The external dimension of EU social security coordination: towards a common EU approach

In the context of international migration, social security coordination is a technique used primarily by states in order to build bridges between their social security systems for securing the rights of migrants. Migrants who have careers in multiple countries risk losing their acquired rights when moving from one country to another. Currently, the key instruments in EU social security coordination are Regulations 883/2004, 987/2009 and 1231/2010. Contrary to this uniform system, the social security coordination rules applicable to persons moving from a third country to an EU Member State (or vice-versa) can be found in several instruments. This book aims to identify the different instruments of the external dimension of EU social security coordination and proposes two policy options for improving the current patchy solution while developing a common EU approach: the inclusion of social security coordination clauses in agreements with third counties and the draft of a model agreement for future use in bilateral agreement negotiations regarding social security.