The European citizenship: an open question

Abstract

The consolidation of the Status of Citizenship in the TFUE, the provisions in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU and a significant jurisprudence seem to indicate that the legal discourse about the European Citizenship is solved. This work challenges this perception.Three aspects are addressed to show the open character of the question: (i) the lack of autonomy of the Status of Citizenship in the TFUE, (ii) the added difficulties stemming from the dual conception of the Status of Citizenship in the TFUE and as fundamental rights in the Charter of Fundamental Rights and, lastly, (iii) the lack of a better discourse about the legitimacy function of citizenship. The author considers that the context of crisis and the increasing gap between citizens and EU calls for a reconsideration of the citizenship question.