The Rules within Regulation 883/2004 for Determining the Applicable Legislation

Abstract

This article will outline the changes brought about by Regulation 883/2004 to the rules for determining which EU Member State's social security legislation is applicable to individuals under a variety of cross-border situations (Title II of regulation). We will first describe the current rules for determining the competent State. Next, we will give an overview of the new rules. In a third section, we will discuss whether the new regulation really simplifies and modernises the rules for determining the legislation applicable. We will do so by analysing some situations that were considered problematic under the old regulation. The main question will be whether Regulation 883/2004 brings the expected improvements. Finally, we will give some concluding remarks.