Short-term labour mobility in the EU: a legal perspective

In this chapter, we examine short-term labour mobility within the European Union (EU) from a legal perspective, focusing on the labour and social rights available to intra-EU migrants. We distinguish between "temporary" and "short-term" migration and highlight the absence of a formal legal category for the latter, which complicates both statistical representation and data collection. We analyse three key legal regimes—the free movement of workers, the posting of workers, and the EU's social security coordination framework—each containing distinct duration thresholds, from eight days to five years, that influence the granting or restriction of rights. While these thresholds create implicit gradations of mobility, we observe a consistent link between shorter durations and reduced rights. We further show how the interaction between legal provisions and statistical definitions generates conceptual and practical challenges, especially in non-standard employment contexts. Finally, we caution that introducing a formal short-term migration category could institutionalise a lower tier of rights for mobile workers. We conclude by stressing the need for legal and policy frameworks that both facilitate mobility and ensure equal labour and social rights regardless of migration duration.