CHAPTER III

RIGHT TO EQUAL TREATMENT

Right to equal treatment
Article 12
1
Third-country workers as referred to in points (b) and (c) of Article 3(1) shall enjoy equal treatment with nationals of the Member State where they reside with regard to:
a
working conditions, including pay and dismissal as well as health and safety at the workplace;
b
freedom of association and affiliation and membership of an organisation representing workers or employers or of any organisation whose members are engaged in a specific occupation, including the benefits conferred by such organisations, without prejudice to the national provisions on public policy and public security;
c
education and vocational training;
d
recognition of diplomas, certificates and other professional qualifications in accordance with the relevant national procedures;
e
branches of social security, as defined in Regulation (EC) No 883/2004;
f
tax benefits, in so far as the worker is deemed to be resident for tax purposes in the Member State concerned;
g
access to goods and services and the supply of goods and services made available to the public including procedures for obtaining housing as provided by national law, without prejudice to the freedom of contract in accordance with Union and national law;
h
advice services afforded by employment offices.
2
Member States may restrict equal treatment:
a
under point (c) of paragraph 1 by:
1. limiting its application to those third-country workers who are in employment or who have been employed and who are registered as unemployed;
2. excluding those third-country workers who have been admitted to their territory in conformity with Directive 2004/114/EC;
3. excluding study and maintenance grants and loans or other grants and loans;
4. laying down specific prerequisites including language proficiency and the payment of tuition fees, in accordance with national law, with respect to access to university and post-secondary education and to vocational training which is not directly linked to the specific employment activity;
b
by limiting the rights conferred on third-country workers under point (e) of paragraph 1, but shall not restrict such rights for third-country workers who are in employment or who have been employed for a minimum period of six months and who are registered as unemployed.
In addition, Member States may decide that point (e) of paragraph 1 with regard to family benefits shall not apply to third-country nationals who have been authorised to work in the territory of a Member State for a period not exceeding six months, to third-country nationals who have been admitted for the purpose of study, or to third-country nationals who are allowed to work on the basis of a visa.
c
under point (f) of paragraph 1 with respect to tax benefits by limiting its application to cases where the registered or usual place of residence of the family members of the third-country worker for whom he/she claims benefits, lies in the territory of the Member State concerned.
d
under point (g) of paragraph 1 by:
1. limiting its application to those third-country workers who are in employment;
2. restricting access to housing;
3
The right to equal treatment laid down in paragraph 1 shall be without prejudice to the right of the Member State to withdraw or to refuse to renew the residence permit issued under this Directive, the residence permit issued for purposes other than work, or any other authorisation to work in a Member State.
4
Third-country workers moving to a third country, or their survivors who reside in a third country and who derive rights from those workers, shall receive, in relation to old age, invalidity and death, statutory pensions based on those workers’ previous employment and acquired in accordance with the legislation referred to in Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 883/2004, under the same conditions and at the same rates as the nationals of the Member States concerned when they move to a third country.