For members of the household of the Union citizen, these guidelines cause confusion to an area of the Directive which is already quite clear. Why?
I think thats just the memo being wrong and not the actual guidelines.
When can a member of the household be considered "dependent"?
Surley it was supposed to be:
When can a family member be considered "dependent"?
From pierre75 post:
2.1.4. Dependent family members
According to the case-law of the Court, the status of ‘dependent’ family member is the result of a factual situation characterised by the fact that material support for that family member is provided by the EU citizen or by his spouse/partner. The status of dependent family members does not presuppose a right to maintenance. There is no need to examine whether the family members concerned would in theory be able to support themselves, for example by taking up paid employment.
In order to determine whether family members are dependent, it must be assessed in the individual case whether, having regard to their financial and social conditions, they need material support to meet their essential needs in their country of origin or the country from which they came at the time when they applied to join the EU citizen (i.e. not in the host Member State where the EU citizen resides). In its judgments on the concept of dependency, the Court did not refer to any level of standard of living for determining the need for financial support by the EU citizen .
The Directive does not lay down any requirement as to the minimum duration of the dependency or the amount of material support provided, as long as the dependency is genuine and structural in character.
Dependent family members are required to present documentary evidence that they are dependent. Evidence may be adduced by any appropriate means, as confirmed by the Court . Where the family members concerned are able to provide evidence of their dependency by means other than a certifying document issued by the relevant authority of the country of origin or the country from which the family members are arriving, the host Member State may not refuse to recognise their rights. However, a mere undertaking from the EU citizen to support the family member concerned is not sufficient in itself to establish the existence of dependence.
In accordance with Article 3(2), Member States have a certain degree of discretion in laying down criteria to be taken into account when deciding whether to grant the rights under the Directive to "other dependent family members". However, Member States do not enjoy unrestricted liberty in laying down such criteria. In order to maintain the unity of the family in a broad sense, the national legislation must provide for a careful examination of the relevant personal circumstances of the applicants concerned, taking into consideration their relationship with the EU citizen or any other circumstances, such as their financial or physical dependence, as stipulated in Recital 6.
Any negative decision is subject to all the material and procedural safeguards of the Directive. It must be fully justified in writing and open to appeal.
This is just for other dependent family members so the "or" in the directive is still intact.
