In Secretary of State for the Home Department v Muhammad Sazzadur Rahman and others, the CJEU examined the obligation to "facilitate", in accordance with national legislation, the entry and residence of "other family members" under article 3(2) of the Free Movement Directive.
The Free Movement Directive (Directive 2004/38/EC) governs the right of citizens of the European Union and their family members to move and reside freely within Member States.
Direct family members are defined under Article 2(2) and enjoy automatic right of residence. Member States enjoy a wider margin of discretion in relation to “wider family members” and Article 3(3) states that the relationship “should be examined by the host Member State on the basis of its own national legislation, in order to decide whether entry and residence could be granted to such persons”.
The Court in Rahman noted that the provision obliges the host Member State to confer an advantage on third-country nationals who have a relationship of dependence with a Union citizen, compared to a third-country national with no such relationship.
The Court stated that the host Member State should “undertake an extensive examination of the personal circumstances and shall justify any denial of entry or residence to these people”. The Court said the extent of physical or economic dependence and degree of relationship were factors to be taken into account but held that Member States had discretion to choose and apply criteria in national legislation; hence ‘wider family members’ cannot rely on Article 3(3) directly. Any decision is subject to judicial review as to whether discretion has been used within the limits of the Directive.