Press Release: Commission welcomes Council agreement on overhauling social security legislation

The European Commission welcomed the political agreement at the Employment and Social Affairs Council on 1 December 2003 on a major piece of new legislation co-ordinating social security systems in the EU. The new 'user-friendly' Regulation streamlines and updates the existing complex mass of rules in Regulation 1408/71. It makes it easier for workers and their families to move from one Member State to another, whether for professional or private reasons, without losing social security entitlements. The principle of equal treatment is reinforced and the legislation is simplified to ensure that the rules apply to all European Union citizens who are insured whether they are employed or self-employed workers, pensioners, civil servants, students or non active persons. The new Regulation, which was first proposed by the Commission in 1998 and will replace legislation that dates back more than thirty years, is expected to enter into force in 2006.

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http://ec.europa.eu/comm/employment_social/soc-prot/social/index_en.htm http://ec.europa.eu/comm/employment_social/soc-prot/social/index_en.htm

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