European Union’s Fundamental Rules of Free Movement of Persons
All EU Member States are obliged to ensure that rules laid down in Directive 2004/38/EC on the right of citizens of the Union and their family members to move and reside freely within the territory of the Member States are respected. The said rules, applying equally to Czech, German and Austrian citizens, are as follows
Right of entry
Member States shall grant you leave to enter their territory with a valid identity card or passport (Article 5 (1)).
When freedom of movement and residence may be restricted
Member States may restrict your freedom of movement and residence only on grounds of public policy, public security or public health. Your personal conduct must represent a genuine, present and sufficiently serious threat affecting one of the fundamental interests of society.
Measures taken must comply with the principle of proportionality and must be based exclusively on your immediate personal conduct. For example previous criminal convictions do not in themselves constitute grounds for taking such measures (Article 27).
Proving identity – a valid identification card is sufficient
The right to enter the territory of other EU Member States relates to your ability to prove your identity – by submitting a valid ID card or a passport.
If you do not prove your identity by a valid ID card or a passport
Where you do not have the required travel documents the Member State concerned will give you every reasonable opportunity to obtain the necessary documents or have them brought to you within a reasonable period of time, or to corroborate or prove by other means that you are covered by the right of free movement and residence (Article 5 (4)).
The proof of identity must be governed by the rules applying to the citizens of the Member State concerned.
If national legal regulations oblige citizens to always travel with an ID card and failure to comply with such duty is sanctioned, then the relevant authorities of the Member State concerned can make you liable to sanctions.
Right of residence of up to three months
You have the right of residence in the territory of another Member State for a period of up to three months without obligation to meet any conditions or any formalities other than the requirement to hold a valid identity card or passport (Article 6). Residence exceeding three months is conditional upon certain mitigating circumstances or terms concerning for example sufficient funds, employment, or sickness insurance.
Questions regarding the purpose of the journey or sufficient amount of money are inadmissible.
If you transit throughout any EU Member State or stay in its territory for a period shorter than three months, authorities of the Member State concerned are not entitled to ask you about the purpose of your journey or whether you have enough money for such a trip. Such questions are inadmissible also in the case of border checks when you are entering any EU Member State across the external border.
Travelling with cash EUR 10,000 or more
If you are travelling with cash of EUR 10,000 or more (or a corresponding amount in other currencies or easily negotiable assets – for example bonds, shares, travellers’ cheques etc), upon crossing the EU border you are obliged to submit to a customs check. This rule is linked to crossing the EU border.
There are special provisions in some Member States concerning checks and a reporting duty for inland movement of cash. Such rules are applied in addition to EU rules. Germany is one such country.