20 June 2019
A Latvian national living in the UK since 2008 was entitled to state pension credit from October 2012, the Supreme Court has unanimously ruled, in Secretary of State for Work and Pensions v Gubeladze [2019] UKSC 31
Latvia joined the EU in 2003, and existing member states were allowed to regulate access to their labour markets on a tapered basis for up to seven years. The Secretary of State argued Gubeladze required three years’ right of residence under the Citizens Directive. Rejecting this argument, the court held that derogation from the principle of freedom of movement must be subject to proportionality.
