Integration exams allowable, social requirement stripped: EU advocate

Long-term residents may still be compelled to pass a Dutch integration exam, but the exam's content will have to change, said the Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the European Union on Wednesday in Luxembourg. The advocate also said that the fine imposed by the Netherlands for those who fail to comply with integration obligations is disproportionate. The Netherlands requires foreign nationals to pass an integration exam regarding Dutch-language proficiency and knowledge of society in the Netherlands. Failing to fulfill this obligation results in a fine. A "compulsory examination designed to test language proficiency or knowledge of society does not" meet the goals that integration procedures should represent, a press release from the court states. "The introduction of the obligation to pass an integration examination also brings into question the rationale underlying the integration measures," which the advocate says is supposed to foster integration, not force a person to fit specific qualifications to reside in a specific country. The present case involves a U.S. national and a New Zealand national, who have resided in the Netherlands for over ten years, and have held long-term residence status. Both were informed that they must complete integration examinations. P and S, as they are referred to in the case, have argued that as long-term residents, they are not subject to the integration obligation. Court Advocate General Maciej Szpunar delivered an opinion which suggests that European Union Directive 2003/109 does not explicitly prohibit integration measures for non-EU nationals who are long-term residents. However, procedures like an exam must be implemented with the exclusive purpose of facilitating the integration of that person, and must not be a condition for maintaining resident status or acquiring resident rights. "In his Opinion delivered today, Advocate General Maciej Szpunar first of all points out that the directive confers a special legal status on third-country nationals who have settled permanently in the Member States because this helps promote economic and social cohesion within the EU," the release states. "This does not, however, deprive Member States of all possibility of providing for means of integration in relation to long-term residents." The opinion does not bind the Court of Justice, and the judges of the court will begin deliberating in this case, with a judgement to be delivered at a later date.