent regime for the coordination of long-term care benefits
- propose new arrangements for the coordination of unemployment benefits in cross-border cases
- introduce new provisions for the coordination of family benefits
- clarify rules on posted workers
Related documents and publications
Last review: 29 April 2026
Social security rights across borders
The EU wants to make it easier for EU citizens to move through Europe and work in another EU country, and also aims to protect their social security rights while they do so.
Moving and working in another EU country is a fundamental right of all EU citizens, and a cornerstone of the single market. But, free movement would not be possible without EU rules on social security coordination.
EU rules on coordination on social security rights do not replace national systems with a single European one, instead they seek to coordinate them. Social security systems are the member states' exclusive responsibility and are not harmonised in the EU.
Where do social security coordination rules apply?
These rules ensure social security protection when moving and working within Europe (EU27, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland).
EU citizens are entitled to:
EU social security rights coordination with the United Kingdom
Following the departure of the United Kingdom from the EU, there are specific coordination rules in place since 1 January 2021. The rights of persons covered by the withdrawal agreement concluded between the EU and the United Kingdom continue to be protected.
For persons not covered by the withdrawal agreement, social security coordination between the EU and the United Kingdom is regulated by the relevant protocol to the trade and cooperation agreement. While similar to EU rules and comprehensive in scope, the protocol does not provide for an identical level of protection as the EU regulations.