Europe’s top judges have backed Britain’s right to refuse to pay family welfare benefits to unemployed EU migrants who have been in Britain for less than five years.

The ruling by the European court of justice confirms that EU rules on free movement do not prevent Britain and other member states blocking access to welfare benefits if immigrants are unemployed and unable to support themselves.

The judges in Luxembourg threw out the challenge by the European commission, which argued that the decision by Britain to impose a “right to reside” test on EU immigrants before they could claim child benefit or child tax credit was discriminatory and contrary to the spirit of an EU directive.

The court ruling said there was nothing in the EU social security directives that prevented the UK imposing conditions that immigrants should be legally resident in the UK to get access to welfare benefits.

The ruling has wider implications for anticipated challenges from the Polish government and others to David Cameron’s “emergency brake”. Under this plan, new EU immigrants will be barred from accessing social security benefits for their first four years in Britain.

Marley Morris, a migration expert at the Institute of Public Policy Research, said the court’s decision was another sign – on top of other recent judgments – that it was becoming more sympathetic to the UK’s interpretation of free movement rules.

“But there are no guarantees that this will last for ever, and future judgments may go against the UK. Conversely, a vote for Brexit on 23 June is likely to create its own legal quagmire, as the subsequent negotiations will have to resolve the free movement rights of EU citizens currently living in the UK and UK citizens currently living in other EU countries in a fair and consistent way,” he said.

Conservative employment spokesman in the European Parliament Anthea McIntyre MEP said: “This is a victory for the UK and for common sense. It vindicates the prime minister’s stance, which has always been that free movement means freedom to work, not to claim benefits.

“The commission may have attempted to dictate to Britain, but it has been put in its place by the EU’s own institutions.”

Liberal Democrat MEP Catherine Bearder added: “This ruling is a victory for Britain, confirming we have a fair immigration system as well as having full access to the EU single market.

“The right to travel and work abroad is a two-way street. Around 1.2 million Brits choose to live in the EU. Leaving Europe will not only cost British jobs and push up prices, it will also reduce opportunities for Brits to live, work and study abroad.”



For the government a spokesman for HM Revenue and Customs said: “The UK welcomes the Court of Justice of the European Union’s judgment, which supports our view that we are entitled to ensure only EU migrants who have a right to be in the UK can claim our benefits.”